Is your child aging out of the Early Intervention program? Questions about what to look for next in terms of speech and language development? Our speech-language pathologist Jessie Delos Reyes provides a helpful checklist for upcoming milestones and developmental red flags:
36-48 months of age
Receptive Language (what your child understands):
- Understands 1,200-2000+ words
- Hears and responds when you call them from another room
- Follows simple commands if item is out of sight
- Follows two- and three step directions
- Understands words for some primary colors (i.e. can point to named colors)
- Understands some simple shapes (circle, square)
- Understands concepts (big/small, soft/hard, rough/smooth) when contrast is presented
- Follows simple two- and three-step directions
- Listens and understands longer stories
Expressive Language (how your child uses language to express himself and communicate needs and wants):
- Uses 1,000-1,600+ words
- Speech intelligibility is 90% or greater
- Talks about activities at school or with friends
- Talks about daily happenings using about four sentences at a time
- Requests permission
- Shares and ask for turns
- Answers simple “who?”, “what?”, and “where?” questions
- Asks “when” and “how” questions
- Uses pronouns: I, you, me, we, they, us, hers, his, them
- Uses plurals
- Uses four or more words in a sentence
- Labels parts of an object (wheels, steering wheel)
- Begins to express feelings (sad, happy, frustrated)
Speech and language red flags:
- Difficulty being understood by familiar and unfamiliar listeners
- Consistently dropping beginnings or endings of words (“ike” for “bike,” “ca” for “cat”)
- Difficulty producing three to four word phrases
- Difficulty following two- and three-step directions and simple sequences
- Inconsistently answering simple WH questions (who, what, when, where)
- Difficulty stating wants and needs
- Difficulty playing with others or a lack of interest in other children
If you have concerns regarding your child’s speech and language development, call our office to schedule an evaluation with a speech language pathologist.
Jessie Delos Reyes, MA, CF-SLP