What Can I Do

I think you should stop worrying about drilling him, and let him proceed at his own pace. You will relax, he will relax, and then you can just tell everyone else to stop worrying too! Kids progress at their own rate, and pushing him won't make it come any faster. Just enjoy the age that he is--before you know it, he'll be talking up a storm. My little boy only said a few words at 2, and he didn't sit well for a story either. But now he's 3-1/2 and talks like a little man. His attention span is great too. So just enjoy the age that he is--they grow up so fast!!

I am not sure of your location, but maybe if this doesn't help you, it can help somebody else.

Contact the Davis County School District. I searched online after getting a tip from another mother. The number for a free evaulation is ###-###-#### and her name is Medra or Mendra. I called and got a referral to be seen within two weeks. She told me that sometimes it takes awhile b/c they have so many referrals and not enough speech therapists. My daughter's appt. isn't for another week, so I can't give you any more information than that. I had been told (by another mother) if your child qualifies for speech therapy, that the therapy is free and in your home. The child can also qualify for free headstart. I can't verify that at this point. I do know that the first appointment is free but it isn't in my home. I am taking her to one of their locations located in Clearfield. I was told it would be about an hour long and I would be able to be with her. They try to make it very comfortable for the child and it is more like playing than "testing".

I hope that helps you and you are within the school district....if not, I would try your own district and see what programs they have. If I remember correctly, it wasn't exactly advertised that they offer free services. I just made the phone call. GL!

My cousins little girl just had a similar problem, they started taking her to a speech therapist, and immediately she started doing better, she didn't mind going because it was fun, so when you do sit down with your son to teach him, make sure that he is having fun, I'm sure that will make a big difference. It may also be good to arrange playdates with other kids, my daughter seem to be a bit behind, but started to do better after she started socializing with other kids. If you really think that there is a problem, or you are worried about it, then you should get him tested, it won't hurt him, and if there is, it would be better to catch it earlier. Good luck.

Lacey,

There are many reasons for toddlers to have speech issues.
It is wise to start with a visit to your doctor. Often
there are some muscle issues of the tongue and mouth that
can delay speech. Hearing can also play an important role,
and if there is a problem with hearing, speech is effected.
Your doctor can evaluate some of these issues and recommend
a plan of action. Also, in Colorado, if speech therapy or
exercises are needed, in home visits are covered by the state
for preschool children when there is a delay. It is possible
that your son is also frustrated by his lack of words and this
can lead to screaming and attention challenges. Please
understand that sometimes kids just have delays even when we
do everything. However, at this point, it is time to seek
help from a physician and have your son evaluated. Hang in there
and remember once he starts talking, he'll never stop. Take care,
C.

Hi! I know exactly how you feel. Starting at age 1 we have taken our son to a speech therapist/audiologist every six months, only to be told that he is still in the normal range just at the low end. He had very few words at age 2 but could understand everything! And he pretty much NEVER sits still. I made him an ABC book with our family and his things and sometimes we can get through that one! Anyway, they said to keep trying to read to him... a page or two at a time is okay. Picture books with objects you can describe much be less frustrating than trying to get through a story. If it will make you feel better, see a specialist just to be sure, but I wouldn't worry too much. Our son is almost two and a half now and talking up a storm. He just came in from outside to tell me "He hit the baseball." The same thing happened to another friend with her son. She told me that one day he will just start talking and that is exactly what happened! Good luck!

As hard as it may be, you have to disregard all the people pressuring you to do certain things with your son. You know him the best and every child is different and develops in his/her own unique way. My son didn't say much of anything until he turned 2 and then within about 6 weeks he was speaking in sentences. Read to him even if he isn't sitting in your lap and looking at the pictures. Lots of kids are very auditory and will easily pick up the language just with hearing it. Go to the library or look on the internet for books of finger plays and rhymes you can do with your son. They are short and simple ways to do an activity with him that don't need more then a minute of attention. Most of all, try not to worry. He will talk in his own time. I had a friend who's son didn't talk until almost 3 but ended up talking up a storm. I think some kids just take it all in for a longer time and then come out like gang busters. The key to know if there is any possible problem is if he understands what you are saying. If he seems to understand what you are saying to him then you just will have to wait and see how he develops. God Bless you.

I have read all of the responses you recieved and i agree with most of them. All kids are different. You should rule out the negative possibilities, if you need to have a peace of mind. However, I believe your son will speak when he is ready too. My son said less than 10 words by the age of 3!!!!!
Now I can't get him to be quiet. He even gets warnings in school about his chattering. He is going on 8 and he says he can't control his mouth.

Relax, Don't worry, You might end up being in my shoes soon.

I am facing the exact same thing with my 1 year old. My doctor told me to contact a local elementary school (even though your child is not in the school system yet they are still responsible for kids 0-5) and ask for a referral to a speech therapist. The evaluation and treatment is completely paid for by the school district so take advantage!!
Good luck!

My son only had about 12 words when he was two, and of those, only about 5 of those understandable by other people. The average two year old has over 200 words. You MUST get your son tested for language/speech delay, a hearing test, as well as tested for one of the PDD categories. My son has been in speech therapy since he was two and let me tell you, the first time he said "I love you" was in sign language and it made me cry like a baby. You really need to get him in speech therapy right away so that by the time he gets to school, he will be mostly caught up. It's a serious problem and people are right to be worried that your son is not talking yet.

Good luck!

I have a grandson who could only say a few words when he was two. My step daughter took him to the doctor to see if there was a problem because others told her there must be something wrong. Honestly, there is nothing wrong with them... When they are ready to talk they will and you will not be able to keep them quiet. When I was babysitting him, I bought some of those thick puzzles, and learning toys that he enjoyed and worked with him that way. He was always on the go but always would come back and forth to me and I would just get the puzzle right back out and we would work on it while he was standing beside me. It just takes time and patience. Hope I could be of some help to you.
R.

Hi Lacey

Well, the first thing you might want to do is to get his hearing tested, to make sure there is nothing wrong there. Also talk to the doctor to make sure there isn't some other reason developmetally that could be going on. After everything like that is ruled out then I would say to read to him anyway, even when he not sitting still and looking to look at pictures, do it while he playing on the floor. Play on the floor with him and talk to him. Ask him if he want to play with the cars or blocks and make him say it, even if it is just "B" or "C". Then say something like "Oh you want to play blocks" and sound it out for him. When getting him dressed talk to him about what to where, you can say "do you want to where the shirt with cars on it or the spiderman shirt". When its lunch time ask him if want a sandwich or mac and cheess. If all he saids is "EEss" then you making progress. But, make him say something back to you. You don't need to "Drill him" but don't get him to say something more than just because he his pointing and crying for it, that requires no motivation for talking (everthing requires motivation when you are talking about kids). The more word you say to him the more he will learn to talk. When you go for a walk, talk to about what you see, say thigs like "see the pretty flowers, look a the little birds or the big goose, or don't the birds sound pretty". He could be say more than what you think but just not put all the sound in the words. My own son (now 5) still doesn't say everything clearly, and leaves sounds out, so we have to try to figure out what he is saying, (he still likes to wing on the wings at the park). There is also hundreds of songs to sing, get a sing along tape and play it. Barney (I know you hate barney, but little kids like it), Wiggles, Seseame Street are shows that have songs to sing and you can sit and watch a little each day. Get him in a play group, or a mommy and me group (I like group call MOPS, mothers of preschoolers) some place to socialize every week with other kids. The more interaction (with you, dad and others) and the more he hears, the more he will talk.

Also, channel 9 news has these help line fairly often, that have experts for whatever, law, money question, and yes, child developement. You can call them and ask them when the next children developement people will be on, or if they can put you in touch with them some other way if this is really bothering you.
Hope this helps.

Lacey,

I went through the same thing (just recently). What you need to remember is every child develops at his/her own pace. Just don't give up on him. Follow him around and see what he seems most interested in and get involved in that with him. Also you might want to look for playgroups or educational events in your area. He might feel more willing to learn if there are other children his age around.

N.

Have you had your sons hearing checked? If he can't hear the words properly, he won't be able to speak them.

Encourage him to talk by praising him when he says words. Make sure you say the words clearly to him when he does talk.

Also, be patient. I have seen a lot of kids who seem to say absouletly nothing at the age of 2 or 3. Then, all of a sudden, they will speak sentences. My sister was one of these kids while we were grwoing up. My friends daughter said almost nothing. Just cried. Almost out of nowhere, she started making requests on what movied to watch, food to eat, ect. in regular length sentences.

As far as everyone getting on your case, that is normal. Welcome to the "mommy world." You can expect to hear advice from people, s lot of people. Some of the advice you hear may contradict someone else's. Are you more frustrated with your son not being able to speak as others "say" or are you overwhelmed with people bugging you about this. You know your child better then anyone else. You know what your child needs and wants. Sometimes our motherly instincts go beyond doctor's, at least in my opinion. Have you checked out any online developmental stages information or can you read a Parenting magazine? That may help a lot.

R.

Lacey,
Hi, I can sympathize with you because I got quite a bit of comments about my little girl because she didn't say hardly anything until AFTER she was 2. I even got pamphlets to go and get her tested from people and I started to really worry. So first of all try not to worry yourself. Check into a few things as other moms have mentioned and check his comprehension.
The best thing that you can do is play with him and read to him. By playing you need to really interact and I know that's hard as a mom because we're always so busy doing other stuff. I think what helped my daughter is that we read to her every day before her nap and every night before sleep. I also played with her a lot with educational toys from storytimefelts.com Toys like flannel boards that encourage free play are important because it opens up the imagination of a child and allows for unstructured play. Even if they aren't saying anything, if you are talking to them and telling them stories they will gain language skills. There are many felt sets that aid in exposure for colors, numbers, matching, animals, rhyming,etc.
Keep being a good mom and follow your instincts. Be sure that he is not spending too much time in front of the TV, even if it is PBS or educational, the recommended amount of television for children under two is actually zero! So use as much time as you can to incoporate free play and reading, exposure to music and imaginative play.
After I got all worried about my daughter a few months after her second birthday she was talking and has never stopped since. Now she says absolutely everything as clear as a bell and in fact I even quiz her and say "who is the secretary of state?" and she says "Condoleeza Rice." It's so funny to hear a little four year old say big words like that.
Good luck!

I am a special education major so I have taken several classes about language and language development and know a little about it. The most important thing at this age is receptive language meaning that he understands what is spoken to him. It sounds like that is not a problem. I would have him checked out to make sure there is not something going on just because if there is the sooner you catch it and get help the better for the future prognosis. My friend's son only spoke a few words until he was almost 4 then one day he said, "The walls in the this room are ugly, you should paint them." He started talking in full sentances and is right on track with language today. So you never know. I wouldn't worry but it is something I would look into.

Lacey,

I understand your frustration. Definitely call Head Start. It's through the Public Schools and free. They will direct you down the right road. Also we have loved Clarisse Simonini at the Colorado Center for Speech and Hearing. She has been very helpful and encouraging to me over the last few years. I hope this helps. My thought is it's better to know now than to wish you had done something when there are bigger problems to be solved. Good luck.

Please do not worry about what to do and what not to do. You are his mother, and do not think you have to raise a child by how society tells us to. My daughter was the same way a few months ago, she only would say "mom" or "up". What helped was repeating things in the store going shopping, or at home around the house. Say them clear, loud and let them watch your lips as you say or act out what your speech. Talking a lot helps, also other siblings. Thanks to my 4 year old my 18 month old says "why" now. What about taking her to social activities, like a moms group or playdates with other children? I know it's always hard to find activities but theres a ton out there. Try the Leasure magazine that cities put together, theres always a ton of activities for smaller groups. Play doh, wooden puzzles just dont give up on reading to him. I know it's hard, but maybe try a quieter time like near bed or nap time. That way he might be more focused, and less restless to hear you read to him. It's very hard at this age to get a child to sit still, but reward it when it does happen. Just inforce what you want him to do no matter how long it takes, and always make sure he knows your proud when he completes a task or does a good job. Hang in there mom, if you ever need to talk email me! ____@____.com I do a daycare during the day, and focus on positive redirection rather then a punishment method. Good Luck!

I agree that the best thing you can do is just keep talking to your son. Label anything and everything. When you give him some milk, say, "Here's your milk." When playing, just describe what you're doing, "Mommy's rolling the ball to you!" Eventually he'll catch on. You don't need any sort of organized activities or curriculum. And don't worry if you can't read a book in one sitting. Even if you only read two pages, it's the idea of reading and language that's important. And let him take the lead and flip through the pages and just describe what you see and ask him if he can point to objects on the page. It won't be long before he's talking your ear off!!!

My son was in a similar situation. He was slow to talk, so at about 18 months (when I first realized that he was behind his cousin of the same age) I started signing with him. I would always use the words and signs together. Soon he learned the signs and would sign his wants to me. Now he is 2 1/2 and he talks just fine. He even makes me laugh because some of the signs he still uses! I would recommend "Signing Time" because it is fun for kids to watch. I am pretty sure they have a web site.

As far as reading, again, my son was the same way. Keep reading to him, but make sure it is always a positive thing. Eventually he will be able to sit in your lap and listen as you read a book. One day he will even grab as many books as he can hold in his little hands and ask you to read him a book. Don't give up on reading, it is something that will stick with him forever. I would recommend getting some books with one word pages or interactive books like fuzzy animals he can pet or finger puppets (I have found some at Target)

Good luck!

My son was a little late in talking. I took him to his doctor to talk to him about this, because I thought he should be talking a lot more. This is what the doctor told me to do, and it really helped. My son would point to a lot things he wanted and I would have to force him to tell me what he wanted. I wouldn't get him his juice until he told he wanted juice. I always talked to him to tell him what things were and always asked him to repeat after me. He got really tired of not getting what he wanted that he started to talk more. He is about to turn 3 and now he doesn't stop talking. As far as getting his attention, find the things that he really loves to do and incorporate learning things with the things he enjoys. Just remember your child is at that age where they constantly have ants in their pants. It will change, just give it time and have a lot of patience.