I'm starting to feel a little concerned about how many words my son knows/says on a regular basis. WE have some words - Mom (it's Mom, mom, mom all day long), Dad, Lala (for his sitter - Paula), Baba (sippy), my sou-sou (for his pacifier), thank-you and some others. He'll also repeat words we say. But after spending time with another little boy his age at a playdate and seeing how much of a chatter box he is, I'm a little concerned. I'm wondering if he's behind and if he is, if there are things I can ask my DCP to do with him during the day to work with us to get him back on track.
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Talk talk talk all day long. She can help him learn the "rules" of conversation by speaking to him, pausing when it is his turn (even if he doesn't respond).
Comparing kids can cause a lot of stress. Every child develops at his/her own pace.
My daughter was diagnosed with a speech delay at 15 months. She was referred to a children's centre for therapy. By the time we waded through the waitlist and she saw the therapist at 2 years old, she was no longer behind, but was actually advanced!
I have noticed a huge language explosion in toddlers around 18 months. Keep labelling everything you see (even if people look at you funny ) and keep track of your progress. If you are still feeling uneasy at your next doctor's appointment, ask your family doctor what they think. They can refer you for speech thereapy if they have concerns.
The frustrating thing is that I know he knows what the words mean. For example, I just told him to pet one of our dogs, and he did. Then I told him to pet the other dog - and he did. He knows exactly what I mean but won't say the words.
Sounds like your son knows exactly what is going on, which is great. Talking takes work, a lot more effort then we realize. At least you know he's listening!
The more words he hears, the more he'll learn As long as he can communicate his needs/wants it shouldn't be a problem for your DCP. She'll get to know his language too.
I agree keep talking to your son. He will catch on and faster than you know it. How old is he again?
My son hardly said a word around 13/14 months and has just exploded with his language in the last couple months.
Remember that boys do tend to be slower than girls.
I know that around here you can self-refer to our children's centre for therapy so you might want to look into that. I know here the wait time is substantial and if when his name gets to the top, go in and have the observation done and if he doesn't need it at least you have piece of mind.
I know here in Ontario the Nipissing Developmental Screens are widely used and I do like them since they give you hints/tips on helping to improve your child.
Here is a quote from their website:
"The Nipissing District Developmental ScreenTM * was compiled by a multi-disciplinary team. This easy tool examines thirteen key developmental stages: 1 & 2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 9 months, 12 months, 15 months, 18 months, 2 years, 30 months, 3 years, 4 years, 5 years and 6 years.
The Screen explores a child's skills in the following areas: vision, hearing, speech, language, communication, gross motor, fine motor, cognitive, social/emotional and self-help.
The Nipissing District Developmental Screen TM * is available in English, French, Spanish, Chinese and Vietnamese. Age appropriate activities which are designed to promote overall development accompany the Screens."
Ontario residents can be emailed or use an interactive screen on your computer. I know that I have copies of all the screens on my computer somewhere.
https://www.nddswebsvcs.ca/ndds/servlets/ndds4ontario.html
Good luck and I'm sure he'll be a chatterbox before you know it!!!
I agree that he is doing good.
Here is a fantastic developmental chart as well: http://www.bpl.bc.ca/gab/documents/ecdchartenglish.pdf
I also think that it's important that you do talk to him with full sentence. I've notice that sometime I was cutting my phrase to make sure that she did understand me. I really didn't notice that I did at first. I would say (all in French) "Milk Valerie"? instead of "DO you want some milk, Valerie?". Now that I notice it,and started to talk to her with full phrases, I can see Valerie saying more phrase
He'll be 16 months this week. He'll repeat words after us if we prompt him continually (ie - RJ, this is a duck, can you say duck, do you have a rubber duck, duck?) And he does say thank-you when you give him something, likely because I always say thank-you if he hands me something I ask for and give him applause/cheers. I was just really shocked when we were at a playdate with a little guy his exact age who would open a book, point to a duck and announce it was a duck. Made me wonder if RJ is behind and if I should be concerned. He babbles all day long, and says a few simple sentences (Mom, my sou-sou for his pascifier, I uv you, Mom thank-you), but right now, all he really seems to say all day long is Mom.