How to tell if my child has a speech delay/ speech regression

It does seem a little early to be worried, but I commend you for being proactive and thinking about it. I found this chart that tells what sort of "verbal" skills children should have at each age and when to be concerned:

Birth to 2 months:
-Does not cry when hungry or uncomfortable
-Does not make comfort sounds or sucking sounds
-Cry does not vary in pitch, length and volume to indicate different needs
-Difficulty establishing/maintaining a rhythmical suck/swallow pattern
-Significant loss of breast milk/formula out of side of mouth during feeding

3-5 Months:
-Vocalizes separately from body movements (sound is not a response to body movement)
-Inability to establish or maintain face to face communication during feeding
-Does not vocalize in response to sound stimulation
-Has not begun to laugh by 5 months in response to play
-Difficulty with feedings such as above

5-7 Months:
-Does not babble during play or in response to stimulation (may suggest a hearing problem)
-Does not use voice to vocalize attitudes other than crying
-Does not respond to sound stimulation (indicative of hearing problem)
-Difficulty with swallowing early solids or other feeding issues

7-9 Months:
-Does not look toward sounds or own name
-Is not babbling double consonants (bababa…)
-Difficulty with textures in foods (gagging, chocking, etc.)
-Is unable to participate in conversations with adults using babbling noises
-Does not say “mama” or “dada” nonspecifically
-Does not use different inflections to produce exclamations

9-12 Months:
-Is unable to successfully eat early finger foods or munch/bite on foods
-Cannot babble single consonants such as “ba” or “da”
-Does not respond to words/language appropriately
-Does not experiment with language when playing independently
-Does not participate in conversations by responding with vocalizations

12-15 Months:
-Does not use inflection during vocalization
-Is not experimenting with language during play
-Is not using 1-3 words spontaneously while repeating additional words
-Does not vocalize or gesture to communicate needs
-Is not using “no” emphatically and meaningfully
-Is not using exclamatory expressions such as “Oh-oh”, “No-no”, “Ta-da”, etc.

15-18 Months:
-Is not attempting to sing songs
-Cannot use 10-15 words spontaneously
-Is not using vocalization in conjunction with gestures
-Does not use language to communicate needs
-Is not repeating sounds or words or imitating environmental sounds
-Is not jabbering tunefully during play
-Continues to demonstrate eating problems (swallowing issues, choking, etc.)

18-24 Months:
-Is not using jargon with good inflection
-Cannot label 2-4 pictures while looking at a book
-Is not putting 2-4 words together to form short sentences or communicate needs
-Does not understand nouns, verbs and modifiers and their uses
-Is not using intelligible words to communicate needs
-Cannot imitate 2-4 word phrases
-Does not relay experiences using jargon, words and/or gestures

24-33 Months:
-Cannot sing phrases of songs
-Is not using three word sentences
-Is not using a wide range of consonant and vowel sounds
-Does not use past tense words (“He runned”)
-Is not expressing frustration at not being understood
-Does not use up to or more than 50 expressive words
-Is not imitating phrases or experimenting with new words

33-36 Months:
-Is not responding to questions when asked things
-Is not producing correct beginning sounds of words
-Is having a hard time understanding prepositions
-Is not speaking in complete sentences
-Does not use plurals to refer to more than one (even if not correct)
-Is not participating in storytelling
-Does not have expressive vocabulary of ###-###-#### words
-Is not using expressive vocabulary to communicate all needs
-Is not using sentences to communicate

Hi M.,
I am a pediatric speech-language pathologist who works with kids ages birth to three. It's not true that a speech therapist will not take you seriously until age 2 (I read that in one of the previous posts)..but many times kids don't qualify until towards that age (in Wisconsin they need to exhibit at least a 25% delay to qualify for services)..0-24% is considered within the normal range. Typically, a child of 18 months should have about 10-15 words on their own and be imitating sounds and parts of words that you say. The fact that he leaves off the ends of words is not a concern at this age..it is a normal thing for kids to do that this early on. I would say continue to provide him with good language models, speak in 1-2 words/phrases to him to model words at his level (ex: "shoes on", "milk please", etc), read lots of books (and dont' necessarily "read" the story but instead point out pictures and talk about what's happening in the pictures in simple terms). Chances are he will get it on his own and be fine..but if in the next few months he just doesn't seem to be progressing and you are trying all the above, then ask your doctor about getting a speech evaluation :) I hope this helps!

At this time I wouldn't worry about it. My son is 16 months old and maybe says 3 words. Our doctor isn't concerned yet. If you wanted to try something to encourge him to speak more, you could go to your local library and see if they have a video called Baby Babble. It's done by 2 speach therapists. My sons watch parts of it sometimes at daycare and they really like it. We've noticed some of the sounds our 16 month old is making is on that video.

Hi M.~

Not sure if this will be helpful to you or not but I guess all I can say is I wish someone would have shared this with me sooner that they did.

My daughter has speech delays and she is almost 4; however, we have been getting her help now since she was 3. The thing that really started to help make a difference for her was getting her on a Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free diet along with supplementing her diet with good food supplements! Within a weeks time or so people were noticing the clarity in her words along with other things.

The biggest problem with wheat and dairy today especially for our little ones is it is SO hard for them to digest and it causes so many problems with their gut and the breakdown of it in the body. Basically it is an allergen for them.

Not sure again if this is something you want to explore but I just wanted to share it with you in case it is helpful!

Thanks for letting me share~
A.

Each child is different. My son was speaking his first words at 7 months... now he's 4 & we can get him to be quiet! :)

On the other hand, I know a person with a 2 year old that uses a handful of words, but doesn't really "speak" yet.

If you're concerned, definitely talk with your pediatrician. The only advice I would give is to make sure you're always using proper words with him & not baby talk. Talk to him frequently even when it seems silly or you think he wouldn't understand - read him the grocery list at the store, talk to him about what you're looking for when you're shopping, explain what you're making for dinner. It seems goofy, but I swear it's one of the biggest reasons our son started talking so early.

Good luck!

M., I would be worried about his regression of language opposed to lack of language. I would wait until he isn't sick and see if it comes back. It is doesn't, take him to a specialist for autism. The sooner the better.

Hi M.,

We had the same concern with our twin boys at the same age as your son, and still do to this day. You can go to the doc, but our pediatrician told us that speech therapists and early intervention and others won't take it seriously until the child is 2 and still performing below average. I'm sure you're worried about the special needs piece, and maybe having an eval by your ped would be helpful to check for other signs.

Also, you can always call and request a screening by early intervention to see if they think there is a delay no matter what age your child is now.

We had a screening and full assessment after our boys turned 2, and it turns out there is a speech delay. Before the age of 2, however, I couldn't get anyone to take me seriously. When they were younger they had a screening and I was told to wait and get another screening when they turn 2 because they don't diagnose a problem until then.

In the mean time keep reading to him, pointing out the pictures, saying the alphabet and counting, talking, talking, and talking to try and help. It may be that your son learned the words then has moved on to learn something else and isn't bothering. My boys have known how to say Mama and Dada since they were 16 months old, but are just NOW (26 months) saying it regularly.

I hope this is clear, I know it can be confusing. Good luck!

If you are really worried bring it up to the doc, they tell you what to look for. My daughter would stop using a word once is thought she "mastered" it, which was really frustrating but she is now 26 months and shortly after her 2nd birthday has started to use all the words she had started with again and correctly.

Every child is different but for your peace of mind talk to the doc and ask what signs you should for if he is "on track" or signs that might suggested something else needs to be checked out.