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Preemie Books
The
Preemie Parents Companion: The Essential Guide to Caring for Your Premature Baby
in the Hospital, at Home, and Through the First Years by Susan L Madden M.S,
William Sears MD, Jane E Stewart MD
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Speech
and Language: Causes, Milestones and Suggestions Speech
is a skill that children begin to develop with the first sounds they make as
babies. For most children, their first words are made up of simple sounds such
as Mama, Dada or bye-bye. Gradually children begin to use their speech skills,
or sounds, to form language. Language
refers to the use of words and sentences to convey ideas. As children begin to
develop more complicated language, they produce longer words that require more
fine motor control. By the time they are ready to go to school, most children
have speech that is easily understood by an unfamiliar listener.
However, some children take longer to develop their speech to a level
where everything they say can be understood. These speech or language delays can
occur for a variety of reasons. CAUSES
OF DELAYS 1.
Hearing Loss: Children learn to speak by hearing others speak. So when repeat
ear infections or other hearing problems occur children can not hear speech
correctly so cannot learn to speak correctly. For example, "cat",
"hat, "sat" may all sound the same to a hearing impaired child.
From 12 months to 4 years of age language development is at its peak, so
repeated ear infections during this time may affect speech and language. 2.
Language Delay: Children may have difficulty learning the meaning of words and
how to use words in sentences. Learning
delays affect language acquisition. 3.
Genetic Inheritance: It is common
but not inevitable that late speech development runs in families. One or both
parents, or any number of relatives may have had speech problems when they were
young. However, children with slow speech development do not always have parents
who had the same problem. 4.
Bad Speech Habits: When children are beginning to speak they say many words
incorrectly. If a child repeats an incorrect pattern long enough they learn it
as a habit. For example, a child
may say “bor if” instead of “for if.” If uncorrected the bad speech will become habit. While
these are the most common, they are by no means the only causes for speech or
language delays. A physician can
help you determine if a delay is due to physical or other causes. SPEECH
MILESTONES 3
MONTHS: A
baby should become startled at loud noises, soothed by calm, gentle voices, cry,
gurgle, and grunt. 6
MONTHS: Baby
watches your face when you talk, tries to "talk" to you, coos and
squeals for attention. 1
YEAR: The
child understands some common words when used with gestures, like "bye,
bye", and tries to say words like- "ba ba", "ma, ma." 18
MONTHS:
One-year-old children should be able to understand a variety of words and should
be using a few single words. The
child should be babbling, understanding simple questions/statements such as
"where is your nose?, and "give me". 2
YEARS: By age two, words should be combined into two and three-word
phrases and sentences, such as "more milk", "all gone",
"my turn". The child also
understands "where is mommy/daddy?" and simple directions such as,
"get your coat". Two-year-olds understand more words than they can
speak. A two-year-old understands
approximately 300 words. 3
YEARS: A
three-year-old can follow simple directions such as, “time to take a bath,”
"tell him your name.” She
can also put an object in, under, or on top of a table when asked.
She can also answer simple questions about objects such as “which one
is bigger?” By age three a child
understands approximately 900 words and speaks 200 words clearly. 4
YEARS: A
four-year-old can follow two-step directions such as "close the book and
give it to me". She also knows
her first and last name, can answer reasoning questions such as, "What do
we do when we're cold?", and can tell a short story such as, "two kids
played ball." Sentences are
usually 4 to 5 words long. By four a child is giving directions such as
"put my shoes on" and asking many questions. A four-year-old
understands 1500-2000 words and can use the following pronouns:
he, she, you, me, I, mine. 5
YEARS: A child this age can follow 3 related directions such as
"get your crayons, make a picture and give it to the baby".
Most letters are pronounced accurately except perhaps for
L,R,S,K,TH,CH,SH,TH. A
five-year-old can describe objects and events and can tell you the meaning of
words. A five-year-old typically
understands 2500-2800 words, speaks in 5-8 word sentences, uses 1500-2000 words
and tells long stories accurately 6
YEARS: By
this age a child understands 13,000 words, understands opposites, classifies
according to form, color and use, and uses all pronouns correctly. 7
YEARS: A
child this age can now understand 20,000-26,000 words, understands time
intervals and seasons of the year, and is aware of mistakes in other peoples’
speech. WHAT
TO DO TO IMPROVE YOUR CHILD’S SPEECH AND LANGUAGE 1.
Be honest when you do not understand what your child says. Don't pretend that
you understand by saying "OK" or "Yes, that's right."
Encourage, but don’t force, your child to try to tell you again. When you do
understand what your child says letting her know will encourage good language
use. 2.
Model good speech. When your child makes errors repeat what she attempted to say
correctly. Children learn correct speech by listening to you talk and read
correctly. 3.
Read to your child. Children acquire vocabulary and speech sound production
gradually. Capitalizing on a child’s desire to repeatedly read the same book
increases familiarity with language. The
more she hears the words and sentences the more likely she is to retain and use
the language. 4.
Consult a professional if you have any concerns about your child’s speech or
language. Your physician should be able to refer you to a speech therapist or
speech pathologist if further evaluation is necessary. If there is a problem,
early attention is important. If there is no problem, you will be relieved of
worry. No child is too young to be helped and language is an important life
tool, so if you are in doubt have your child’s language and speech evaluated. Sources
and Resources: "Speech
and Language Development Chart - Second Edition," by Addy Gard, Leslea
Gilman, and Jim Gorman (Copyright 1993, PRO-ED, Inc.). http://www.nationalspeech.com/safari/ NOTE: This article is simply a guideline and should not be used to
diagnose speech delays. Each child is different so a diagnosis can ONLY be
confirmed by a registered Speech Therapist or Speech Pathologist.
Always have a licensed professional make a diagnosis. Kimberly
Powell is mother to three-year-old Senia, a former 1 pound, 15 ounce, 28 weeker.
She compiled, co-wrote and co-edited Living Miracles:
Stories
of Hope from Parents of Premature Babies (St. Martin’s Press, April 2000)
with Kim Wilson.
Professionally she is professor and department chair of
Communication/Linguistics at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. Copyright © Kimberly Powell. Please send your reprint requests to Kimberly at: powellki@martin.luther.edu |
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