# The "2 and not talking" thread



## PepsiChic

Thought it might be nice to have a thread for the mummies with 2+ year olds that arent yet talking or saying a great deal! 

Barry is almost 25 months old and says very few words and will only say them if prompted. So if I say "Barry say Green" he says "greeee" if i show him something thats green and tell him its green he wont say it back.

Same with the word "cat" if I ask him to say cat he'll say "ca" and he knows what a cat is (we have 3 of them) and if i ask him to go stroke the cat he'll do it, but he never points at them and says the word or anything like that.

This is pretty much the same for every word he knows...not that he knows a lot :dohh:

I read to him daily, we do the My Baby Can Read dvds and place cards and books and he follows the instructions "put your arms up" etc but he doesnt say a word or try to copy anything I say! 

It can be frustrating mainly because people like IL's wont stop about how he should be saying more etc :growlmad:


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## Lilicat

My son is 2 years 4 months and doesn't talk at all. It is a bit different because he is autistic so that is probably the cause. 

I would just love if it he could say Mummy.


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## sunshine114

You have described my boy down to a T! He's 2 next Thursday, and will only say mum or dad when prompted. We've been trying to get him to call us from another room, so if I'm in the living room then I'll say "call daddy," and he'll go "dad dad dad dad," until my DH responds. We're hoping by doing that he will learn if he speaks he can communicate what he wants.

He has his own little signs for things, which only us and close family know, so he does communicate but in his own way.

We read, play games, practise talking, sing nursery rhymes, do flashcards etc - everything they say you should do, and it is so frustrating when we don't seem to get anywhere!!!

ETA: His comprehension is amazing though - and if you ask him how old he will be next week he puts up two fingers, so he knows - he just won't say!!!!


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## isil

My son didn't talk til 2 1/2. Sometimes they just take time :)

The thing that seemed to help with him was giving him a very specific phrase and getting him to say it. My friend had a cuckoo clock and he loved it. We'd say 'more bird' and get him to say it. When he said it, we made the cuckoo come out of the clock. He was very physically and would much rather drag me somewhere and show me, than tell me. 

He had a short course of speech therapy for one specific sound (s). The therapist thinks the problem developed because of the speed his language developed at - so fast! 

As you can see from my ticker he's just turned 4 and he has an amazing vocabulary and talks non-stop :) 

Have faith, and try not to be bothered when people are on about how much their kids can say :dohh:


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## eblondie

Hi Pepsi Chic. How are you? Its been ages! My LO is almost 2.5yrs and his language is extremely limited. I find this very difficult in social situations as LO can become frustrated when he can't tell adults what he wants.


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## PepsiChic

Hiya eblondie! Im good, exhausted from the sickness but being kept on my toes by Barry!

Teh frustration is an issue for us too, Barry tries to take you to what he wants rather then saying it and if im busy, like sat on the loo, and I cant go he gets really upset!


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## staycutee

My son's and 2 and 8 months and only recently started talking. It's frustrating though, he knows how to speak full sentences (ones I've taught such as Can I have juice please) but he would rather just whine juiiiice! His pronunciation isn't very good either.


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## Nats21

Nice idea for a thread hun :thumbup: 

Callums getting better now but its took a bit of time, his understanding was always there, he knows what you mean its just getting him to say it, I think sometimes its more stubbernous then anything. Hes started saying 2 words in a row now (mainly 'oh dear'!) but before that he didn't really say much, its only been recently where hes started saying more, hes more behind then some of my friends kids though but they're all different and Callums more ahead in other areas then they are, they all get there in the end though. 

We do lots of stories as hes always enjoyed these and do flash cards, the other day he was playing with a his playfood and found a lemon, he stopped what he was doing went over to the flash cards looked through them and found the picture of a lemon and said lemon, we were really pleased. Fingers crossed they all keep on improving! xx


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## Mee_Mummy

My boy doesnt pronounce properly. Ball is 'ba', bus is 'bu', apple is 'appm'. Hes trying to say more and is putting two words together but neither of them are full words but i know what he is saying. He may go for speech therapy if he doesnt improve in the next couple of months.

Hes also having a hearing test at some point too.


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## tootyfruity

Is it a coincident that these are all boys on this thread that are slower to talk? sometimes people say that girls and boys can do things at different rates!?

my Lo is only 17 months but he only says mum and car so he may be a slow talker, i'm sure they'll all get there :) x


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## Nats21

When I asked my HV about Callums speech she did say generally boys are slower at talking then girls but boys are quicker at the more physical things - crawling/walking/building towers etc. Its been true for us xx


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## RachA

Well i'm the rule breaker here lol. Esther is my slow talker!!

She is 2 years and 10 months are currently all she says is: mummy, hiya, bye-bye, no, ow and the recent addition of na-na. However she only uses hiya, bye-bye, no and ow properly. She can also sign: more, drink and eat but not always unprompted.
She has been having speech therapy but it's stopped for the summer and she's due back sometime in Sept.

I'm not worried at it really but i do find it embarrassing now when people ask her what her name is etc and i have to answer for her and then say that she's nearly 3! 

Her understanding is pretty good. I can ask her to get things or to do something or who someone is and she'll show me etc.


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## PepsiChic

So I had to bribe Barry away from my office so i could start work. I got his favourite and not given often treat of a cookie.

He actually said cooo-kie unpromted the moment he saw it...so me being me I tried to get him to say "cookie please", 

he stared at me for a good long time while i said "say cookie please" over and over..

AND!! he opened his mouth and said.............."why?"

my husband burst out laughing, i have to admit after i got over the inital shock I had a good laugh too! He got his cookie :p


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## mrsthomas623

What a good thread! Nolan is now 26 months and has a handful of words that he maybe, sometimes, if he WANTS to, WHEN he wants to use them ;)
We just started up with a speech therapist once a week and it's comforting seeing that he understands things- words can just be hard to use (or maybe he just doesnt have anything to say!) 
Will post more on this tomorrow :)


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## Dragonfly

I know Alex isnt 2 yet but I remember William was like this yet now he is 3.5 there no stopping him. Alex can say mummy, though at Alex age William couldn't. Every child is different in progress.


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## Katteh

My LO is 2 next month and she isn't talking much! She's always been much more into physical things, was an early walker, very adventurous physically and has very good fine motor skills as she can do things like out on and do up her own shoes already.

She has got some words she can say, she says mama, dada, yeah, nose a few other words clearly, but the rest of her words (about 20 in total including the above I'd say) she has poor pronunciation for. Such as bu for bus, ca for cat etc. 

We did baby signing from 5 months and she knows loads of signs- about 50 i guess - and i do sometimes wonder if this has meant that she's not been as fussed about talking as she communicates a lot using signs. It has helped in a way though as when her pronunciation has been poor for some words, I know what she's trying to say because she signs it too.

Her understanding is very good and she can follow complicated instructions, so I'm not particularly concerned, hoping she will get there in her own time xx


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## eblondie

Love it Pepsi Chic! He's a cutie :) Congratulations on your pregnancy. My friend is extremely sick and has spent a lot of time in hospital. She has finally found medication that is working for her. 
My little one tends to say a couple of phrases rather than single words. He now says 'ta' very insistently which is a success for us.


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## BabyJ'sMummy

Can I join you all  Rhys is 26 1/2 months and had grommets put in at the start of July because of his hearing, the last few weeks we've seen improvement in his speech but it's very slow coming and he's not really using the words apart from 'all done'. Our main concern is the communication side of it, he doesn't make any effort to interact with other children but he starts a new nursery shortly which will hopefully help. I find it difficult to go to children's group activities because he just runs off and won't participate in anything, so for the most part we don't go anymore and then I feel guilty :-( xx


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## AP

I'm joining you too, Alex can only say Kitty when she sees Hello Kitty and she's 3 (3 corrected age next month though, give me that :haha:) there is nothing else though, just shrieks and noises but not much babbling, she never has. Tori seems to be more talkative at 16m, theres a clear difference.It can be pretty upsetting as people just expect Alex to talk back , asking her her name etc. she's in her own little world but understands what me say a bit.

She has had speech therapy for quite a few months (sporadically I may add) but its more to do with teaching her patience to listen. She's being referred for assessment though to look at other possibilities of disorders.

Alex had some brain damage after her birth and we suspected something would be affected- looks like this is it.


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## aliss

Me too!

We have "oh no!" constantly but that's about it. He has said about 5 words but doesn't say them anymore.

I'm not worried. He was very slow to crawl, sit up, etc. so it seems all the same. He doesn't go to childcare and rarely gets to play with other kids (not my fault, it's hard to make friends when you dont' speak the local language and you're not near a major city expat group) so... oh well!

He's 26 months. He'll do it in his own time.


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## BabyJ'sMummy

AtomicPink said:


> I'm joining you too, Alex can only say Kitty when she sees Hello Kitty and she's 3 (3 corrected age next month though, give me that :haha:) there is nothing else though, just shrieks and noises but not much babbling, she never has. Tori seems to be more talkative at 16m, theres a clear difference.*It can be pretty upsetting as people just expect Alex to talk back , asking her her name etc. she's in her own little world* but understands what me say a bit.
> 
> She has had speech therapy for quite a few months (sporadically I may add) but its more to do with teaching her patience to listen. She's being referred for assessment though to look at other possibilities of disorders.
> 
> Alex had some brain damage after her birth and we suspected something would be affected- looks like this is it.

Rhys is in his own little world a lot when we're out and I dread people going up to talk to him in the buggy. I had one lady come up and start talking to them both and then say to me..'she's friendly but he's a bit...' and never finished off. I was really upset and started trying to justify why he is the way he is, I wish I just told her where to go tbh. x


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## Jox

Good thread :thumbsup:

Leo is 23 months today and altho he is very vocal he isnt putting words together. He says lots of individual words (altho most not completely i.e Da (Dad), Bu (ball) etc). there are a few words he can say juice, yes, grass, car, bang bang...

but he doesnt put 2 words together. we can say would you like some juice and he'll say yes, so we say yes what and he'll say peas (please) but will never say yes please together.

He has his 2 year check in a few weeks so will see what the HV says about it.

Like i say tho he is very vocal. Babbling alot, saying alot, it just doesnt make any sense!!

xxx


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## HollyGolitely

I am so glad I've found this thread! I've been very concerned because my 27 month old daughter, Eden, still isn't speaking in phrases or short sentences, except for "oh no!" It was so apparent today when we were on the playground and her peers were speaking in much different manner, and though I know each child grows at a different pace, I also know there are certain developmental milestones she should be hitting. I read to her and narrate while we're playing and strolling, and have done so since she was an infant. I know she's so smart and clever, and gets frustrated when she can't express herself verbally! I'm glad we can share our feelings here, and hopeful that all of our toddlers will work through their verbal frustrations.


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## BabyJ'sMummy

HollyGolitely said:


> I am so glad I've found this thread! I've been very concerned because my 27 month old daughter, Eden, still isn't speaking in phrases or short sentences, except for "oh no!" It was so apparent today when we were on the playground and her peers were speaking in much different manner, and though I know each child grows at a different pace, I also know there are certain developmental milestones she should be hitting. I read to her and narrate while we're playing and strolling, and have done so since she was an infant. I know she's so smart and clever, and gets frustrated when she can't express herself verbally! I'm glad we can share our feelings here, and hopeful that all of our toddlers will work through their verbal frustrations.

I know I'm always harping on about getting hearing checked but it's maybe worth thinking about to make sure she doesn't have any issues that may be holding her back when it comes to speech. We thought Rhys could hear fine until we had his hearing tested and realised that the glue ear had caused hearing issues leading to major speech and communication issues.

We've been seeing lots of improvement over the last couple of weeks and today there was a lot more interaction with his cousins to the point where he gave my nephew a kiss :happydance: He's using 'all done' 'oh no' 'oh dear' on a daily basis and can say a lot more words but still doesn't use them. He starts his new nursery in a couple of weeks and he'll be there 5 mornings a week so finger's crossed for more improvement :thumbup: Hope everyone else is seeing improvement too xxx


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## TatorMom

Our oldest didn't start talking much at all until he was 3. His younger brother was talking long before him and talks much better even now. They're just very different kids. We found out our oldest has some sensory processing issues, which was evident from a few mos old and he also has severe ADHD. The pediatrician we take them too said that if the parent(esp mom) thinks that something isn't right then it's important to get it checked out. Call it mothers intuition. Mom's know best:thumbup: 

We started doing therapy with our oldest and put him in day care for a bit, let hime watch some educational T.V., etc. and his speech has gotten a lot better.


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## aliss

HollyGolitely said:


> I am so glad I've found this thread! I've been very concerned because my 27 month old daughter, Eden, still isn't speaking in phrases or short sentences, except for "oh no!".

I had to tell my OH this, we laughed so hard, ours is the same age and SAME THING!!!! Oh no!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj2LwlqxKuU&feature=player_detailpage


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## PepsiChic

Barry doesnt say "oh no" he says "uh oh!!!!"

He finished my sentance yestrday which made me about fall over in shock!

I said "you are Sooooooooooooooooooo.." and he said "dirty!" (he just finished rubbing spaghetti on his belly) 

so proud! its not much but considering he doesnt say anything normally unless really promted, its nice to hear him say something all by himself even if it was one word...and a word i didnt even know he could say!


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## aliss

Wow that's quite an abstract word from him!! :) You should be proud!!


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## mummy3

I'm nearly here!

My nearly 18m old daughter has no words and only 2 noises, 'ahhh' and 'dahh' she varies the loudest and intensity of these noises depending on what she wants:baby: She did have a few words for a little while about 6-8m ago but nothing since and has lost them.

My just turned 3 year old has an extensive vocbulary but she misarticulates as in cat is tat and dog is dod so you cant understand alot of what she says!

Nice to have a thread like this:flower:


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## m0mmyCool

Didn't see this thread. I just posted one about how my son is 2 & not talking. He says "oh no!" too when something goes wrong.


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## TatorMom

Sorry for my bad grammar. I had to go back and fix it so I didn't sound like a moron.:dohh: 

I completely understand being worried about speech development. I had to learn to take the developmental charts with a grain of salt. They're meant to be used as guidelines. Every child is so unique and amazing in their own way. Our oldest, who has sensory, speech, and ADHD issues is such a sweet, empathetic, intelligent little boy. He was always advanced when it came to certain social and cognitive skills, he just isn't as verbal as many his age. There's nothing wrong with that though. I will say his speech development has caught up quite a bit. He was just a late bloomer in that sense. Our youngest is very verbal and talks NON stop, but is a ball of laughs and can uplift even the most depressed person. The differences are why I love having kids and why we decided to have more. We can't wait to meet the twins and watch them grow. I was a lot more relaxed and less worried about things with my 2nd.


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## TatorMom

PepsiChic said:


> Barry doesnt say "oh no" he says "uh oh!!!!"
> 
> He finished my sentance yestrday which made me about fall over in shock!
> 
> I said "you are Sooooooooooooooooooo.." and he said "dirty!" (he just finished rubbing spaghetti on his belly)
> 
> so proud! its not much but considering he doesnt say anything normally unless really promted, its nice to hear him say something all by himself even if it was one word...and a word i didnt even know he could say!

Your "Thank you" got deleted when I edited the grammar mistakes out of my post, but I did see it:hugs: 

I feel like certain developmental milestones don't necessarily mean that something is "wrong", but rather tells you about your child's personality. Logan(our oldest) pretty much only said 1-3 word sentences until he was 3. His sentences are still pretty short and sweet, but he's just not much of a talker. He had recurrent ear infections(I breastfed too) and he had fluid stuck in his left ear for over a year. He had moderate hearing loss in his left ear, so it was throwing off what he heard and him hearing himself when he talked. We had tubes put in, the hearing loss resolved itself, and his speech improved within days. At his last appointment with his psychiatrist he said he didn't think that anything was really "wrong", outside of the ADHD. He's just a spirited kid and has a more non verbal communication style. His younger brother is the complete opposite. Bring up your concerns with the pediatrician. I called the nurse line randomly one day when I just couldn't stand the worry anymore, and his pediatrician called back and was great about it. He referred us to a specialist at Children's and went from there.


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## mrsthomas623

TatorMom said:


> Our oldest didn't start talking much at all until he was 3. His younger brother was talking long before him and talks much better even now. They're just very different kids. We found out our oldest has some sensory processing issues, which was evident from a few mos old and he also has severe ADHD. The pediatrician we take them too said that if the parent(esp mom) thinks that something isn't right then it's important to get it checked out. Call it mothers intuition. Mom's know best:thumbup:
> 
> We started doing therapy with our oldest and put him in day care for a bit, let hime watch some educational T.V., etc. and his speech has gotten a lot better.

Hey! What exactly are sensory issues? Our speech therapist mentioned it before with Nolan but when i googled it I couldn't really grasp what it meant. Nolan tends to grab my hands or leg and shake it (not aggressively) when he is really excited or frustrated. He has a few other "quarks" but I'm on the iPhone. :)he is also the sweetest, most passive little boy. We are looking into getting him an occupational therapist as he is an extremely picky eater and struggles with being messy. Sorry it is makes no sense, my phone is messing up! :haha: just wanted to hear from someone who's little Man sounds similar to Mine :)


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## mrsthomas623

Just a funny story I wanted to share- our speech therapist recommends giving him prompts to words he knows to encourage dialogue. So today I go to play cars with him, had to go find him as he loves playing alone. I sit down and say "ready, set...." and he looks at me and say "go way." :haha: I was dying but as instructed-if he ask for it, oblige so he knows communicating works. It was adorable.


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## PepsiChic

mrsthomas623 said:


> Just a funny story I wanted to share- our speech therapist recommends giving him prompts to words he knows to encourage dialogue. So today I go to play cars with him, had to go find him as he loves playing alone. I sit down and say "ready, set...." and he looks at me and say "go way." :haha: I was dying but as instructed-if he ask for it, oblige so he knows communicating works. It was adorable.

LOL thats too cute! I love how they might not say a lot but when they do its in response to something and its always going to make you laugh! 

Has he always been independant playing? Barry is really idependant, he wants to spend half the day by himself playing with his various toys or looking at his books, and if you try to play with him when HE's not ready he'll make it quite clear by walking away and playing with other toys by himself.

And then when he IS ready to play with you he wont let you leave! Especially when it comes to books, he has 3 favourite books and he would make me read them 100 times each if he got his way lol 

I always wondered if there was a link between his indepedant streak and his lack of speech.


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## mrsthomas623

Pepsi- yes, he has always been super independent when playing. He also walks away if he doesn't want to play. We have 2 living rooms, so he always has to be in the opposite one that baby and I are in until he WANTS attention or cuddles. Now if there are other kids around, he LOVES playing with him. 

I wonder, too, if there is a link between independence and lack of speech. His speech therapist says that most of "her kids" are 2 year old little boys that are late to talk. :)


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## aliss

Mine is very independent player too, I could put him in a room with 20 kids and he'll ignore them to play with a truck.


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## TatorMom

mrsthomas623 said:


> TatorMom said:
> 
> 
> Our oldest didn't start talking much at all until he was 3. His younger brother was talking long before him and talks much better even now. They're just very different kids. We found out our oldest has some sensory processing issues, which was evident from a few mos old and he also has severe ADHD. The pediatrician we take them too said that if the parent(esp mom) thinks that something isn't right then it's important to get it checked out. Call it mothers intuition. Mom's know best:thumbup:
> 
> We started doing therapy with our oldest and put him in day care for a bit, let hime watch some educational T.V., etc. and his speech has gotten a lot better.
> 
> Hey! What exactly are sensory issues? Our speech therapist mentioned it before with Nolan but when i googled it I couldn't really grasp what it meant. Nolan tends to grab my hands or leg and shake it (not aggressively) when he is really excited or frustrated. He has a few other "quarks" but I'm on the iPhone. :)he is also the sweetest, most passive little boy. We are looking into getting him an occupational therapist as he is an extremely picky eater and struggles with being messy. Sorry it is makes no sense, my phone is messing up! :haha: just wanted to hear from someone who's little Man sounds similar to Mine :)Click to expand...


I live in OH too. :thumbup: Small world! Sensory issues can mean a number of things, but for Logan he gets very overstimulated by loud noises, crowds, etc. He is an EXTREMELY picky eater! Kids have thousands more taste buds than adults. They die as we age. Logan had a blue dye spot test done on his toungue though and he has more taste buds than most kids his age. I can't really speak for him, but we imagine he just feels textures and tastes more strongly, so he tends to only like bland foods. He also is very sensitive to touch and other people's emotions. The later part is actually a very good thing, in my opinion. If a child or adult gets hurt he'll run over and give them a hug and make sure they're okay, so being more sensitive to sensory input isn't necessarily a bad thing. They can just get sensory over load. I think everyone has it to some degree. If you've ever been in a situation where you feel overwhelmed, etc. It can definitely be frustrating a times, but I feel like DH and I have learned a lot from him. I do wonder how he's able to survive on cereal and peanut butter, but he manages. I introduce fruit and veggies to him and always put it on his plate, but he never eats it. Persistence! :thumbup: 

Our youngest(Alex) is the complete opposite. Logan definitely has some oddities. Even as his mom I'll be the first to admit he's just kind of weird. lol. I feel like the best thing we did for him was to give him a sibling so close in age. Alex has really taught him a lot and sticks up for his big brother. in certain situations it can be heartbreaking to see Logan struggle in certain ways, but all we can do is prepare him and work with him. Putting him in a bubble isn't going to do him any favors, as I'm sure you agree with:) We want him to feel proud and confident and work hard to make sure he does. he has strengths that most other kids and people don't. he notices things that most don't, such as certain noises, how other people are feeling, etc. He loves his cars and trucks, and magna tiles have always been a hit with him. He does have some ADHD, which is more common in kids with sensory issues, but therapy helps. We've learned to prevent and deal with his meltdowns much better, but they were BAD when he was little. Now they're more what you expect in a 3yr old. 

Logan is exactly how aliss described her son. He interacts a LOT more though as he's gotten older and we've made sure to give him plenty of social opportunity. Mainly drop in day care.:) Mom's groups and play groups never worked for us, so it's been a bit of a lonely thing. We're still learning too!


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## mrsthomas623

Tatormom- It is a small world!! We are in Delaware, Ohio :hi: I did a lot more reading last night and am really starting to think Nolan has some degree of a sensory processing issue. We have our meeting with his Early Intervention Specialist on Thursday so am definitely going to talk to her about adding an occupational therapist. 

I never realized how nonverbal/vocal he was until I had Griffin and already at 4.5 months old he is babbling and cooing like crazy. We joke that baby brother will be talking before him- which is quite a possibility! Was Logan colicky as a baby? Just curious, as it was on a website I was reading last night and Nolan was an consolable, hot mess, colicky baby. :haha:

Aliss- Nolan LOVES other kids, cries if he can't play with them- but then doesn't really know how to play with them so he ends up on his own.


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## PepsiChic

Barry just follows other children around, we took him to a soft play place and he followed the other kids around for ages, and watches them, apart from one girl, she had her hair in braids and kept sitting in the middle of the floor and he kept going over and stroking her hair. 

He doesnt ever talk to other kids though, he doesnt even babble to them he stays silent the whole time.


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## TatorMom

mrsthomas623 said:


> Tatormom- It is a small world!! We are in Delaware, Ohio :hi: I did a lot more reading last night and am really starting to think Nolan has some degree of a sensory processing issue. We have our meeting with his Early Intervention Specialist on Thursday so am definitely going to talk to her about adding an occupational therapist.
> 
> I never realized how nonverbal/vocal he was until I had Griffin and already at 4.5 months old he is babbling and cooing like crazy. We joke that baby brother will be talking before him- which is quite a possibility! Was Logan colicky as a baby? Just curious, as it was on a website I was reading last night and Nolan was an consolable, hot mess, colicky baby. :haha:
> 
> Aliss- Nolan LOVES other kids, cries if he can't play with them- but then doesn't really know how to play with them so he ends up on his own.

We're in Dublin, OH! :hi: I lived in Stratford Woods off 23 for awhile while I was growing up, until we moved to Powell, where I graduated HS. 

Our youngest was definitely talking before Logan. He started talking about the same time as your youngest(4.5mos) and has never stopped...HA. Even having the occupational therapist see him to do an initial evaluation will be good and give you some comfort. Addressing any issues while there little makes sure that they don't have any when they're older, so it's great that you're meeting with his EIS. We actually got our son enrolled in our school districts peer preschool for kids 3-6 who have sensory/ADHD/etc issues, where they work with them to have them ready and prepared to integrate by 1st grade. His occupational therapist and EIS helped to get him enrolled. They have one "typical" child for every child that has special needs. Mind you all of the "special needs" children are those with minor issues(sensory, ADD, ADHD, etc). We're actually really excited for him to start. The preschool is it's own building and it's HUGE with all types of sensory rooms, occupational therapy rooms, play rooms, etc and every child gets an iPad they use to help them learn, which for kids with sensory and ADHD issues is an heaven sent. We got one for home for our oldest, well it was mine and he's taken it over, and he loves the learning apps.

Logan wasn't horribly colicky, although he went through a 3week colic phase, which was rough. He had horrible reflux though, which didn't seem to bother him much, but he was spitting up to much and so forcefully they thought he could have Pyloric Stenosis, which thankfully he didn't. It was just a "laundry problem" that made me half insane.:wacko: He's on Pepsid 1x/day now. He kept spitting up(not vomiting) until a bit before he was 3, so we put him on an antacid. He would just bend over and it would come out. Thankfully it doesn't happen anymore. 

Logan is the same way when it comes to interacting and playing with other kids. He loves too, but just doesn't know how. He's gotten a lot better though. There's no describing the feeling when we see him playing with another kid, who is enjoying playing with Logan too. After watching him struggle so much it's such a beautiful thing for us to see.


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## mrsthomas623

PepsiChic said:


> Barry just follows other children around, we took him to a soft play place and he followed the other kids around for ages, and watches them, apart from one girl, she had her hair in braids and kept sitting in the middle of the floor and he kept going over and stroking her hair.
> 
> He doesnt ever talk to other kids though, he doesnt even babble to them he stays silent the whole time.

Nolan does that when its calm independent play but if we are at the mall play place he is like a bat out of hell- screaming, laughing and talking nonsense.


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## mrsthomas623

TatorMom said:


> mrsthomas623 said:
> 
> 
> Tatormom- It is a small world!! We are in Delaware, Ohio :hi: I did a lot more reading last night and am really starting to think Nolan has some degree of a sensory processing issue. We have our meeting with his Early Intervention Specialist on Thursday so am definitely going to talk to her about adding an occupational therapist.
> 
> I never realized how nonverbal/vocal he was until I had Griffin and already at 4.5 months old he is babbling and cooing like crazy. We joke that baby brother will be talking before him- which is quite a possibility! Was Logan colicky as a baby? Just curious, as it was on a website I was reading last night and Nolan was an consolable, hot mess, colicky baby. :haha:
> 
> Aliss- Nolan LOVES other kids, cries if he can't play with them- but then doesn't really know how to play with them so he ends up on his own.
> 
> We're in Dublin, OH! :hi: I lived in Stratford Woods off 23 for awhile while I was growing up, until we moved to Powell, where I graduated HS.
> 
> Our youngest was definitely talking before Logan. He started talking about the same time as your youngest(4.5mos) and has never stopped...HA. Even having the occupational therapist see him to do an initial evaluation will be good and give you some comfort. Addressing any issues while there little makes sure that they don't have any when they're older, so it's great that you're meeting with his EIS. We actually got our son enrolled in our school districts peer preschool for kids 3-6 who have sensory/ADHD/etc issues, where they work with them to have them ready and prepared to integrate by 1st grade. His occupational therapist and EIS helped to get him enrolled. They have one "typical" child for every child that has special needs. Mind you all of the "special needs" children are those with minor issues(sensory, ADD, ADHD, etc). We're actually really excited for him to start. The preschool is it's own building and it's HUGE with all types of sensory rooms, occupational therapy rooms, play rooms, etc and every child gets an iPad they use to help them learn, which for kids with sensory and ADHD issues is an heaven sent. We got one for home for our oldest, well it was mine and he's taken it over, and he loves the learning apps.
> 
> Logan wasn't horribly colicky, although he went through a 3week colic phase, which was rough. He had horrible reflux though, which didn't seem to bother him much, but he was spitting up to much and so forcefully they thought he could have Pyloric Stenosis, which thankfully he didn't. It was just a "laundry problem" that made me half insane.:wacko: He's on Pepsid 1x/day now. He kept spitting up(not vomiting) until a bit before he was 3, so we put him on an antacid. He would just bend over and it would come out. Thankfully it doesn't happen anymore.
> 
> Logan is the same way when it comes to interacting and playing with other kids. He loves too, but just doesn't know how. He's gotten a lot better though. There's no describing the feeling when we see him playing with another kid, who is enjoying playing with Logan too. After watching him struggle so much it's such a beautiful thing for us to see.Click to expand...

Oh my gosh! I grew up and graduated from Hilliard then the hubby and I built a house out here in Delaware.:flower:

Our EIS mentioned the preschool program if he does prove to need it, right now we are part of the Help Me Grow program and it is wonderful. They provide a budget for therapy and even a budget for resources or babysitting. 

Nolan is obsessed with the iPad and my iPhone- most of the words he knows is because of youtube or apps :blush::haha: I have been working the past month on reintroducing sign language to him and was getting nowhere- found a baby sign app and now he is signing milk!:happydance:

So comforting to hear how well Logan is doing- googling can be a very scarey thing when you are researching about your child.:haha:


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## RachA

It's funny hearing about all these boys. My boy is a real talker but Esther just doesn't. She does know quite a few words - i tracked them in a diary for about a month - but she hasn't connected that they relate to things.

I wouldn't say that she likes independent play - she likes to be with me a lot but she also does like to be in the room with Daniel and tries to play with him, much to his annoyance lol.

Esther seems to of improved a bit recently. Earlier today instead of whining or screeching that she wanted her dummy she pointed out to the kitchen and then tapped her mouth. I thought she wanted her drink as she signs in a similar way to say she wants a drink but when i took her to the side she pointed at the dummy and then tapped her mouth again. She's also been signing drink and eat a lot recently which is good to see. It doesn't seem much but to me it is. 

I'm not really too bothered tbh though as i know she'll start talking when she wants to - it's fairly obvious to me that she doesn't have any underlying issues (apart from maybe a minor hearing problem), i think she's just a bit delayed, possibly due to seizures that she's had.


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## mummy3

The school district preschool special ed programme is awesome!! My 4 1/2 year old son goes 5 days a week (he has ASD) They have made a massive difference with him so if you can get in I cant recommend it highly enough:thumbup:


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## PepsiChic

does anyone elses non-talker babble a whole conversation?

Like im not saying babble a few strange words/sounds but go on as if they are saying multiple sentances? Over dinner tonight Barry pointed at his corn and started babling he went on for a while and he uses his hands for expression like an adult does.

not one single proper word, or even a hint of a word just complete babbling but it was cute while he clearly had a conversation about his corn and even shrugged at the end lol

hes done this a few times now, he especially likes to babble to the cats because one of my girls will literally sit upright infront of him watching him the whole time...its almost as if she understands what hes saying!


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## sunshine114

A little update from me - I sent LOs 2 year development checklist reply slip back to HV and wrote about his speech (or lack of) and how he communicates non verbally, they phoned today and one of their team is coming to observe and assess him in a couple of weeks, then they will decide whether to refer him to a speech therapist or whether to monitor him. I'm really glad that they are coming to see him, as it is getting frustrated being told 'he'll get there in his own time'. As a primary school senco, I am SO aware of the difficulties children have when they are at school if they are langauge delayed - I just don't want that for my little boy :nope:


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## TatorMom

PepsiChic said:


> does anyone elses non-talker babble a whole conversation?
> 
> Like im not saying babble a few strange words/sounds but go on as if they are saying multiple sentances? Over dinner tonight Barry pointed at his corn and started babling he went on for a while and he uses his hands for expression like an adult does.
> 
> not one single proper word, or even a hint of a word just complete babbling but it was cute while he clearly had a conversation about his corn and even shrugged at the end lol
> 
> hes done this a few times now, he especially likes to babble to the cats because one of my girls will literally sit upright infront of him watching him the whole time...its almost as if she understands what hes saying!

If he was doing it to intentionally be silly that's one thing, but at the very least he should at least be saying words that you can understand. I would talk to his pediatrician and have him evaluated by a speech/occupational therapist. The earlier speech problems are addressed the better.


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## TatorMom

mrsthomas623- We're actually in Hilliard Schools. We just have a Dublin mailing address. They have a very good preschool program, so we're excited for Logan to start! They think Alex would make a great peer next year too. I'll pay $100/yr for Alex to go and get a 3hr/day break from them 4 days a week...uh...I mean, have them in a school/learning environment and socializing. It's a win-win:)


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## PepsiChic

TatorMom said:


> If he was doing it to intentionally be silly that's one thing, but at the very least he should at least be saying words that you can understand. I would talk to his pediatrician and have him evaluated by a speech/occupational therapist. The earlier speech problems are addressed the better.

we moved states back to missouri so we had to reapply for his medicaid so we have to wait for his medicaid to start back up as we cant afford private health insurance.


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## TatorMom

PepsiChic said:


> TatorMom said:
> 
> 
> If he was doing it to intentionally be silly that's one thing, but at the very least he should at least be saying words that you can understand. I would talk to his pediatrician and have him evaluated by a speech/occupational therapist. The earlier speech problems are addressed the better.
> 
> we moved states back to missouri so we had to reapply for his medicaid so we have to wait for his medicaid to start back up as we cant afford private health insurance.Click to expand...

Our oldest was back dated for a 6 week span on medicaid. They will back date medical bills and cover them. Just bring your application to a pediatrician that accepts medicaid. We did this 2x. We didn't qualify when we applied, but we qualified for periods of time from when the medical bills were, so they just covered those. It was a weird transition period when DH officially got out of the military.


----------



## RachA

PepsiChic said:


> does anyone elses non-talker babble a whole conversation?
> 
> Like im not saying babble a few strange words/sounds but go on as if they are saying multiple sentances? Over dinner tonight Barry pointed at his corn and started babling he went on for a while and he uses his hands for expression like an adult does.
> 
> not one single proper word, or even a hint of a word just complete babbling but it was cute while he clearly had a conversation about his corn and even shrugged at the end lol
> 
> hes done this a few times now, he especially likes to babble to the cats because one of my girls will literally sit upright infront of him watching him the whole time...its almost as if she understands what hes saying!

That is really encouraging tbh :thumbup: Esther is doing this now. She chatters away to us and is quite obviously having a little conversation with us but we have no clue what she's talking about. When they are at this stage it means that they understand that their sounds/words are used to communicate and actual words should start coming sooner rather than later. It's when they aren't doing this that it can be more of a problem. Esther has only recently started doing this a lot. It's also been since she started doing this that she has added about 4 words to her very limited vocab.


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## Nats21

PepsiChic said:


> does anyone elses non-talker babble a whole conversation?
> 
> Like im not saying babble a few strange words/sounds but go on as if they are saying multiple sentances? Over dinner tonight Barry pointed at his corn and started babling he went on for a while and he uses his hands for expression like an adult does.
> 
> not one single proper word, or even a hint of a word just complete babbling but it was cute while he clearly had a conversation about his corn and even shrugged at the end lol
> 
> hes done this a few times now, he especially likes to babble to the cats because one of my girls will literally sit upright infront of him watching him the whole time...its almost as if she understands what hes saying!

Callum does this too, every now and then a proper word comes out but he really talks for ages and most of its babble, I think its encouraging as it means they're using the sounds that helps them to develop words, I just encourage it but talk to him properly so he learns when he does this xx


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## aliss

I'm in a bit of an awkward position in that my son speaks English (or, "speaks" it haha) but there are no English-language speech language therapists available, even if I sought one out, so I am just trying to work on it on my own. I know I don't have an MA in speech pathology but I did bust out my textbooks from my degree (which was in teaching English as a second language) and I'm using the info from there. 

So, I'm kind of screwed in that sense. And most of all frustrated with my OH who refuses to speak French to him (even though it's his 1st language). I'm more worried about when school rolls around.


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## RachA

aliss said:


> I'm in a bit of an awkward position in that my son speaks English (or, "speaks" it haha) but there are no English-language speech language therapists available, even if I sought one out, so I am just trying to work on it on my own. I know I don't have an MA in speech pathology but I did bust out my textbooks from my degree (which was in teaching English as a second language) and I'm using the info from there.
> 
> So, I'm kind of screwed in that sense. And most of all frustrated with my OH who refuses to speak French to him (even though it's his 1st language). I'm more worried about when school rolls around.

Although your OH isn't talking to your lo in French i'm assuming that your lo is surrounded by french speaking people quite a bit?? Children who are surrounded by more than 1 language are delayed in speaking normally.

What can your lo say already? And what is his understanding like?


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## aliss

He is occasionally surrounded by others but only maybe 1-2x a week (my OH's family) and his little cousins 2x a month :( He isn't so bad, he has about 5 words (oh no, simba (the dog), no, shoe, and bath) and one combination "yes shoe"


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## RachA

That isn't too bad. My nearly 3yo only has 4 words (mummy, holly, no, ow) and 3 signs.
I'm sure your lo will pick up words quickly. It's really hard when other children your childs age or younger have a lot more words. I think nearly every child i know that is between 18mths and 3years talks a whole lot more than Esther does.


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## PepsiChic

thanks for the encouragement Rach and Nats! He has learnt more words since the babble conversations started but like i said early only says real words when prompted.

But i did ask him some questions today to see what words he knows, So i asked him a few things

"where is your: head, nose, eyes, ears, mouth and chin" - he pointed to each one

"where is daddy?" -points to my DH

"where is the cat?" - he had to get up and walk around for this one but he looked around and eventually found and then tried to sit on the cat

"what noise does duck, cat, monkey make?" he said quack quack quack to all of those lol

"May I have sippy cup?" - which he found for me, and also for his toy monkey. 

so understanding words doesnt seem to be too much of an issue!


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## moomoo

Hi ladies :) just wanted to send you some hugs :hugs:

My little man had maybe 5-10 words at 2 (that's including mummy, daddy)

At 2.5 he babbled in lots of jargon but still no more than10 words Barely any more words. 

He will be 3 in Nov? Not sure how many months this makes him. But the other day we were watching toy story. I said "does Reggie like the toys" and he replied with "yes mummy, I like the toys!" 

And now he can talk in complete sentences. No joke! It was like he was waiting to perfect it before doing it!

Just wanted to share, and give you some hope x


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## RachA

PepsiChic said:


> thanks for the encouragement Rach and Nats! He has learnt more words since the babble conversations started but like i said early only says real words when prompted.
> 
> But i did ask him some questions today to see what words he knows, So i asked him a few things
> 
> "where is your: head, nose, eyes, ears, mouth and chin" - he pointed to each one
> 
> "where is daddy?" -points to my DH
> 
> "where is the cat?" - he had to get up and walk around for this one but he looked around and eventually found and then tried to sit on the cat
> 
> "what noise does duck, cat, monkey make?" he said quack quack quack to all of those lol
> 
> "May I have sippy cup?" - which he found for me, and also for his toy monkey.
> 
> so understanding words doesnt seem to be too much of an issue!

His understanding seems to be great :) a whole lot better than Esther's too. 

I find it especially hard because my son was stringing together 3 or more words at 2 and by 2 1/2 we were chattering away together. Esther has been treated the same but seems way behind. I can't even say that her speech is lacking because she is more advanced in other things like her walking!


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## RachA

moomoo said:


> Hi ladies :) just wanted to send you some hugs :hugs:
> 
> My little man had maybe 5-10 words at 2 (that's including mummy, daddy)
> 
> At 2.5 he babbled in lots of jargon but still no more than10 words Barely any more words.
> 
> He will be 3 in Nov? Not sure how many months this makes him. But the other day we were watching toy story. I said "does Reggie like the toys" and he replied with "yes mummy, I like the toys!"
> 
> And now he can talk in complete sentences. No joke! It was like he was waiting to perfect it before doing it!
> 
> Just wanted to share, and give you some hope x

Thanks for the encouragement :) :thumbup:


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## PepsiChic

RachA said:


> His understanding seems to be great :) a whole lot better than Esther's too.
> 
> I find it especially hard because my son was stringing together 3 or more words at 2 and by 2 1/2 we were chattering away together. Esther has been treated the same but seems way behind. I can't even say that her speech is lacking because she is more advanced in other things like her walking!

Barry is definatly more of a moved then a talker! He likes to solve things to do what he wants...like today i went to the bathroom left him playing with his blocks...come back out and hes SAT IN THE KITCHEN SINK!!! :dohh:

He can climb anything seriously, I STILL havent figured out how he got up onto the coutner and into the kitchen sink because he didnt use a chair or anything. He could also climb stairs before he could walk. And really he doesnt walk, he just runs lol He can also jump with both feet off the ground and has done this since about 18 months. he LOVES to jump.


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## sun

Just thought I would join in. My son is 3 in a few months and just started with the speech a few months ago. He has a developmental delay though so has been slow with most things - gross motor skills as well as speech. It's coming along though and I love it! Some kids do start later - and a good percentage of them are boys. xx


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## RachA

PepsiChic said:


> RachA said:
> 
> 
> His understanding seems to be great :) a whole lot better than Esther's too.
> 
> I find it especially hard because my son was stringing together 3 or more words at 2 and by 2 1/2 we were chattering away together. Esther has been treated the same but seems way behind. I can't even say that her speech is lacking because she is more advanced in other things like her walking!
> 
> Barry is definatly more of a moved then a talker! He likes to solve things to do what he wants...like today i went to the bathroom left him playing with his blocks...come back out and hes SAT IN THE KITCHEN SINK!!! :dohh:
> 
> He can climb anything seriously, I STILL havent figured out how he got up onto the coutner and into the kitchen sink because he didnt use a chair or anything. He could also climb stairs before he could walk. And really he doesnt walk, he just runs lol He can also jump with both feet off the ground and has done this since about 18 months. he LOVES to jump.Click to expand...

Lol he sounds alot like Esther iro climbing etc. Maybe she is more of a mover. I always thought she wasn't as she didn't start walking til she was 18months. But since she started she runs everywhere and she climbs everything!! I regulary find her sitting on the back of our sofa and it's a very high backed sofa!


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## RachA

sun said:


> Just thought I would join in. My son is 3 in a few months and just started with the speech a few months ago. He has a developmental delay though so has been slow with most things - gross motor skills as well as speech. It's coming along though and I love it! Some kids do start later - and a good percentage of them are boys. xx

Aw I'm glad he's getting on ok now. Did the improvement with the speech happen quickly or did he just add a word here and there?


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## sun

RachA said:


> sun said:
> 
> 
> Just thought I would join in. My son is 3 in a few months and just started with the speech a few months ago. He has a developmental delay though so has been slow with most things - gross motor skills as well as speech. It's coming along though and I love it! Some kids do start later - and a good percentage of them are boys. xx
> 
> Aw I'm glad he's getting on ok now. Did the improvement with the speech happen quickly or did he just add a word here and there?Click to expand...

It's been slow and steady. People always told me that the words just start and they are suddenly talking, but that's not how it happened for us at all. He just slowly started saying things that were highly motivating for him (on, off, car, etc) and it went from there. Most people can't understand him, but as long as he is communicating with us I don't care. As he got a word he stopped with the sign for it, and now he doesn't even remember signing at all. He is still behind, but I'm so proud at how well he's been doing! x


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## future_numan

My daughter is 2 1/2 yrs old and might speak 30 words. 
I am not all that concerned since she doesn't seem to be in a rush to do anything.. she didn't even walk till she was 18 months old.
I don't think childhood is a race so I don't push her to do things until she is ready.
( unless she was extemely behind her peers)


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## RachA

sun said:


> RachA said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> sun said:
> 
> 
> Just thought I would join in. My son is 3 in a few months and just started with the speech a few months ago. He has a developmental delay though so has been slow with most things - gross motor skills as well as speech. It's coming along though and I love it! Some kids do start later - and a good percentage of them are boys. xx
> 
> Aw I'm glad he's getting on ok now. Did the improvement with the speech happen quickly or did he just add a word here and there?Click to expand...
> 
> It's been slow and steady. People always told me that the words just start and they are suddenly talking, but that's not how it happened for us at all. He just slowly started saying things that were highly motivating for him (on, off, car, etc) and it went from there. Most people can't understand him, but as long as he is communicating with us I don't care. As he got a word he stopped with the sign for it, and now he doesn't even remember signing at all. He is still behind, but I'm so proud at how well he's been doing! xClick to expand...

That's really good to hear. Everyone seems to be telling me that Esther will all of a sudden start chattering away but to me it seems that she's just picking up the odd word every month or so. Funny you should say about the signing - Esther has been signing 'more' for ages now but recently she started trying to say it and quite often doesn't bother with the sign.


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## mummylove

My daughter is 2 and half and i am so proud of her. She talks really well but not like some 2 and halfs would chat to u in a sentence. But summer only really started talking more since i have been sending her to pre school 2 afternoons a week. She would talk but nothing like she does now. She has really picked up the talking the last few months. She chats to u now she will say a sentence to u but she breaks it up. Like her fav saying is.....Dont want.....to go bed mummy lol


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## angelae36

My daughter is 3 in November.
She chatters away but most of it is complete scribble!
She can say a little, she asks to go in daddy's car, asks for yoghurt's, want this, what's that, no, aww cuddles, Abbie (her name but it comes out Addie!) hello, night night, shakey shakey, to name a few.
I certainly can't have a conversation with her though.
What I do find frustrating is she clearly understands what we say to her and responds, for example if she has something in her mouth I will tell her to take it out.
She will do 1 of 2 things. Either run off with it still in her mouth laughing or spit it straight out.
One day I'd been saying "take it out of your mouth" for what felt like all day. A while later the same day she popped her head round the door at me and said it to me. Perfectly clearly. She's never said it again.
Most of the time she will grab our hands and gesture as to what she wants. We do name whatever it is as we get it but to no avail.
When she wants a drink and gestures, I pick her cup up and say "drink please". I've been doing this from when she was about 18 months everytime she wants a drink. If I'm lucky I'll get a grunt/hum that sounds like the tone I use for drink please but no actual words!

But she's not slow/behind in any other development.
She can count (but it's just us that understand her) she knows most of the alphabet and letter sounds but that is down to Alphablocks!
It always feels like she's on the verge of just coming out with a whole sentence perfectly clear!


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## RachA

She sounds like she's being very cheeky. Esther has said certain words in the past very clearly but then not said them again.

When she points to things like a drink you could try saying to her 'do you want your drink or 'x'?' that way she has to tell you which she wants. If she then just points to her drink give it to her and say 'drink'. We do this with Esther with her signing - she can sign both eat and drink so if she points to her drink i do the above and either give it to her if she signs it or points to it.


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## angelae36

Thanks for the suggestion, I do try that RachA, but she mostly ignores me then throws a tantrum when I don't do what she wants quick enough! She is quite stubborn and bossy!!!
I do keep on doing it though as being consistent is part of having toddlers!

But I keep plugging away. I know she can talk, I've heard her and she is excellent at imitating noises, her bird "tweets" are particularly ear shatteringly high pitched!


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## Betheney

Hi ladies Eva is 21 months so not quite 24 months but her speech really gets me down i'd really really love to talk to ladies in the same boat or who might understand how i'm feeling.

Not only does she only know a limited amount of words but her pronunciation is really really poor. I've tried to explain it to others and they kind of just brush it off saying all toddlers pronounce things funny. But it's worse than that. She can only say sounds/words that are ONE syllable and she uses the same syllable for like 3 different things. Milk, more and Mum are all just "Ma" sometimes more is a little diff but usually it's just "ma" but i know what she wants when she uses it in context, if i ask her can she say certain words like "ball" she'll just pronounce the sound for the letter B. There's no saying of a word at all... like not even remotely close or no distinction between different B words. Booby is just a B sound, sometimes it's more like a "boo" but generally just a B sound...

I know Eva is not yet 2 but i'm really surprised at how much her lack of talking gets to me. I have 2 mummy friends who i've hung out with since she was a newborn and i see them weekly and their LOs are just chatter boxes and it just makes me so sad. I'm beginning to want to avoid them because it's just too damn depressing. But i don't really know why it upsets me... i don't think she's slow or unintelligent, i'm not upset she's not super gifted or advance, i don't know what it is that makes me so sad about it, i just get really down that she doesn't talk... maybe it's the pregnancy hormones...

My in-laws so frequently ask about her language, but they've never said anything to imply she should be talking more just constantly asking "has she learnt any new words" it's pretty much the only thing they ask which makes me paranoid that they are concerned about her speech.


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## karlilay

Zachs not two yet either and i know that in months ALOT can change, but he currently says 5 words, and he is totally uninterested in talking. Everything is Deeeeeeee....


----------



## PepsiChic

angelae36 said:


> Thanks for the suggestion, I do try that RachA, but she mostly ignores me then throws a tantrum when I don't do what she wants quick enough! She is quite stubborn and bossy!!!
> I do keep on doing it though as being consistent is part of having toddlers!

Barry does the tantrum thing too, I know a lot of it is frustration on their part, but man it can be frustrating for us too! especially if theres multiple things and they just gesture and you dont know which one they want because they wont say! 



Betheney said:


> She can only say sounds/words that are ONE syllable and she uses the same syllable for like 3 different things. Milk, more and Mum are all just "Ma" sometimes more is a little diff but usually it's just "ma" but i know what she wants when she uses it in context, if i ask her can she say certain words like "ball" she'll just pronounce the sound for the letter B. There's no saying of a word at all... like not even remotely close or no distinction between different B words. Booby is just a B sound, sometimes it's more like a "boo" but generally just a B sound...

This is JUST like Barry, more, mummy, milk are all "maaaa or mooooooooo" although he can say mama, mummy is just maa or moooo.

Ball, book, blocks are all "baaaaaa" or "boooo" but when I say baby he says "baba" 

Ive found introducing other sounds has helped, so I avoid b and m sounding words and started saying things begining with G or P and its worked a bit.

He now says "greeee" (green) and "gra" for grass but nothing on the P front yet. I may try introudcing a few more words with the letter C and see how that goes. You could try picking a different letter each day and really empyhising that sound all day and see if she picks up on it. The words shes picking up on so far are because she hears them often. 

Im sorry your feeling sad about her speech but its ok to feel that way :hugs: its difficult being a mummy, especially when people set expectations like "they should be saying this many words by this age" etc just take a big deep breath and ignore it! You may find your little girl isnt a great talker but when shes 5 she may excell at math and numbers!


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## PepsiChic

sun said:


> It's been slow and steady. People always told me that the words just start and they are suddenly talking, but that's not how it happened for us at all. He just slowly started saying things that were highly motivating for him (on, off, car, etc) and it went from there. Most people can't understand him, but as long as he is communicating with us I don't care. As he got a word he stopped with the sign for it, and now he doesn't even remember signing at all. He is still behind, but I'm so proud at how well he's been doing! x

People tell me that all the time too "one day he'll just start saying all kinds of things" er....yeah when pigs might fly :haha: I dont think thats going to happen with Barry, he tends to only say words that we use a lot and its one word every now and then.


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## going_crazy

Does anyone mind if I join?
M is 2 in October and she is really quite behind in her speech. She can say "moose" for move (and she gestures for us to move too!) and she can say Mum (but she doesn't say it in context, only if I point to me and ask who I am), and she has just started to say Daddy, but again, not really in context.
I'm sure I've heard bll (for ball) and eeess (when we are taking a photo and ask her to "say cheese") but that's about it 

She has been referred to SALT but initial appointment isn't until 11th October :(

M will also carry out a whole conversation in her own 'language' - she will even stand in front of everyone as if giving a speech, and I feel so sad that none of us know what she is saying :(

x


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## going_crazy

Forgot to add, she started to babble late (11months+) and this stopped completely when she had her surgery (at 15months) x


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## RachA

going_crazy said:


> Does anyone mind if I join?
> M is 2 in October and she is really quite behind in her speech. She can say "moose" for move (and she gestures for us to move too!) and she can say Mum (but she doesn't say it in context, only if I point to me and ask who I am), and she has just started to say Daddy, but again, not really in context.
> I'm sure I've heard bll (for ball) and eeess (when we are taking a photo and ask her to "say cheese") but that's about it
> 
> She has been referred to SALT but initial appointment isn't until 11th October :(
> 
> M will also carry out a whole conversation in her own 'language' - she will even stand in front of everyone as if giving a speech, and I feel so sad that none of us know what she is saying :(
> 
> x


Esther is under the SALT. Don't be too put off when you go - they don't really seem to do much tbh. However they have taught us how to make Esther listen to us as if they aren't listening they are learning. Esther has just had another appointment through - she had a run of 5 sessions back in May and since the end of those she hasn't had anything. Now we've got a new appointment for 22nd Oct. Even though she isn't really improved all that much i think the SALT is going to be pleased as she has got a few more words.

As your lo isn't 2 until Oct i wouldn't worry too much about her speech or the fact that your appointment isn't until Oct. In theory a lack of speech isn't a cause for concern until they are at least 3years. Unfortunately because we as parents want things to be done sooner rather than later then the appointments are being dished out earlier and earlier. When Esther had her 2 year check we were told that she's be referred so that she could be seen at 2 1/2 as by then they'd actually have a better idea of how she was getting on.

If you can - in the next 6 weeks, try and teach your lo some basic signing. Our SALT suggested 'more' 'eat' and 'drink' to start off with.


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## karlilay

Can i just ask some of you ladies a question. Im worried that Zach wont talk, or cant talk. But i think that he would if he could sometimes. He can make all of the different sounds, he will do lalala, dadada, nanana, mumumu, etc on prompt. But thats as far as it goes, he doesnt even attempt to speak. Just ...'Yeh!' when ever you ask him something.

Or Cow... which used to be caaaa but now he says co-w. He also says Mooooo... (hes obsessed with cows :dohh:)

Should i be worried? Take him to the docs?


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## RachA

karlilay said:


> Can i just ask some of you ladies a question. Im worried that Zach wont talk, or cant talk. But i think that he would if he could sometimes. He can make all of the different sounds, he will do lalala, dadada, nanana, mumumu, etc on prompt. But thats as far as it goes, he doesnt even attempt to speak. Just ...'Yeh!' when ever you ask him something.
> 
> Or Cow... which used to be caaaa but now he says co-w. He also says Mooooo... (hes obsessed with cows :dohh:)
> 
> Should i be worried? Take him to the docs?

I wouldn't be worried at all. He is making lots of really good sound and at this stage if he's doing that then he's on the right track :thumbup:


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## karlilay

Thanks hun, hope so. He didnt walk till he was 18 months so im thinking hes just lazy. :rofl:


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## _Vicky_

Also K remember they only master one thing at a time so as he was later walking he won't be thinking about talking yet. That's what sams specialist told me. He had his first assessment at 18 months for not walking and they assessed every area as part of the diagnosis process and at 18 months they were looking for his ability to say all the consonants and being able to understand speech - HTH

I like this thread - my Sam (ohhh it's always Sam!) has a word for everything but will he chat away like fynn does? Nope! Gggrrrr lol he will worry me to death that one - he has his six monthly development assessment in september so we'll see I guess xxx


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## smiley44

My little man is 2 yrs 8 mths and I was soo worried about his speech but over the last month or so he has developed so quickly. I think it helped visiting my family a few weeks back as they live away and they also came to visit us recently. Having more adults around seemed to help his speech. He is now talking in sentences all be it very toddlers versions of sentences. He has a lot of trouble with his pronunciation not being able to make a C sound or T sound but I'm still really pleased. My daughter was 10 months when she started talking and had a ton of words by one so this was a whole new experiences for me. It just suddenly happened!


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## RachA

That was like me smiley - Daniel was chatting away 90 to the dozen at 2years so Esther not talking at nearly 3 is odd for me.


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## HollyGolitely

It's reassuring to read that other toddlers started using sentences later. I think this will be the case for Eden, and like some others, she seemed be in no rush to hit other milestones, as well. She also has entire conversations using "babble" or nonsense words, but it seems to make sense to her! She can really go on, including body language, shrugging, her voice getting higher and lower in pitch, just like a real conversation would. This makes me hopeful, and I do believe she is just developing that part of her speech at a different pace, but I'm still getting her evaluated. If there is any developmental issue, I'd like to get it taken care of before she goes to school.


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## PepsiChic

Hey Ladies, just figured Id dig out this thread and see how everyone is doing?

Since we all posted last has anyone had any updates on their LO? 

Barry has suddenly (and i mean within the last 7 days) decided to learn a LOT of new words:, so now he can say:

Daddy (he used to say dada)
Mummy (used to be mama)
Baby (used to be buba)
"itty" (kitty)
"at" (cat)
dog
straw
cup
ball
bye bye
na night
"wuv wu" (love you)
more
blease (please)
mine
my
go
shoes
chugga chugga choo choo (used to be dugga dugga doo doo)
cookie
apple
nana (banana)
doodle (my nickname for him)
bath


theres probably a few Ive forgotten.

So new words hes learning every day which is great (today he learnt straw), but he still tends to only say them when prompted. He'll say "more" or "mine" when he wants more of something, or "cookie" and point at the cabinet where we keep his snacks (no he doesnt have cookies as snacks, he has had a couple of cookies in the past and for whatever reason everything he likes is now "cookie", daddy and mummy he also says umprompted when he wants us, and na night he says when i tell him its bedtime.

everything else though has to be promoted and the only words he strings together is "uh oh daddy!" when he wants daddy to chase him.


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## caandii

My cousin couldnt speak very well till she was about 5. She had loads of tests done nd nothing was wrong wiv her. She's now 9 nd never shuts up lol :)


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## _Vicky_

Lol as always Sam gets there in the end - he is initiating speech now talking to the TV and his brother etc. 

We are now up to 5/6 word sentences - I am no longer concerned about his speech x


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## hayz_baby

Hope u don't mind me talking about my lo as he is only 18 months and I understand a lot can happen in those 6 months but I have recognised a few things that you ladies have mentioned and I wanna ask if you lo did anything my lo has/does do. I am glad I found this thread though. 
Lo has always been a mover.. He was an army crawler from 4 months old and had been trying to do that since he was 1 month old. He was standing by just shy of 6 months old. His walking took a little bit longer due to a problem with his feet he was born with. I always think that he thinks differently and that he isn't "book smart" but is a doer and that is his thought process. I always remember at about 4/5 months he saw his toy roll under the sofa and he lied down and stretched to get it just like an adult would. He figured that out by himself. Speech is of course is another thing I don't really worry about it but I know it's there at the back of my mind. His first word was cat pronounced taaaat. We were so proud but not to long after he stopped saying it. He would only ever say it to the cat ( and would point at him too he loves the cat!) he would never say it at any other time but as time went on he wouldn't say it as often an the word got shorter. Now instead of saying cat he just goes mmmm(quite high pitched) and point at the cat. We think he tries to mimick meowing. He says hiya and goes iya iya iya iya. He says that to me and oh when we walk into the room. He waves to. He recently learnt (don't know where!) to go mmmm when there's food ( like mm tasty) which is cute but that is it. He doesn't show many signs of wanting to learn to talk. We have decided to leave it till lo turns 2 tho. He babbles loads but not to other children. He sings to songs and dances! He is very I independent in playing ad will happily play by himself. When other children are about he tries to hug them and will follow them but won't really interact and play as much. Although he has got better. He blows kisses to say bye too. He understands a lot like when it's bed time. When we have to put shoes on. When we go out. how to use his cutlery and other things. If he doesnt like what i say to him like "do you want to go to bed?" And he doesn't like it he will go errrr and sometimes point at the thing or just point at me. Everytime you say that he will do the same thing. If he wants to do it then he will do it. Sometimes says bye or goes aaaaaaayyy and claps (which he does quite a lot also forgot that one)
Did any of you lo start saying ten stop saying a word?
Any recommendations on what we can do to encourage. Do any of you mums think I'm thinking the same when it comes to similarities? 
Thanks for the hijack!


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## My_First

I have a friend of mine who is a speech therapist primarily for kids. I mentioned to her about Leo as he too have vey few words bar no and yes. She said that as long as the comprehension is there then not to worry too much about it. But should be doing lots of reading to them etc. to encourage it. She did suggest that by 24 months if he didn't have 10 words to seek a referell, not to really highlight it as problem but more to offer ideas to encourage it.


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## xprincessx

Callum is now 25 months old and still hasnt said his first word :cry:


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## Meredith2010

DS is getting on for 19 months and doesn't say a word.

It doesn't surprise me though, as both my brother and I were very late talkers. I didn't start talking until 2.5 and my brother was almost 3. My mum has a very funny story about when she took my brother to his first speech therapy session (at almost 3) and he was playing on the floor with a spinning top whilst she spoke to the therapist to explain what the situation was. He literally had never put 2 words together at this point, and the few words he had weren't proper words ("lugo" was drink etc) 

Anyway, so he was sitting playing with the spinning top whilst my mum and the therapist were chatting and just looked up and said "It goes anti clockwise mummy!" Absolutely no joke! My mum nearly fell of her chair, and the therapist just laughed and told her to take him home and that he'll talk when he wants to!


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## AP

I just seen this thread again, :dohh: 6 more months and she's 4. All I hear clearly is Gaga for Lady Gaga, and her hello kitty noise has vanished. He signing is picking up a bit, but only on her own terms and own signs, no doubt confusing nursery. :(

Completely no words apart from (Lady) Gaga. Ohh and "muh" for "moo/Haa Hoos on INTG"I just wish I had a crystal ball. We're awaiting her autism assessment soon- and this will be hard because she had a brain bleed on the left of her brain when she was born and I suspect this is what's causing it, but I'll never know. Because the symptoms are similar we might not get a firm diagnosis :/


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## PepsiChic

_Vicky_ said:


> Lol as always Sam gets there in the end - he is initiating speech now talking to the TV and his brother etc.
> 
> We are now up to 5/6 word sentences - I am no longer concerned about his speech x

thats fantastic! I looked at your last post and that was august 25th, so in 3 months he went from 1 word sentances to 5/6 word sentances! way to go sam! he just likes to worry you :haha:


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## PepsiChic

hayz_baby: no worries about gate-crashing, everyone is welcome, just 2 seems be the magical age where kids are expected to start having a conversation and its just not true!

Ive seen people get worried at 12 months, 14 months, and 18 months...when I looked at this forum, it seems to be closed to 2.5/3 years before toddlers really start talking.

Theres does seem to be a pattern that kids who move more or problem solve more (like the stretching to get a toy) take a little while longer to get going with speech. As a PP said, they only really concentrate on learning one area at a time.

The ways recommended to encourage speech is reading, and lots and lots of repetative talking. So picking up a book that doesnt have too many words so you dont over whelm, and pointing at each word as you say it, pause let your child look they may point at a word and try to say it too. 

Also if your doing something, or out point out things "see the green tree" "the tree is green" "thats a green tree" they may pick up on the word green, or the word tree, possibly both.

however these only work if your child *wants* to learn. Barry had no interest, i could say the same word a million times and hed still not be saying it. Its only recently that he'll point at something, I'll say what it is and he attempts to repeat it. Now that hes interested in words, he seems to be saying a lot more!





xprincessx said:


> Callum is now 25 months old and still hasnt said his first word :cry:

:hugs: its ok 24 months is still early!



Meredith2010 said:


> DS is getting on for 19 months and doesn't say a word.
> 
> Anyway, so he was sitting playing with the spinning top whilst my mum and the therapist were chatting and just looked up and said "It goes anti clockwise mummy!" Absolutely no joke! My mum nearly fell of her chair, and the therapist just laughed and told her to take him home and that he'll talk when he wants to!

LOL thats fantastic! 




AtomicPink said:


> I just seen this thread again, :dohh: 6 more months and she's 4. All I hear clearly is Gaga for Lady Gaga, and her hello kitty noise has vanished. He signing is picking up a bit, but only on her own terms and own signs, no doubt confusing nursery. :(
> 
> Completely no words apart from (Lady) Gaga. Ohh and "muh" for "moo/Haa Hoos on INTG"I just wish I had a crystal ball. We're awaiting her autism assessment soon- and this will be hard because she had a brain bleed on the left of her brain when she was born and I suspect this is what's causing it, but I'll never know. Because the symptoms are similar we might not get a firm diagnosis :/

:hugs: Sorry shes still not saying much, glad the signing is picking up though, I tried to get Barry to sign and he just thought the whole thing was hilerious :dohh: I bet one day she'll just blurt out a bunch of words for you :)


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## hayz_baby

Pepsi chic thanks for your kind words and advice.. We have a few books that are trchnically meant for KS1 readers so they are short and repeatitve like "a muddy puddle. Next page a dog jumped in the muddy puddle. A cat jumped on the muddy puddle" we try reading these to him at night if he lets us (I don't push it lol) I think we could point out more things to him but in all honesty I don't think he wants to learn. He is just starting to get over a developmental leap (18onth sleep regression maybe?) and he has learnt quite a lot in this short space in time and is starting to get back to normal so you never know! 
Thanks again! Xx


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## Babeonthego

What a great thread. My little guy has just turned 2 and again no words. He has in the past said mama, dada, nana However not used in any context. He is such a clever little cookie in lots of other ways. Hoping nursery maybe helps him a little and also been doing lots of reading with him


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## RachA

Well Esther is a little over 3 years now and we have the following:

iya (hiya)
bye or ba-bye
more
rarr for the lion
moo - cow
yes 
no
bubble
baby

and she signs:
more
eat
drink
thank you
kind of signs monkey


and she now knows where her eyes, ears, nose and mouth are and will say eyes and nose when she points to them but won't say them generally.

She has just had 3 sessions at out child development centre and tomorrow we are going for a feedback meeting with them to see how they think she is doing and if there is anything that could be causing her to not be talking.

But i think she is kind of doing well. She has more sounds and words than she did about 4 months ago so she is progressing. She is also now at playschool and they are really helping her.


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## mummy3

Eilidh still has no words either, we now have a speech therapist to the house to see her once a week and an infant teacher twice a week from early intervention and she's learning some signs and can gesture to what she wants from pictures:thumbup: Unfortunately her fine motor is also regressing but for now we can understand alot of what she wants! She can even sign 'more please':cloud9:


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## PepsiChic

mummy3 said:


> Eilidh still has no words either, we now have a speech therapist to the house to see her once a week and an infant teacher twice a week from early intervention and she's learning some signs and can gesture to what she wants from pictures:thumbup: Unfortunately her fine motor is also regressing but for now we can understand alot of what she wants! She can even sign 'more please':cloud9:

How do you pronounce her name? It looks so beautiful written down but Id hate to say it wrong!


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## mumandco

Hope you don't all mind me joining in Zack is 26 months and says very little words. We saw the hv when he was 23months who said put him in playgroup and shel see us again after Christmas. I didn't want him to go to playgroup but I felt like I was holding him back if I didn't so now he goes 2days a week he enjoys it but there has been no improvement to his speech.


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## angelae36

Abbie (3) can actually say allsorts, just the other day she tipped out 4 jigsaws into a heap that i had just sorted out and i said in frustration that she could be a pain sometimes. She looked at me and said I know! 
She can pick words up quite quickly, just last week I taught her "huggable" it wasn't a conscious decision it just happened and she copied it straight away!

But i've no chance of having a conversation with her. I firmly believe she is capeable of proper speech, but chooses not to. She starts preschool in January so i'll see what happens then!
In the meantime, i try very hard not to give her what she wants unless she asks for it, but usually she gives up waiting and tries to get whatever it is herself or wanders off to do something else! Very stubborn she is!


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## Bay

What a neat thread :thumbup: i'm so glad you decided to revive it. 

Our little monkey is 27 months old and doesn't say much. He has about 10 words that he is happy to repeat back to us, but he much prefers to baby babble ... Like as though he is saying a whole conversation with different tones and facial expressions. 

We've been going to a playgroup and it has wigged me out to see other kids his age talk so much more. I know i shouldn't compare, but it is hard not to be concerned when you just want the best for your child. I know he will talk in his own time, but in the interim he gets frustrated when i don't understand what he wants when he is pointing and dragging me over. 

Anyway, this thread has brought me much comfort and reassurance. So for that, thanks ladies for sharing.


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## mommyB

My son is almost 23 months and he says very little words. His main words are car, mama and dada. That's about it really. I try every day to get him to repeat things and he will try. But he's so darn smart! He understands everything that I say or ask of him. I know he will talk when he's ready and I'm deffinitely not worried. I guess I get a little frustrated because I keep hoping it will happen soon. I guess I'll chat to his doctor at his 24 month appt. and see what she says. I do believe every child talks when they are ready.


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## llsarahll

Ryan is almost 27 months and isn't talking at all :( he has just started saying no if u give him something he doesn't want that is it! X


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## mummy3

PepsiChic said:


> mummy3 said:
> 
> 
> Eilidh still has no words either, we now have a speech therapist to the house to see her once a week and an infant teacher twice a week from early intervention and she's learning some signs and can gesture to what she wants from pictures:thumbup: Unfortunately her fine motor is also regressing but for now we can understand alot of what she wants! She can even sign 'more please':cloud9:
> 
> How do you pronounce her name? It looks so beautiful written down but Id hate to say it wrong!Click to expand...


Thankyou! Its said as in Hayley but without the 'H':cloud9:


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## moggymay

llsarahll said:


> Ryan is almost 27 months and isn't talking at all :( he has just started saying no if u give him something he doesn't want that is it! X

My little one is the same, no speech. HV is not concerned and believes he will speak when he is ready as he totally comprehends everything and is able to communicate. 

She has referred us for speech therapy at our request, appt is next week. 

We have started him one morning a week at nursery to see if being apart from us will prompt his speech but so far nothing...I am fed up of everyone saying he will just start talking in sentences and that once he talks I will be wishing he would be quiet....

Im trying to be patient but it is hard when lots of other little ones we see are so chatty. We already try to make him choose, we do pretend play, we read we sing so I dont know.

Does anyone have any advice? He walked before he could crawl, he can pedal his trike, his eating is grand just he doesnt talk....should I be worried more?


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## Biscuitbaby

My Ryan is 22months and doesn't say much!! He's now starting to babble more but when his car seat broke repeated' shit' very clearly


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## MikaylasMummy

Hi all =) I don't know If I have posted earlier in this thread because if I saw it at the time I probably did.lol.but pepsichic steered me this way from another post of mine so I'm posting again as a bit of time has gone by since I last discussed Los speech.
Koby is now 24 months old and still has an extremely limited vocab.his regular well pronounced words are mum ,dad and more.his slightly less regular but still said often words are ball,bath,bike,bottle,Dora,woody,sissy.however these words are NOT pronounced well and sound like boo,ssss,doa,dee(woody).
He can say a few animal noises when asked what they say, lion, monkey,cow and dog.he can say the sounds but hasn't attempted the animals names.
On a few occasions he has come out with some far more advanced things but NEVER done it again.he once said "all gone" shrugged his shoulders and walked away.and the other day he ran up and said "hi dad!".
I think the thing that gets to me the most is that he won't repeat things when I ask him to.he has never done this and it's really hard continuing to point to and name everything when he just stares at you.he had started pointing a lot more though and when wer out he will point at everything for me to name,which is great but I'm sure he knows everything as he follows all instructions.he even saw a construction site the other day and pointe to it and Sao d"oh oh" lol.
His dr has referred us to a private speech therapist and we are starting after Xmas.jut to get things moving along.he has a great understanding of things and if u ask him to say something instead of saying it he will point to it.so he knows but just won't vocalise.
This is a great thread it really makes u feel better that your not alone!


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## xprincessx

Still no words here from Callum (aged 26 months next week)...still patiently waiting :haha:


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## Expect2bemom

My little boy will be 2 in March and his speaking is limited. He does say several words, some are hard to understand, but he is unable to have a conversation. And most of the time he points to what he wants and I tell him he needs to use his words....like milk...he will say 'ilk', or sock is "hock". Certain words are as clear as ever, but others are tricky to figure out. Im hoping that very soon he will be having great conversations with the people around him!


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## MikaylasMummy

Well in the last few weeks I have seen a huge boost in kobys development speech wise.he now uses more regular words like sissy,mum,bubbles,bird.he hears dogs and birds and knows what they are.and the biggest improvement iv seen in a few weeks is his babble.he used to just babble mum mum mum dad dad dad etc but recently he has started conversation babble with an array of sounds and expressions,and will have back and fourth conversations (him in babble,me answering him properly).it is a huge leap for him who showed no progressions for 6 months+.speech therapy will be booked after Chrissy to help move things along.how is everyone else's toddlers getting on?


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## PepsiChic

fantastic that hes having babbling conversations! I love listening to Barry when he does it, the different sounds he makes, the facial expressions and now, the arms gestures that go with it...I also love the way he ends some of it with a high pitch tone as if hes asking a question and he pauses for you to anwser! very cool stuff!


Im finding that words Barry does attempt to say he splits up, so "ba-by" "da-ddy" so nothing very fluent except two words..."cookie" and "doodle!" 

he has started pronouncing "sh" noises so we have "sh-ooos" (shoes), this happened after daddy taught him to put his finger to his lips and go "shhhhhhhh!" 

have also found that if i spend a day over exaggerating one particular sound by the end of the day hes normally picked it up (though may not hear it again for a few days)

today was "puh" for P. so Puh-lates and "puh-duddles" "puh-retty" I just exaggerate the puh noise and by the end of the day he was saying "potty" and "pee-pee" 

no doubt tomorrow he'll have forgotten again. but we'll see!


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## mumandco

The words Zack can say he can't ever finish the word,like mam is ma dad is da and juice is ju.
He knows quite a lot of sounds animals make but he can't say any words.


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## moggymay

pepsi my son is a similar age and we have been teaching him the sounds our eldest learned when learning to read...we too have found focus on a sound means he learns the sound, we had a mini breakthrough yesterday when he repeated "pop"back to me, he will now say pop but seems to be making a real effort when he says it if that makes sense? The sound aids we are using are the "jolly phonics" ones. 

We had our speech therapy appointment last week and were adfvised to teach him to sign....she asked us to come into the room and ask him to play, he did and at the end she said he was very quiet yet she didnt speak once to him or interact with him, is this how a SLT assessment should go? I presume she would try to speak or interact with him to see what response he gave? Im now unsure what to do, I have ordered a signing dvd as we cannot get a place on a signing course until the new year and I have started the sound teaching to see if it prompts anything but would really like some more guidance or support...


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## MikaylasMummy

Zack sounds a lot like koby.he did this that was his only way of talking(mu,boo, ba etc) but he is slowly starting to say words a little better.
Pepsi,it really sucks when they say new words and then don't continue using them regularly


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## RachA

moggymay said:


> pepsi my son is a similar age and we have been teaching him the sounds our eldest learned when learning to read...we too have found focus on a sound means he learns the sound, we had a mini breakthrough yesterday when he repeated "pop"back to me, he will now say pop but seems to be making a real effort when he says it if that makes sense? The sound aids we are using are the "jolly phonics" ones.
> 
> We had our speech therapy appointment last week and were adfvised to teach him to sign....she asked us to come into the room and ask him to play, he did and at the end she said he was very quiet yet she didnt speak once to him or interact with him, is this how a SLT assessment should go? I presume she would try to speak or interact with him to see what response he gave? Im now unsure what to do, I have ordered a signing dvd as we cannot get a place on a signing course until the new year and I have started the sound teaching to see if it prompts anything but would really like some more guidance or support...


The initial assessment they do tend to leave them on their own while they talk to the parent/s. They are watching them the whole time to see if they talk to themselves etc. When you go to the next sessions the SALT will talk to your child a bit more. 
Getting signing dvd's is a good move. We bought Esther a nursery rhyme one by Singing Hands as she really likes nursery rhymes. We've also just bought her a christmas one by the same people.


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## MikaylasMummy

Hey ladies.i thought I would update and see how everyone else is doing.koby has his speech pathology assessment yesterday and I was really impressed with his pathologist.she was lovely and so so good!i really didnt think she would be able to get anything out of him but she got a thoroughly acurate assessment of what he can and can't do some that I didn't even know!
He has come back as having a moderate communication delay.he was almost up to scratch with his non verbal communication but started getting stuck when we removed hand gestures and names and used me and you instead.so that's where he got up to.it was also blatantly obvious when he didnt know something because he was so engaged and participating until he didnt know an answer and he'd just get up and run to the window to show us the cars.lol.the thing that brought him to the moderate level was his small number of words compared to the recommended words for a two year old (he was two in November).and she also said the non understanding of the words I and me without physical gestures was a limitation caused by his speech.
She said he has great imaginative play and was happy that even though he ran to the window to point to the cars he was looking back at us and getting our attention to tell us about them.which is apparently a good sign.
She has already shown me some great ways to start teaching him new things using cause and effect and how to stop tantrums when he wants something but has to wait.i think she will really make a difference to him and we are starting weekly appointments from next week.


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## MikaylasMummy

Oh and I should say he is really progressing on his own as well.he gets about 3 new words a week and is really getting good at his animal sounds.he is also babbling away like he thinks he is talking full sentences.lol.so fingers crossed with this extra intervention hel catch up in no time


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## PepsiChic

WTG Koby! sounds like hes doing great, and I think its so important to have support from people who you, and Koby likes, will make the sppech therapy a lot fun and much easier!

AFM - Barry has come leaps and bounds, hes learnt the alphabet, Ive been saying A B C D E for a while and he repeats them back, and I play the leapfrog phonics farm dvd for him too, and before i knew it he was pointing at the letters and saying them back...but not just the ones i was saying, he was doing them all! so proud of him!

He also tried to repeat things, so I might say "what do you want for dinner?" and he'll try to say it back, sometimes its just all mumbles and jibberish, but occasionally you here the words in there. 

He can also now say "my name is Barry" its the first real sentence hes ever said, but now he cheats, now I say "my name is" and instead of him repeating it he just says "Barry!" lol


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## MikaylasMummy

Wow Barry is doing fabulous!!i have hope koby will be as clever as him soon!maybe I should get a DVD cos koby LOVES DVDs and does a running commentary of all his fave ones if he happens to watch them with someone else..in jibber ohs of course with the occasional "oh oh"..lol


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## AP

We've really got into signing for Alex now, and she signs a lot! Not perfect, but it's there. She can all say "cat" perfect now, and attempts to say Gaga (Lady) and dog when j ask but they are just odd noises. But the same odd noises each time.

Tori can only say "cat" too so at 22months I really am devestated and blaming myself now :cry: she babbles a billion times more than Alex though.

I've turned into a horror, I've blocked people on Facebook for updating daily about the massive stuff their kids say. I'm just so sad.


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## MikaylasMummy

Oh hunni =( is Alex having speech therapy?ita great that at least she has a way of communicating.im sure the rest will come along in its own time.i think their personalities really have a lot to do with it as well.koby seems to know so much more than he lets on but doesn't want to do what others want him to.lol.
Hugs Hun xxx


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## hayz_baby

Lo speech hasn't really improved much. Still has no interest in learning to talk apart from hiya which he goes "iya iya iya iya" when he sees you and bye when he goes which is "ba ba ba" when he says these his voice is really high. His jibberish is at his normal speaking voice.he has still never re said the word cat and just attempts to repeat the sound when he hears the cat. I know it is still early doors but I am convinced we may need some help but are holding out till he turns 2 which is in may.


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## mumandco

Zacks speech has come on a lot for him but not enough iykwim. He's being referred for speech therapy although there is a 3-4 month wait before hel get seen


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## AP

MikaylasMummy said:


> Oh hunni =( is Alex having speech therapy?ita great that at least she has a way of communicating.im sure the rest will come along in its own time.i think their personalities really have a lot to do with it as well.koby seems to know so much more than he lets on but doesn't want to do what others want him to.lol.
> Hugs Hun xxx

Yeah, speech have been involved heavily for over a year now, and do one to one in nursery for her. The nursery has been fab, there are flash cards placed at her height in pockets all round the nursery so she can request and anticipate things. The signing pays off, but I'm not sure in what respect. Alex was never one for copying things, but now she is, so it's helped in that dept, but the speech remains to be seen. She learnt "cat" from Tori. 

As Alex gets older it becomes more and more worrying, shes 4 in June. I didn't think we'd get to this age with things being this slow. She's been referred for an assessment for autism. We'll find the reason there, or it'll just have to be a case of the brain damage she had has obviously affected this part of her brain. 

You're right, Alex is a little like Koby, she knows more than she lets on, she just ain't for showing it. I did find it hilarious when she has gotten into copying the snickers advert though :rofl:

I've seen others say they've had issues with speech and I think I've found a friend, but not long later their kiddies have caught the hang of it and here I am, still waiting to be called Mum. Cow would do though :rofl:


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## RachA

Sounds like most of yours are coming on well.

I'm with you though Atomic - Esther has improved a little but i'm not sure it's enough. She's 4 in October and still only has a few words. She has picked up a couple of animal noises and she can 'count' from 1-10 but these numbers are more sounds with the start of the word being the right sound iykwim. I'm sure she does know more than she lets on but i wish she'd actually come out and say it. She loves her songs still and sings along, minus the actual words. She does put in the right number of words per line though. We are awaiting another hearing test. She had one last month but they couldn't get the lower sounds as she got bored. So next week we have to go again.
I really wish she'd pick up on the signing. I do it with her as much as i can but she doesn't really copy me.


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## x Michelle x

AtomicPink said:


> I've turned into a horror, I've blocked people on Facebook for updating daily about the massive stuff their kids say. I'm just so sad.

I've thought about doing this too :cry:

My little girl is 2 on Saturday, She has Congenital Hypothyroidism which can affect growth, both mentally and physically... But we have no way of knowing! Some things she did quickly, others ie walking weren't until 18 months. She is also teeny, just ober 9th centile and her younger brother is bigger than her (ok, he is over 98% centile for everything!)
As for taking we don't have very much, She has said:
spider (dider)
sausages
bottle
water
But only once, never to be repeated! 
If i ask her to say please, she say Keeeeeee, and for Cheese (in a photo) its eeeeeeeeee.
For yes, she claps her hands, for No, she shakes her head or says Uh-uh.

I'm sick of people saying "oh once she starts she'll never shut up" I wish she would start cos then i could stop the incessant worrying!


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## AP

x Michelle x said:


> I'm sick of people saying "oh once she starts she'll never shut up" I wish she would start cos then i could stop the incessant worrying!

I utterly HATE that line, it's so insensitive! :hugs:


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## ihearttc

Just wondered if it would be ok for me to join in too?

Joseph was 2 in November but was born at 32 weeks. We escaped NICU without any issues but a year later they found out he has got a rather rare heart defect...it affects his throat as well so we have been under ENT for the last year. He had his tonsils/adenoids out last september as he had repeated ear infections and because they wanted to see if it would help his throat/heart issues as well. He hasn't had an ear infection since thank goodness but his speech is still very behind. 

The few words he does say only I can understand so its very frustrating...doesn't help that Im surrounded by friends with younger children all having full blown conversations. I have an 8 year old as well who was also speech delayed...he wasn't saying anything at 3 but then had his tonsils/adenoids taken out and within weeks had caught up and now is always talking so I should be able to cope this time but I really can't. They have referred him to a speech therapist and back to ENT/Audiology only because I caused a bit of a fuss.


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## angelae36

I'm really pleased a lot of little ones are coming on in leaps and bounds :thumbup:
I'm also quite jealous!

My daughter is 3 and 3 months. She talks non-stop but it's mostly in her own language.
She started at preschool in January and I was thinking "great, get her with other children and she'll be off"
No such luck :nope:

Long story short, preschool "advised" me to get in touch with the HV about her "behaviour". She lashes out in tantrums, hits bites etc.
The HV went last week and the verdict?
She has more than speech delay, it's a "communication problem" meaning she hasn't quite worked out how to have a conversation. But she didn't really elucidate on it.

She was already been referred to the SLT, we're waiting for an appointment now.
The HV is also going to work on her attention span and there is someone going in to preschool to help her there.
so fingers crossed it all helps but I have a feeling that we are in for a rocky roller coaster of a time over the next few years.


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## RachA

angelae36 said:


> I'm really pleased a lot of little ones are coming on in leaps and bounds :thumbup:
> I'm also quite jealous!
> 
> My daughter is 3 and 3 months. She talks non-stop but it's mostly in her own language.
> She started at preschool in January and I was thinking "great, get her with other children and she'll be off"
> No such luck :nope:
> 
> Long story short, preschool "advised" me to get in touch with the HV about her "behaviour". She lashes out in tantrums, hits bites etc.
> The HV went last week and the verdict?
> She has more than speech delay, it's a "communication problem" meaning she hasn't quite worked out how to have a conversation. But she didn't really elucidate on it.
> 
> She was already been referred to the SLT, we're waiting for an appointment now.
> The HV is also going to work on her attention span and there is someone going in to preschool to help her there.
> so fingers crossed it all helps but I have a feeling that we are in for a rocky roller coaster of a time over the next few years.

If you can get the preschool involved and helping then that will really help you. Esther's preschool is really good - they are bending over backwards to help us out. Your lo is the same sort of age as mine. Esther does have a severe speech and communication delay but she doesn't lash out because of it but i can see why a child does. There should be lots of things open to you if you push for them. We are on the waiting list for Portage. You can also do things like make your own flash cards that have pictures of your house, you and any other important family members, any pets, any places you go to regularly etc. These can then be used at home and playschool to help your lo communicate.


----------



## MikaylasMummy

AtomicPink said:


> MikaylasMummy said:
> 
> 
> Oh hunni =( is Alex having speech therapy?ita great that at least she has a way of communicating.im sure the rest will come along in its own time.i think their personalities really have a lot to do with it as well.koby seems to know so much more than he lets on but doesn't want to do what others want him to.lol.
> Hugs Hun xxx
> 
> Yeah, speech have been involved heavily for over a year now, and do one to one in nursery for her. The nursery has been fab, there are flash cards placed at her height in pockets all round the nursery so she can request and anticipate things. The signing pays off, but I'm not sure in what respect. Alex was never one for copying things, but now she is, so it's helped in that dept, but the speech remains to be seen. She learnt "cat" from Tori.
> 
> As Alex gets older it becomes more and more worrying, shes 4 in June. I didn't think we'd get to this age with things being this slow. She's been referred for an assessment for autism. We'll find the reason there, or it'll just have to be a case of the brain damage she had has obviously affected this part of her brain.
> 
> You're right, Alex is a little like Koby, she knows more than she lets on, she just ain't for showing it. I did find it hilarious when she has gotten into copying the snickers advert though :rofl:
> 
> I've seen others say they've had issues with speech and I think I've found a friend, but not long later their kiddies have caught the hang of it and here I am, still waiting to be called Mum. Cow would do though :rofl:Click to expand...

:haha::haha: to the snickers commercial.lol.koby loves to sing the afro circus/I like to move it song and stands at the tv doing the moves..lol.hes not actually saying the words though just making the sounds.
I'm sorry about your daughters brain damage :hugs: I guess knowing the reason means you can work on making things easier for her to continue a normal life.x


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## MikaylasMummy

Hayz_baby he is still so young!i hope he picks up before his birthday so u can stop worrying.it really is so hard wondering and waiting for the day they just take off!
Mumanfco that's such a big wait!we decided to go privately and I think it will be really great as I think shel be more accessible.costing a lot of money though once our private health cap is reached.koby is starting weekly hopefull shel push it out a bit more if he starts improving
RachA she sounds a lot like koby.and I mean A LOT.he only does the starts of words with the exception of a few (he says daddy bye and bottle properly,the rest just sound like the word but aren't completed).has she spoken like this since a toddler or has she only started talking recently and that's how she has started.just wondering of this is something koby is going to carry on as he gets older.
Michele,she sound a bit like koby too.he says some twos word sentences like my turn and some other but never says them again!!so I'm left wondering if I imagined it even though other people hear them.lots of people tell me he has said things to them but he never says them regularly,there are only about 15/20 words he uses regularly.one thing that drives me insane is that he shakes his head for yes AND no!!so I pretty much just have to guess.if he really really wants something hel actually say yes and if he really doesn't want something hel shake his head and whinge but for things he's not fussed on its a no until I put it away and he runs crying.lol.

One thing iv noticed in the last few days is he actually goes up to strangers now and babbles to them and engages them in convos.a friend I was with yesterday was surprised cos thats not something he used to do.hopefully those babbles magically turn into words!


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## MikaylasMummy

ihearttc said:


> Just wondered if it would be ok for me to join in too?
> 
> Joseph was 2 in November but was born at 32 weeks. We escaped NICU without any issues but a year later they found out he has got a rather rare heart defect...it affects his throat as well so we have been under ENT for the last year. He had his tonsils/adenoids out last september as he had repeated ear infections and because they wanted to see if it would help his throat/heart issues as well. He hasn't had an ear infection since thank goodness but his speech is still very behind.
> 
> The few words he does say only I can understand so its very frustrating...doesn't help that Im surrounded by friends with younger children all having full blown conversations. I have an 8 year old as well who was also speech delayed...he wasn't saying anything at 3 but then had his tonsils/adenoids taken out and within weeks had caught up and now is always talking so I should be able to cope this time but I really can't. They have referred him to a speech therapist and back to ENT/Audiology only because I caused a bit of a fuss.

Of course you can.im sorry your little one has to go through so much.do they think that maybe his hearing is affected due to his multiple war infections?and due to his throat being affected maybe he does have a hearing issue that is delaying his speech.hopefully that can be sorted out.its encouraging that your 8 year old picked up after 3.maybe your lo will be the same?x


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## moggymay

We have made a little progress since we had our initial assessment, pre-school have been amazing but something they said made me worry...they said they think he may be either choosing not to speak or there is something stopping him from saying the words he would want to say....

Im not sure what to try as the SLT seems really uncooperative - she works in our area one day a week but it is the day my son has a session at the nursery/pre-school for a few hours, she wont go there and when I offered to go elsewhere to meet her she said we would have to be referred again to that area and it means going back to the start - HV referred first appt after his 2nd birthday so almost 3.5 months for initial assessment and a further 2.5 months to arrange the next appt which is still a month away....just want to help my little man. Any advice please?

Really glad to know Im not the only one upset by folk telling me soon I will be willing him to be quiet! Cant wait to hear how his voice sounds when he talks properly.


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## RachA

MikaylasMummy said:


> Hayz_baby he is still so young!i hope he picks up before his birthday so u can stop worrying.it really is so hard wondering and waiting for the day they just take off!
> Mumanfco that's such a big wait!we decided to go privately and I think it will be really great as I think shel be more accessible.costing a lot of money though once our private health cap is reached.koby is starting weekly hopefull shel push it out a bit more if he starts improving
> *RachA she sounds a lot like koby.and I mean A LOT.he only does the starts of words with the exception of a few (he says daddy bye and bottle properly,the rest just sound like the word but aren't completed).has she spoken like this since a toddler or has she only started talking recently and that's how she has started.just wondering of this is something koby is going to carry on as he gets older.*
> Michele,she sound a bit like koby too.he says some twos word sentences like my turn and some other but never says them again!!so I'm left wondering if I imagined it even though other people hear them.lots of people tell me he has said things to them but he never says them regularly,there are only about 15/20 words he uses regularly.one thing that drives me insane is that he shakes his head for yes AND no!!so I pretty much just have to guess.if he really really wants something hel actually say yes and if he really doesn't want something hel shake his head and whinge but for things he's not fussed on its a no until I put it away and he runs crying.lol.
> 
> One thing iv noticed in the last few days is he actually goes up to strangers now and babbles to them and engages them in convos.a friend I was with yesterday was surprised cos thats not something he used to do.hopefully those babbles magically turn into words!


It's become more noticeable as she's saying a few more things. She says hiya, bye-bye, mummy, 'olly (holly our dog), properly. Other words she says are things like 'ba' for bag, 'bar' for bath. I get the feeling she isn't hearing the ends of words as we say them. She definitely babbles much more than she used to. 
It just concerns me because we have another review in June for her and if she hasn't progressed 6months or more by then then it's likely that she will always be really behind.


----------



## RachA

MikaylasMummy said:


> Hayz_baby he is still so young!i hope he picks up before his birthday so u can stop worrying.it really is so hard wondering and waiting for the day they just take off!
> Mumanfco that's such a big wait!we decided to go privately and I think it will be really great as I think shel be more accessible.costing a lot of money though once our private health cap is reached.koby is starting weekly hopefull shel push it out a bit more if he starts improving
> *RachA she sounds a lot like koby.and I mean A LOT.he only does the starts of words with the exception of a few (he says daddy bye and bottle properly,the rest just sound like the word but aren't completed).has she spoken like this since a toddler or has she only started talking recently and that's how she has started.just wondering of this is something koby is going to carry on as he gets older.*
> Michele,she sound a bit like koby too.he says some twos word sentences like my turn and some other but never says them again!!so I'm left wondering if I imagined it even though other people hear them.lots of people tell me he has said things to them but he never says them regularly,there are only about 15/20 words he uses regularly.one thing that drives me insane is that he shakes his head for yes AND no!!so I pretty much just have to guess.if he really really wants something hel actually say yes and if he really doesn't want something hel shake his head and whinge but for things he's not fussed on its a no until I put it away and he runs crying.lol.
> 
> One thing iv noticed in the last few days is he actually goes up to strangers now and babbles to them and engages them in convos.a friend I was with yesterday was surprised cos thats not something he used to do.hopefully those babbles magically turn into words!


It's become more noticeable as she's saying a few more things. She says hiya, bye-bye, mummy, 'olly (holly our dog), properly. Other words she says are things like 'ba' for bag, 'bar' for bath. I get the feeling she isn't hearing the ends of words as we say them. She definitely babbles much more than she used to. 
It just concerns me because we have another review in June for her and if she hasn't progressed 6months or more by then then it's likely that she will always be really behind.


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## MikaylasMummy

Oh no =( so they've given you a cut off for when she should be caught up?gosh how stressful.thats my only fear that he won't catch up enough and will stay behind.i am in two minds really because mil said most of hers didnt talk until they were 3+ oh included and my oh is intelligent and (when he wants to be) well spoken.however two of her other kids were a bit more behind and have grown up struggling a bit


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## RachA

MikaylasMummy said:


> Oh no =( so they've given you a cut off for when she should be caught up?gosh how stressful.thats my only fear that he won't catch up enough and will stay behind.i am in two minds really because mil said most of hers didnt talk until they were 3+ oh included and my oh is intelligent and (when he wants to be) well spoken.however two of her other kids were a bit more behind and have grown up struggling a bit

It's not a cut of as such. She will be reviewed every 6 months until such a time as the decide it's not needed. When they first said she had a speech delay back in Nov they said she was around 18months behind, so therefore at 3years she was at the stage of an 18month old. Obviously if she carries on progressing at a normal rate that means that she will stay 18months behind which isn't really too bad - not ideal obviously. However if she hasn't progressed 6 months within 6 months then they will need to look more seriously at long term affects on her and us. What we are really hoping is that by her next assessment she will of progressed more than 6 months. I hope that makes sense. It's kind of a moving target all the time and it's the unknown that is hard to deal with.


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## AP

Sending hugs RachA. We seem to be having a similar time of it!
:hugs:


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## AP

MikaylasMummy said:


> I'm sorry about your daughters brain damage :hugs: I guess knowing the reason means you can work on making things easier for her to continue a normal life.x

Tbh, how things have turned out is minimal to how things could have been for us, and had someone told me when she was born that this is what we would deal with, I'd have been "happy", ykwim? 

I've grown to an acceptance now that Alex won't be talking properly any time soon, but so long as we get some form of communication going and progress, whatever that might be, then I will be ok,

We found n episode of something special tonight that she really enjoyed, and got into the signing quickly!


----------



## MikaylasMummy

RachA said:


> MikaylasMummy said:
> 
> 
> Oh no =( so they've given you a cut off for when she should be caught up?gosh how stressful.thats my only fear that he won't catch up enough and will stay behind.i am in two minds really because mil said most of hers didnt talk until they were 3+ oh included and my oh is intelligent and (when he wants to be) well spoken.however two of her other kids were a bit more behind and have grown up struggling a bit
> 
> It's not a cut of as such. She will be reviewed every 6 months until such a time as the decide it's not needed. When they first said she had a speech delay back in Nov they said she was around 18months behind, so therefore at 3years she was at the stage of an 18month old. Obviously if she carries on progressing at a normal rate that means that she will stay 18months behind which isn't really too bad - not ideal obviously. However if she hasn't progressed 6 months within 6 months then they will need to look more seriously at long term affects on her and us. What we are really hoping is that by her next assessment she will of progressed more than 6 months. I hope that makes sense. It's kind of a moving target all the time and it's the unknown that is hard to deal with.Click to expand...

Yes I see what you mean.so if they havnt caught up over a certain amount of time they are likely to stay that far behind.i really hope she does well with her assessment.x


----------



## MikaylasMummy

AtomicPink said:


> MikaylasMummy said:
> 
> 
> I'm sorry about your daughters brain damage :hugs: I guess knowing the reason means you can work on making things easier for her to continue a normal life.x
> 
> Tbh, how things have turned out is minimal to how things could have been for us, and had someone told me when she was born that this is what we would deal with, I'd have been "happy", ykwim?
> 
> I've grown to an acceptance now that Alex won't be talking properly any time soon, but so long as we get some form of communication going and progress, whatever that might be, then I will be ok,
> 
> We found n episode of something special tonight that she really enjoyed, and got into the signing quickly!Click to expand...

It's great she has done so well compared to her prognosis at birth.her understanding seems great so as long as she can express herself I guess that's a bonus


----------



## angelae36

RachA said:


> If you can get the preschool involved and helping then that will really help you. Esther's preschool is really good - they are bending over backwards to help us out. Your lo is the same sort of age as mine. Esther does have a severe speech and communication delay but she doesn't lash out because of it but i can see why a child does. There should be lots of things open to you if you push for them. We are on the waiting list for Portage. You can also do things like make your own flash cards that have pictures of your house, you and any other important family members, any pets, any places you go to regularly etc. These can then be used at home and playschool to help your lo communicate.

I wouldn't say preschool are bending over backwards to help, but they are trying. Maybe once they get whoever it is in to help Abbie they might be able to do more themselves.

The flash cards are an excellent idea and I will start making them today. Thank you.

She does manage to get across what she wants. Usually at preschool she wants to play outside and she'll stand by the door and keep going back until she is let out.
She is usually gently told no she can't go out which sets her off shouting and crying but they distract her with something else. Her tantrums and lashing out usually happen when she is told she can't have/do something or she is tired, but since I've started doing time-outs for hitting and biting she's doing them less often and is starting to accept no!

I've not heard of Portage but had a look at their website and it seems a really good idea. 
Once we've seen the speech therapist and know a bit more about Abbies problem I may well get in touch with them.

A quick question though. Is it normal for them to do things completely differently in pre-school than at home? By that I mean, for example, eye contact. Abbie does it at home but not at preschool and this has been highlighted as a concern.
Since it was pointed out I make a point of looking for eye contact and she seems to do it more and more each day but when I told the HV she does it at home she almost dismissed what I said.


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## bumpy_j

Hi can I join? Some people may remember me from my autism thread as I was associating his speech delay with Austism (something which is common in my side of the family - my brother and my dad both are on the spectrum). I have hesitantly ruled out Autism as he is not displaying any other symptoms at the moment but Joel still isn't saying much at all, apart from 'See ya' and 'Awah' for Hello. He used to say 'no' but now just shakes his head. He can point to things in his books but doesn't attempt to say them. And when we're out he's absolutely silent. At home he babbles a lot though and sort of has his own language. He is going to nursery very soon for three days a week as he was referred by our health visitor. Has anyone experienced a leap in language when putting their toddlers into nursery?


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## moggymay

:hi: bumpyJ....my son started doing hours at the local pre-school/nursery in october but as yet is hasnt directly improved his speech, it gives me confidence that he copes well when there and they understand his signs and noises but still waiting for the language jump everyone claims he will make...he only does a few hours though so maybe full days has a different result...FX'd for you that it does :)


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## RachA

angelae36 said:


> RachA said:
> 
> 
> If you can get the preschool involved and helping then that will really help you. Esther's preschool is really good - they are bending over backwards to help us out. Your lo is the same sort of age as mine. Esther does have a severe speech and communication delay but she doesn't lash out because of it but i can see why a child does. There should be lots of things open to you if you push for them. We are on the waiting list for Portage. You can also do things like make your own flash cards that have pictures of your house, you and any other important family members, any pets, any places you go to regularly etc. These can then be used at home and playschool to help your lo communicate.
> 
> I wouldn't say preschool are bending over backwards to help, but they are trying. Maybe once they get whoever it is in to help Abbie they might be able to do more themselves.
> 
> The flash cards are an excellent idea and I will start making them today. Thank you.
> 
> She does manage to get across what she wants. Usually at preschool she wants to play outside and she'll stand by the door and keep going back until she is let out.
> She is usually gently told no she can't go out which sets her off shouting and crying but they distract her with something else. Her tantrums and lashing out usually happen when she is told she can't have/do something or she is tired, but since I've started doing time-outs for hitting and biting she's doing them less often and is starting to accept no!
> 
> I've not heard of Portage but had a look at their website and it seems a really good idea.
> Once we've seen the speech therapist and know a bit more about Abbies problem I may well get in touch with them.
> 
> A quick question though. Is it normal for them to do things completely differently in pre-school than at home? By that I mean, for example, eye contact. Abbie does it at home but not at preschool and this has been highlighted as a concern.
> Since it was pointed out I make a point of looking for eye contact and she seems to do it more and more each day but when I told the HV she does it at home she almost dismissed what I said.Click to expand...

As you say, hopefully once things are sorted out a bit more then they Playschool will help more. 

Iro your question. I know that both of mine have behaved differently at Playschool than at home. Because of where Esther is at with her speech delay we've had to fill various forms in along side the Playschool. When the Playschool have done their bit they haven't been able to put in that she's done x, y and z because with them she hadnt with them even though she had with us at home. But as she got more settled in she did start doing those things. She's been at Playschool for 4 1/2 months now and I think that how she is there now is how she is at home.


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## RachA

Hi bumpy_j. 

My lo started Playschool back at the end of Sept and she hasn't come on leaps and bounds. Some children will really start talking alot when they start but others just won't. Esther usually goes for 7hours a week, over 2 days (at the moment she is doing 10hours over 3 days as I've not been well). It has helped her with playing along side other children and it's actually really helped her eating. It has helped her communication but she hasn't suddenly started saying loads of words.


----------



## angelae36

Thanks RachA, you really are being a great help:hugs:
It would be nice if it was acknowledged the fact that she is different in strange surroundings, but they don't seem to!


----------



## RachA

angelae36 said:


> Thanks RachA, you really are being a great help:hugs:
> It would be nice if it was acknowledged the fact that she is different in strange surroundings, but they don't seem to!

Glad i can help.

I know what you mean - it's really frustrating. When we had Esther's assessment which gave the outcome of her speech delay it was frustrating because they saw her for 1 1/2 hours a week for three weeks. As she wasn't in her usual surroundings she was much more reserved and quieter than usual but they didn't seem to take that into account. But i guess that as they are child specialists that actually they did. 
The playschool can only report on things that the child does do there. I guess part of that is because us as parents hear words when the child makes a sound but the staff at the playschool just hear a sound.


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## VieraSky

Rowan will be 2 in May, and doesn't say very much. He says kitty, dada, nana, and pop the most. He understands most of what people say, like 'can you close the door' or 'put your arms up' and he will do it. He also would rather show you something, or take your hand and put it on the door knob if he wants you to open the door, rather than tell you what he wants.


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## bumpy_j

thanks guys :hugs:


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## angelae36

VieraSky said:


> Rowan will be 2 in May, and doesn't say very much. He says kitty, dada, nana, and pop the most. He understands most of what people say, like 'can you close the door' or 'put your arms up' and he will do it. He also would rather show you something, or take your hand and put it on the door knob if he wants you to open the door, rather than tell you what he wants.

Yep, Abbie takes us and shows what she wants rather than saying, also she holds my finger to point at what she wants on, for example on the cbeebies website.
But when she does that we also give her the words. So if she wants toast for example, she'll take us to the fridge which we open and she'll tap the bread. We say "toast" and make it for her.
You have to give the words for them to learn them is you see what I mean?
Having said that it took Abbie 18 months just to say drink!

RachA, I understand that if Abbie doesn't do/say something at school, they can't tick that box. It would be helpful if professionals could come out to familiar surroundings but I'm guessing there just aren't enough resources for that sadly. I'm quite pleased the first time we saw the HV and Abbie said "bye bye see you soon" on the way out! It proved she can say something - and she's now doing it at preschool too!
But we plod on!


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## kellie_w

My son is being assessed next month on the 7th. I feel really nervous about it, no idea what to expect but would rather get help than leave it. He is only just starting to say a few words, mama, daddy, airplane, choo choo, apple, nana, happy hello peppa, hello george are the clear words he says, the rest is still just babble.he generally doesn't speak infront of anyone apart from me and dh, so I don't know what's going to happen x


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## Meredith2010

At what age are they referred for assessment in the UK? DS is 21 months and still doesn't have any words other than mama and dada. He's very vocal, but just not in actual words.

He understands absolutely everything we say to him though and communicates perfectly well with actions. I'm wondering if he just doesn't feel the need to speak as he makes himself fully understandable without saying anything - is that possible?


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## kellie_w

At our two year review (actually done at 18 months! ) I raised my concerns about lukes speech. I was contacted and was told to wait 3 more months to see if any improvement. It was in december that he was finally referred, so 2 years 3 months for us x


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## RachA

Meredith2010 said:


> At what age are they referred for assessment in the UK? DS is 21 months and still doesn't have any words other than mama and dada. He's very vocal, but just not in actual words.
> 
> He understands absolutely everything we say to him though and communicates perfectly well with actions. I'm wondering if he just doesn't feel the need to speak as he makes himself fully understandable without saying anything - is that possible?


Yeah here in the uk it's usually around 2 years. 

If your son has good none verbal communication and his understanding is good then it's not as much of an issue. My daughter was referred as her none verbal comma wasn't great but her understanding was really bad.


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## moggymay

Can anyone give me an idea what happens at the second appt...our first appt they didnt speak with my son but we have finally heard about a second appt where she will be assessing him...what will she be looking for as I am worried that due to the appt being with a person he doesnt know that he will not respond to her. Wish they offered some family support so we could ask questions etc as we encounter them. If we are concerned about verbal dyspraxia who do we turn to?


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## RachA

moggymay said:


> Can anyone give me an idea what happens at the second appt...our first appt they didnt speak with my son but we have finally heard about a second appt where she will be assessing him...what will she be looking for as I am worried that due to the appt being with a person he doesnt know that he will not respond to her. Wish they offered some family support so we could ask questions etc as we encounter them. If we are concerned about verbal dyspraxia who do we turn to?

Is this appointment with a speech therapist?


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## moggymay

Yes - we were referred by HV about 6 months ago now, we saw the SLT for the first time in December, she spoke with us and asked lots of questions then sent us away with the request we teach him to sign using makaton to give him a means of communication (we have done this mainly through Something Special dvds as we have been unable to get onto a course locally) and she would send through another appointment in 8 weeks time, the appointment came through but clashed with his few hours a week spent at nursery (HV suggested this might bring on his speech) so when we requested a different day/time it has resulted in us waiting til March now for her to see Jack again (the alternative was even longer!) The staff at nursery seem to think something is stopping him forming some of the sounds he needs as he is able to say mama, dad, baay (bye) haya (hiya) they say he understands and is able to communicate through signs and pointing but the speech he cant get it out....hence wondering about verbal dyspraxia if that makes sense?

SLT works across the county but in our area only one day - I have offered for us to travel to her on a different day but this isnt possible so wondering who else we can turn to for advice?

Thanks for taking time to read RachA, would appreciate your advice as want to help Jack but not sure how best to go about it! :flower:


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## RachA

The appointment with the SALT might not seem like much when you go again. Esther's had around 7 or 8 sessions in total and the SALT spoke to be quite a bit in all of them. I remember in Esther's second one that she sat at the table and played with her a bit, she used very few words. She also showed her pictures in a book and told her the word and signed it too. 

It sounds like you are doing alot of what needs to be done. Sign as much as you can. Do a couple of signs at a time and when he's picked one up add another one. I find he signing really hard with Esther as she doesn't seem to want to do it.


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## moggymay

Jack doesnt want to sign back but he uses signs (more gestures) to get his meaning across. Just wish I had a magic wand :( He is a little sunbeam but he doesnt seem able to form some of the sounds....it may sound silly but he is almost trying to use his teeth to form the sounds?


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## RachA

I know what you mean about the magic wand! 
Esther's a little bright spark too. I think it's a good job she is tbh. 

Hopefully the SALT will be able to help when you go next time. We were told that Esther wasn't actually listening to us so we had to teach her how to listen before we could get anywhere!


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## aliss

We're almost to age 3 now.

His speech is improving a lot (what's that?) but still a fair bit behind his peers. He started preschool a few weeks ago (which is in his second language, French) and we're noticing rapid improvement.


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## RachA

That's great Aliss. It's always hard when they are learning two languages. Glad you are seeing an improvement now he's at preschool :)


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## aliss

RachA said:


> That's great Aliss. It's always hard when they are learning two languages. Glad you are seeing an improvement now he's at preschool :)

Thanks! :) He loves it so much. It's nice for him to copy other kids - I don't know anyone here (no friends or family and no baby groups) so it gives him a chance to meet other kids.


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## RachA

It helps when they enjoy preschool. My Esther loves hers. 

Do you speak French too?


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## aliss

RachA said:


> It helps when they enjoy preschool. My Esther loves hers.
> 
> Do you speak French too?

Glad to hear she does! Makes us moms feel a bit unappreciated :haha:

I can speak basic French but not enough to really teach him much. We do watch "Peppa Cochon" together (Peppa Pig!!) ;) Husband is French but doesn't speak it at home. But both languages are essential here so he's learning at a half pace!


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## RachA

Naughty husband-he should be speaking French to your son lol. It's hard though I guess as you don't speak French. It's good the preschool is French if your lo is going to need to speak both. I'd love to be able to teach mine another language but I'm so rubbish at languages.


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## lovehearts

Ok im going to join this thread. I have been reading a while now, probably for around 6 months! 

My son hardly says anything recognisable. And until a few months ago hardly said anything at all! 

He has words for me and his dad but not mommy and daddy. Daddy is more like pappy and mommy is more like 'ommy'. He says 'all' for ball, 'arrrr' for car. He does say bye bye and recently he has been saying 'bye bye daddy/mommy'. He tries to say lots, breakfast, car, ball, bus, nanny, grandad, banana, uh oh, hot, flower, woof woof, thank you, bunny, birdie, charlie(bear), dummy, katie, please. But only a few of those words can be understood by strangers. 

His understanding is brilliant. Like others in this thread. If i ask him to shut the door, pass daddy the remote, sit in his chair, tidy up your toys, brush his teeth, go upstairs etc he understands all of that and follows my commands. He uses my hands to show me what he wants. I always try to give him a word to communicate what he wants but he NEVER attempts to say it. I even repeat a few times and give him time to respond but he starts to get upset and frustrated. 

He very rarely tries to copy me but i can see him watching my mouth. He cant count or anything because he just never mimics me :shrug: 

I just want to hear from other mamas who are in the same boat. All my friends LOs are leaps and bounds ahead of my son with speech. I hate hearing i wont be able to shut him up soon because THAT IS WHAT I WANT! 

x


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## RachA

Hi lovehearts. 

Nice to hear from you. It's so frustrating isnt it. Because my lo is so far behind I've quit worrying about the fact that all her peers are talking and she isn't. There are friends of mine who have children 18 months younger than Esther and they are all talking more than Esther :( 
Your lo might need a confidence boost. Esther is pretty outgoing but you can see with her speech that she isn't confident in using new words. We've come to the conclusion that she needs us to be way over the top with praise for her when she attempts a new word. Not easy for either of us as we're not over the top kind of people lol. But I think it does work. Yesterday I was getting her dressed to go outside and she looks at me and says 'darden' I'm pretty sure she meant garden as I'd been talking about going out into the garden. Straight away I gave her a huge clap and said 'yes garden, clever girl, garden' and she said her 'darden' a few more times. About 30min later we were sat eating lunch and I told my OH what had happened and we managed to get Esther to say it again and gave her loads of praise again. It's quite wearing but worth it - her little face was a picture cos she was so pleased with herself.


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## lovehearts

Thank you Rach, Thats interesting that you say that. Recently we have had a few rough patches with his behaviour. but I find that if I massively over praise his good behaviour he is SO much better and his bad behaviour soon stops. I have to admit, iv never really over praised him for new words, of course i praise him but not massively so like I do the behaviour. I did for bye bye daddy as I was simply amazed (and elated) that he had put 2 words together. and funnily enough he has repeated that phrase lots. I will defo give this a try, thank you so much for the advice. 

Well done Esther on saying garden :flower: 

xx


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## MrsA82

Just wanted to say my son is 23 months old and has 1 word, it turns out he has glue ear in both ears which is affecting his speech.

Maybe worth thinking about? xx


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## lovehearts

The HV did refer us for a hearing test when he was 13 months but just like everything else the HV has done she messed it up! I have no worries about his hearing as he hears everything and follows instructions well. I think it will be my first step though to double check. x


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## RachA

lovehearts said:


> Thank you Rach, Thats interesting that you say that. Recently we have had a few rough patches with his behaviour. but I find that if I massively over praise his good behaviour he is SO much better and his bad behaviour soon stops. I have to admit, iv never really over praised him for new words, of course i praise him but not massively so like I do the behaviour. I did for bye bye daddy as I was simply amazed (and elated) that he had put 2 words together. and funnily enough he has repeated that phrase lots. I will defo give this a try, thank you so much for the advice.
> 
> Well done Esther on saying garden :flower:
> 
> xx

It will be interesting to see how he does with the lavish praise. You'll have to let us know. 

Thanks - she stayed with my parents last night so I didn't see her until about 1pm today but when I did I asked her about the garden and she said it again so hopefully she really does know it. 


Esther's having another (this will be her 3rd in 12 months) hearing test on Thursday. So far they haven't found a problem - she definitly doesn't have glue ear - but part of me hopes that they do as it'd be such an easy reason for her speech delay. She is ok and the normal range and high range sounds but they need to recheck her low range as when she had the last test she got bored so wouldn't respond lol


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## angelae36

RachA said:


> Yesterday I was getting her dressed to go outside and she looks at me and says 'darden' I'm pretty sure she meant garden as I'd been talking about going out into the garden. Straight away I gave her a huge clap and said 'yes garden, clever girl, garden' and she said her 'darden' a few more times. About 30min later we were sat eating lunch and I told my OH what had happened and we managed to get Esther to say it again and gave her loads of praise again. It's quite wearing but worth it - her little face was a picture cos she was so pleased with herself.

Oh yeah go Esther:happydance::happydance::happydance::happydance:
I bet that was a great moment for you all!

We've had a bit of a breakthrough here too I think!
On Wednesday Abbie said something approximating "mumma" on more than one occasion, in the correct context, as in she was coming in and putting her arms round me and saying it. She hasn't said it since though :dohh:

Just the last couple of days "tanku" is coming out and today we got "tanku toast". She'd just had some toast!
She is naming characters clearly in her Peppa Pig book, she is looking at books more and letting me read to her more (but not significantly more!)
Bye bye, see you soon and see you later are both now favourite sayings too!
The alphabet song is getting clearer as is her counting to 10, a line from a Zingzillas song was sung this morning but I didn't appreciate it as it was 2am!!
Last week I said to Abbie "show Shannon (her sister) where you go to school" and she set of trotting saying "this way"!!!!

I know we have a long way to go and we see the speech therapist for the first time on 1st march, but I am hopeful. 

Now if any one has any tips what to do when time out is failing despite following the steps religiously for weeks ........ :winkwink::winkwink:

Keep up the good work, I'm sure our lovely little ones will get there eventually! :hugs:


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## moggymay

Rach may I ask your advice re SENCO visits? Should we be expecting a home visit from one - Jack starts pre-school properly in September and wondering if we need to make any advance arrangements or preparations etc Do I presume that having heard nothing means that they have no concerns other than the speech (or severe lack of speech!)

Love that Esther has a new word - a bit jealous (can imagine the pride you feel though!) I know what you mean about overdoing the praise but tbh if that will help her speech and encourage her along then it is all worth it. What is the thing you are most looking forward to hearing her say? I keep wondering what Jacks voice will sound like as so far we have only heard his sounds and the odd one that resembles a word....cant wait to know what he sounds like <3


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## angelae36

Moggymay, what a good question about what RachA is looking forward to hearing!

It reminded me of the other day when Abbie said "car". It came out in quite a hard yorkshire accent (the a sounding like "AR" if you see what I mean?)
Hubby tried to correct her (he's not from yorkshire like what I am!) but I told him off, saying at this stage let her get the words out, we'll worry about other stuff later!!!

Sorry I can't answer your other question though. Abbie is supposed to be being assessed for some kind of support in preschool where she is already but I don't know any more than that.


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## mammy2oaklen

Hiya i havent posted in this thread before but i was worried about ds speach so put him in preschool 1 day a week and it has come along slowly but is improving over last 6 weeks. 
The words he can say are
dada
mama
Dog
cat
bowl
juice
bye
hi
hello
no
yeah
balloon
ball
boat
moon
sweets
buzz
car
bus
tree
teeth
head
nose
eyes
Mouth
head
hat
shoes
poo
oh no
but he doesnt put any words together his speach is coming along on its own and im happy but worried at 2year check hv will refer us to speach therapy cos he doesnt put wprds together but since xmas hes gone from 5 words to all those above so i dont want to rush into speach therapy i want to wait and see if it comes along on its own does he sound ok for his age? Or would u be concerned hes not putting words together?


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## RachA

It's kind of difficult as to me that sounds like a good number of words but maybe that us because my 3 year old doesn't have that many. 

It won't hurt to be referred to speech therapy. The waiting list can be quite long so it's better to get the referral underway in case the first appointment isn't for 6 months etc.


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## angelae36

If I remember correctly at _around_ 2, children should have _around_ 50 words, I'm not so sure sentences happen at 2 though. 
The fact he has a good few words is a good sign.
But do speak to your health visitor if you are at all worried. They can easily set your mind at rest or give you help if they think there is a problem.


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## MikaylasMummy

My pathologist said at 2 they should have 200 words!!sure made me feel like crap!
Koby had his first actual session with his pathologist yesterday (the last one was a testing session) and she is so fabulous.she gets him to do all the things she wants him to by following his lead and using what he's interested in.yesterday she got him to say and sign "stop" on his own in the right context after we were using a game to teach it to him and we started annoying him so he yelled stop and did the sign.lol.he also said more bubbles,learnt the sign for open and did some new animals noises.she involves me in all the activities and helps train me as well so I can continue it at home which I have been doing for EVERYTHING.we are teaching him cause and effect so I am trying to carry that on at home and be strict and not give in to tantrums!


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## RachA

moggymay said:


> Rach may I ask your advice re SENCO visits? Should we be expecting a home visit from one - Jack starts pre-school properly in September and wondering if we need to make any advance arrangements or preparations etc Do I presume that having heard nothing means that they have no concerns other than the speech (or severe lack of speech!)
> 
> Love that Esther has a new word - a bit jealous (can imagine the pride you feel though!) I know what you mean about overdoing the praise but tbh if that will help her speech and encourage her along then it is all worth it. What is the thing you are most looking forward to hearing her say? I keep wondering what Jacks voice will sound like as so far we have only heard his sounds and the odd one that resembles a word....cant wait to know what he sounds like <3

To be honest i'm not 100% sure how it all happens. The playschool that Esther goes to has a staff member who is a SenCo but i'm not sure if that's the way it always works or if we are really fortunate at our playschool that they have a permeant one. But what happened with us was that Esther had already been seeing the speech therapist. When she started at the playschool she already had a series of sessions booked for the Child Development Centre and she went there in Nov. At the end of the Nov we were given the results of her delay. Prior to this we'd been in contact with the playschool and kept them up to date with any tests etc that she had so they knew what was happening. Once we had her diagnosis my SenCo at the playschool sorted out whats known as a CAF form for Esther. The SenCo is also responsible for all the children at the playschool who have any additional needs but Esther's key worker is still the original one she had when she started.

I've been told that most people have to push for help at their playschool. I think we are really fortunate as our playschool really seems to be on the ball with everything and they are just so helpful. I've not been well recently so haven't actually taken Esther into playschool for 3 weeks or so but they have kept in contact with me and helped us out with extra sessions etc.


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## xemmax

I have been following this thread for a while and unsure whether to post or not, but Oli's speech has come on a lot lately so my overall worries are disappearing, but I am concerned with how slow his progress seems to be.

Oli said his first word at 8 months - 'cat' - and he acquired words quite quickly. The problem was he didn't then go on to two word phrases until he had about 200 words, which would be expected before then. That was just before Christmas, and within the last couple of weeks he has said the odd three word phrase, but nothing more.

I am not an expert but I am a linguistics student and I studied child language acquisition and clinical linguistics (communication disorders) so I know the basic pattern of acquisition and some of what to look for in terms of speech/language disorders/delays. 

mammy2oaklen I'd say your son sounds absolutely fine and I wouldn't worry at all for a few months yet. Children generally hit a verbal explosion where they acquire words very quickly, and this sounds like what may be happening at the moment.


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## RachA

Hi Emma

Has your son seen the HV and what have they said?
I'm not sure how it all works and it seems like you know quite a bit with your background. Maybe your son isn't confident with putting the words together. It's good that he has a lot of words though :)


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## xemmax

RachA said:


> Hi Emma
> 
> Has your son seen the HV and what have they said?
> I'm not sure how it all works and it seems like you know quite a bit with your background. Maybe your son isn't confident with putting the words together. It's good that he has a lot of words though :)

No we don't have a very good health visiting service here (HV left the practice and they stopped running the clinic when Oli was a few months old - all without telling us, of course) so I'm always reluctant to contact them. When I ask people how quickly their children went from single words to two word and then multiple word phrases, they don't seem to remember which makes me worry about how slow Oli's progress is :wacko:. I hope it is confidence, it might well be as he is quite a shy child and very cautious.


----------



## RachA

I honestly don't know how long it was with mine. My son was an early talker and was talking in short sentences at 2. But Esther is the other extreme lol. So i've no idea what is 'normal'.

It might be worth your while trying to contact your drs in order to see a HV. If there was to be a problem i'm not sure how else you would be referred to see someone.


----------



## xemmax

RachA said:


> I honestly don't know how long it was with mine. My son was an early talker and was talking in short sentences at 2. But Esther is the other extreme lol. So i've no idea what is 'normal'.
> 
> It might be worth your while trying to contact your drs in order to see a HV. If there was to be a problem i'm not sure how else you would be referred to see someone.

Thanks hun, it's something I'm definitely going to consider if he doesn't continue with his three word phrases. They seem very sporadic.

It's so hard knowing what to expect, as you say kids are all so different! How regularly do you see a therapist?


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## daddiesgift

I like this thread so I'll be following it :) my son will be 18 months in a few days and though he's not two yet I do worry about his speech. He doesn't say much of anything! He does baby talk all day long but of course its just babbles. I try to get him to ask for things before I give them to him ect but he just gets frustrated! With repeating he just giggles but won't really try. He understands everything though. You ask him to do something or for something and he does it no problem. He says regularly 
Mama
Dada
Poo poo :haha: 
Oh wow :haha: 

I've heard him say.. 

Cookie
All done
Apple
Bubba
No

So how he'll reach 200 words by two years old baffles me!


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## RachA

200 words isn't really the norm. My son was classed as an early talker and advanced and he didn't have 200 words at 2. 50 is much more normal. 
Your lo sounds like they are doing well. If he babbles then he's headed in the right direction :)


----------



## RachA

xemmax said:


> RachA said:
> 
> 
> I honestly don't know how long it was with mine. My son was an early talker and was talking in short sentences at 2. But Esther is the other extreme lol. So i've no idea what is 'normal'.
> 
> It might be worth your while trying to contact your drs in order to see a HV. If there was to be a problem i'm not sure how else you would be referred to see someone.
> 
> Thanks hun, it's something I'm definitely going to consider if he doesn't continue with his three word phrases. They seem very sporadic.
> 
> It's so hard knowing what to expect, as you say kids are all so different! How regularly do you see a therapist?Click to expand...

We haven't actually seen one since Oct. because she was referred to the Child Development Centre her new lot of sessions got mixed up. We are still waiting for them to come through. I should of chased it up by now but I've been ill in hospital and not been up to looking after the kids in a normal way without adding appointments in. Usually they do a 4-6 week block of sessions and then a review session after 2 months to see what the progress is.


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## sammi123

Hi my daughter is 30 months she hardly has any speech she was born with congenital Hypothyroidism it really is starting to worry me do you think it could be hypothyroidism that's causing the speech delay, I don't know what to think anymore dd is in speech therapy and seems to be coming on a bit more..I just keep waiting for this speech explosion, she is also small 25th centile is your daughter in speech therapy?


----------



## RachA

sammi123 said:


> Hi my daughter is 30 months she hardly has any speech she was born with congenital Hypothyroidism it really is starting to worry me do you think it could be hypothyroidism that's causing the speech delay, I don't know what to think anymore dd is in speech therapy and seems to be coming on a bit more..I just keep waiting for this speech explosion, she is also small 25th centile is your daughter in speech therapy?

Hi

I don't know anything about congenital hypothyroidism so I don't know if that can affect speech or not. 

Does your lo babble alot or not? Does she understand what you say to her?


----------



## x Michelle x

sammi123 said:


> Hi my daughter is 30 months she hardly has any speech she was born with congenital Hypothyroidism it really is starting to worry me do you think it could be hypothyroidism that's causing the speech delay, I don't know what to think anymore dd is in speech therapy and seems to be coming on a bit more..I just keep waiting for this speech explosion, she is also small 25th centile is your daughter in speech therapy?

Little girls with CH are all evil geniuses who are too busy plotting to take over the world than worry about something as trivial as talking lol :) 
By the way everyone, my LO has Congenital Hypothyroidism too


----------



## sammi123

RachA said:


> sammi123 said:
> 
> 
> Hi my daughter is 30 months she hardly has any speech she was born with congenital Hypothyroidism it really is starting to worry me do you think it could be hypothyroidism that's causing the speech delay, I don't know what to think anymore dd is in speech therapy and seems to be coming on a bit more..I just keep waiting for this speech explosion, she is also small 25th centile is your daughter in speech therapy?
> 
> Hi
> 
> I don't know anything about congenital hypothyroidism so I don't know if that can affect speech or not.
> 
> Does your lo babble alot or not? Does she understand what you say to her?Click to expand...

Yes she babbles a lot says the odd word now and again, and has a pretty good understanding she seems to struggle to say words like she knows what to say but can't get the words out...i think she may have verbal dyspraxia/apraxia but the speech therapist doesn't want to label her...she wants to wait until she is 3 I can't sleep at night worrying about it....


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## RachA

It is better waiting until they are old enough for a proper diagnosis before being labled and things can change so much so quickly when they are this young that I can see why the speech therapist doesn't want to lable her yet. I know that doesn't help your worrying though. 
Confidence is a big thing at this age and she may just not be confident in using the words that she does know. It's good that she babbles and that her understanding is good-that really helps.


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## angelae36

I just have to post this, I'm so excited!

Daddy bought Abbie a couple of Peppa Pig sticker books. Normally stickers get taken out of the books and eaten!
But not these.

Since Monday she has been correctly naming characters and their noises, learnt apple, banana (that one she says in such a cute funny way!) chocolate cake, balloon to name but a few!
Instead of eating them she has actually been playing with them and making them talk, hold hands and play together. This has happened for the best part of 2 solid days!

It seems today we can say a word to her and she'll try and copy it.
She was playing out yesterday and Daddy disappeared. She looked for him where she last saw him and said "where are you"? I told he he'd gone in the house, she opened the door and said "hello"!
They're coming so fast this week I can hardly keep up and it's so exciting!!!!!

I don't mean this a gloaty post at all, I'm just excited and happy, but realise we have such a long way to go yet!


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## moggymay

angelae that is fab, it isnt gloating as the excitement comes through in your post! 

Have my own proud progression to share....Jack today linked a word and a sign...he signed thank you and then said mama when I handed him his drink, he also made sounds/babble which another parent interpreted as bye go now when we were leaving his weekly nursery sesh....I knew he was saying bye to the folks there and go now because he wanted to go home for lunch but it is nice when another person understands what he is saying

A fortnight til our SLT appt....she is meeting Jack in nursery and then seeing me afterwards without him.....


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## RachA

Yay to both of you. You must feel so proud. 

Esther is making some slow progress-a couple of times she's tried to copy words. Other people wouldn't of understood but I did so it at least gives me something to work with.


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## angelae36

That's great news, and I'm sure it feels like Esther is getting somewhere too! Have you heard any more from Portage yet?

It's usually me and my eldest daughter that understand what Abbie is trying to say but we actually listen to her. Daddy usually looks at me and asks what she said. He doesn't listen to me so poor Abbie has no chance!
Of course none of this will be apparent at the speech therapist next week!!!!


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## m4nc3r

I can say before November I worried about my LO (23months) but I put on a hard face, refused to give him what he wanted unless he asked for it, ignored the frustration and just kept calmly repeating & explaining what he needed to do until it just clicked... literally.
I had some help from my 7yr old sister-in-law and 4 yr old nephew as they are both in school and LO wants to be like them they keep teaching him things XD

LO had his 2 yr check up the other day and he passed with flying colours (when pointing to the picture of a little girl he refused to just say girl and continued to point out the "white [background], her hair, her legies, her t-shirt etc LOL kids ey XD)

The HV said his pronounciation might need a speech therapist just cause he (sometimes) says "sungebob" instead of "spongebob" (despite hearing me correct him and him then repeat it properly)
- which actually I was a little miffed at - I think she was literally just trying to say something to make it seem like we needed her to be there!!


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## Ju_bubbs

My 26 month old has VERY limited speech. But she has congenital cytomegalovirus, which has caused her total deafness in one ear, and development delays. She also didn't walk until 22 months! She actually IS able to say quite a few things, she just won't most of the time. She can say the names of everyday items/toys etc but if we look at a book she acts as though she has no idea what a 'ball' is, and won't 'find the ball', or say that it's a ball when asked. Very frustrating!


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## MikaylasMummy

Ju_bubbs said:


> My 26 month old has VERY limited speech. But she has congenital cytomegalovirus, which has caused her total deafness in one ear, and development delays. She also didn't walk until 22 months! She actually IS able to say quite a few things, she just won't most of the time. She can say the names of everyday items/toys etc but if we look at a book she acts as though she has no idea what a 'ball' is, and won't 'find the ball', or say that it's a ball when asked. Very frustrating!

Ds is a little like that with books.stuff he is very familiar with he will find in books but some things I know he knows and he points at in real life he can't/won't point to in a book


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## lovehearts

Lovely to hear LOs coming along well :happydance: Must be so exciting.

I rang the HV yesterday to see if she would assess/refer my son but she said they wont see him until his 2 year check which could be 2.5. I know there is a 9 month waiting list in my area so he could be well over 3. 

What is done at there 2 year check?

xx


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## RachA

At our two year check not much was done really. It was also one of the nursery nurses from the clinic that came to ours and not the HV. She basically observed Esther while she was asking me questions about her development and what I thought Esther could do. The only 'test' that I can remember she doing was taking a few objects out of the box and asking Esther to give her or point to the: key, shoe, spoon, cup etc. Esther didn't know any of them!


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## moggymay

ours was similar but if you re concerned you can slef refer to SLT I believe.....get onto the list if nothing else plus if they wont let you self refer they may explain how to raise your concerns to best effect in your area....

So frustrating when you know as a mother there is an issue only for them to fob you off to wait for nature to take its course only for them to agree there is an issue later and then make you wait ages for help!

We asked if a private SLT was an option and we were advised the wait was a max of 13 weeks in our area and the majority were seen in 5 weeks....our initial referral to 13 weeks and then we got an appt which was 4 weeks later :growlmad: We asked if we could supplement with a private SLT who would support whatever the SLT we were under advised but were told it is either or not both and if we consulted a private SLT effectively we were on our own! We will see what the next appt brings but am concerned as Jack will be the youngest in his school year already so dont want him to be behind from the get go as it is hard for them to catch up with nothing holding them back!

Good luck :flower:


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## lovehearts

Thank you moggymay - I will certainly look in to self referring, thank you for the suggestion. My friend did suggest going private, Seems stupid you cant do both together! xx


----------



## AP

We've had some success with signing of late. More so copying than using it in day to day.But progess! All thanks to Mr Tumble and Something Special. She really likes signs. 

I've worked out something though that puzzles me. Alex will learn a sound (not so much as a word) and we'll think "omg, shes catching on" and then she will use it for everything, and then it disappears for good :(

It happened about a year ago when we though she was saying "kitty"(or what sounded like) but she began to use it for EVERYTHING and now its gone. It's just happened again. She started saying "na" for "night" but now it seems shes using it for everything. That'll be gone in 2 weeks, i bet.

Nursery keeps building our hopes up and its frustrating, they tell DH "oh alex was saying XXXXX" today when in fact its a coincidence of some sort. They havent quite figured out how she works, she just helps out odd sounds for everything that change every few weeks.


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## MikaylasMummy

Well..a small success for us tonight, I asked who koby was holding(it was buz light year) and previously everyone from toy story was called dee (woody)..and he replied with "that's buz!" And continued to call him buz for the rest of the evening.although it still just sounds like bu.he seems to only be able to get the start of the word but not finish it off.the only words he says really well and constantly are daddy and bottle (but it sounds cockney like bo'ole.at least it's the two sounds where as others like woody are dee)


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## RachA

We've just had a meeting with the SenCo at Esther's Playschool and another lady who goes in to assess Esther every few weeks as we are getting funding for 1-1 for her. During the meeting the SenCo said that they are making headway with signing. Apparently she signs 'yes'. She's a monkey cos she won't do that with me!


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## AP

:haha: maybe these kiddos like to pretend and keep us on our toes then!


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## RachA

I'm sure they do lol. Esther has this really cheeky knowing look on her face when you ask her to say something. It's as if she's saying 'I know what you're asking and I can say it but I'm not going to!'


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## moggymay

I love their little progressions...all in the right direction :)


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## RachA

That's right. Sometimes I feel like the progress is so little but actually a little bit is better than non :)


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## PepsiChic

so we went to the grocery store and at the check out a couple came up behind us waiting and they had a little girl sat in the cart, barry said "hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" she said "hello" back. 

so i asked them how old she was and SHE (as in the little girl) says "im 2 years old and 3 months"

I was shocked! she then went on to ask barry how old he was and he just sat there grinning from ear to ear and then say "hiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" again. 

I felt....im not sure, upset, and slightly embarrased.

their little girl spoke so fluently and clear, she had conversatons with them. pointing at things and saying "what is that mummy?" 

Barry can barely string 2 words together, and just babbles in his own language. 

It really made me feel so very small and make me wonder what im doing wrong.

*sigh* so feeling a bit sorry for myself and Barry tonight.


----------



## MikaylasMummy

PepsiChic said:


> so we went to the grocery store and at the check out a couple came up behind us waiting and they had a little girl sat in the cart, barry said "hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" she said "hello" back.
> 
> so i asked them how old she was and SHE (as in the little girl) says "im 2 years old and 3 months"
> 
> I was shocked! she then went on to ask barry how old he was and he just sat there grinning from ear to ear and then say "hiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" again.
> 
> I felt....im not sure, upset, and slightly embarrased.
> 
> their little girl spoke so fluently and clear, she had conversatons with them. pointing at things and saying "what is that mummy?"
> 
> Barry can barely string 2 words together, and just babbles in his own language.
> 
> It really made me feel so very small and make me wonder what im doing wrong.
> 
> *sigh* so feeling a bit sorry for myself and Barry tonight.

Oooh Hun :hugs: I know how you feel.kobys little bestie was born just two days before him and has been talking forever and says everything.i am over the feeling bad part now really.he may be advanced in speech but koby has his own fantastic qualities that mean just as much to me that I just see now when other kids his age are talking away.his little friend may be a great talker,but koby is the one mooching up to strangers giving them a shining smile and babbling his way into their hearts in his jibberish.xxx


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## RachA

MikaylasMummy said:


> PepsiChic said:
> 
> 
> so we went to the grocery store and at the check out a couple came up behind us waiting and they had a little girl sat in the cart, barry said "hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" she said "hello" back.
> 
> so i asked them how old she was and SHE (as in the little girl) says "im 2 years old and 3 months"
> 
> I was shocked! she then went on to ask barry how old he was and he just sat there grinning from ear to ear and then say "hiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" again.
> 
> I felt....im not sure, upset, and slightly embarrased.
> 
> their little girl spoke so fluently and clear, she had conversatons with them. pointing at things and saying "what is that mummy?"
> 
> Barry can barely string 2 words together, and just babbles in his own language.
> 
> It really made me feel so very small and make me wonder what im doing wrong.
> 
> *sigh* so feeling a bit sorry for myself and Barry tonight.
> 
> Oooh Hun :hugs: I know how you feel.kobys little bestie was born just two days before him and has been talking forever and says everything.i am over the feeling bad part now really.he may be advanced in speech but koby has his own fantastic qualities that mean just as much to me that I just see now when other kids his age are talking away.his little friend may be a great talker,but koby is the one mooching up to strangers giving them a shining smile and babbling his way into their hearts in his jibberish.xxxClick to expand...

I agree :hugs:
It's so hard seeing or rather hearing other children chattering away when ours don't. But our little ones do have their own specialness. Esther is also very sunny and charms other people with her babbling. 
And just think how special and amazing it's going to be when our little ones actually start chattering away :)


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## mrsthomas623

PepsiChic said:


> so we went to the grocery store and at the check out a couple came up behind us waiting and they had a little girl sat in the cart, barry said "hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" she said "hello" back.
> 
> so i asked them how old she was and SHE (as in the little girl) says "im 2 years old and 3 months"
> 
> I was shocked! she then went on to ask barry how old he was and he just sat there grinning from ear to ear and then say "hiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" again.
> 
> I felt....im not sure, upset, and slightly embarrased.
> 
> their little girl spoke so fluently and clear, she had conversatons with them. pointing at things and saying "what is that mummy?"
> 
> Barry can barely string 2 words together, and just babbles in his own language.
> 
> It really made me feel so very small and make me wonder what im doing wrong.
> 
> *sigh* so feeling a bit sorry for myself and Barry tonight.

This kills me. :cry: Every time I start thinking that Nolan is really coming along, and that he has improved so much- we have a play date with his friends his age and they are all having full blown conversations with each other. Nolan just plays on his own, in his own world- oblivious to anything going on around him.

Most of the time I can push those other kids abilities out of my mind and just be so proud of Nolan for what he is doing now but man, when it hits me how delayed he is - it terrifies me.:nope: I feel like I am failing him.


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## Peanut78

AtomicPink said:


> We've had some success with signing of late. More so copying than using it in day to day.But progess! All thanks to Mr Tumble and Something Special. She really likes signs.
> 
> I've worked out something though that puzzles me. Alex will learn a sound (not so much as a word) and we'll think "omg, shes catching on" and then she will use it for everything, and then it disappears for good :(
> 
> It happened about a year ago when we though she was saying "kitty"(or what sounded like) but she began to use it for EVERYTHING and now its gone. It's just happened again. She started saying "na" for "night" but now it seems shes using it for everything. That'll be gone in 2 weeks, i bet.
> 
> Nursery keeps building our hopes up and its frustrating, they tell DH "oh alex was saying XXXXX" today when in fact its a coincidence of some sort. They havent quite figured out how she works, she just helps out odd sounds for everything that change every few weeks.

Hello all, can I join? :flower:

My son is 3.5 years old and has a significant speech delay. He has a neurological condition which causes motor planning difficulty (gross and fine motor), which has also affected his speech. He had been in SLT since he was 23 months old. We use sign language (makaton) and are trying to get to grips with pecs... Although we are seeing progress, it is always very slow. 

AtomicPink, I often find he will master a sound or word only for it to go again and then emerge again weeks or months later :nope: I sometimes find this coincides with other developments (gross and fine), but sometimes for no reason at all. :hugs:


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## AP

I'm so frustrated just now. All the other cities around us use Makaton but for some stupid reason our city has decided to use SignALong. 

I know Makaton is very similar in a lot of ways so we started using Something Special to help us all really. The only SignAlong stuff we have is printed diagrams. :/ yeah exciting for Alex. Not. 

The home teaching service woman came up the other day and DH excitedly told her that Alex was making some little progress and was really getting into it. And the woman made a crappy remark about how that's not what they use blah blah blah.

I don't care!!!!!!!!! I'm using Makaton and that's that!


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## sun

AP - So glad to hear Alex is getting into Makaton! :hugs: I've never heard of sign-a-long at all - most kiddos I know use Makaton or PECS depending on their abilities. I know a mum around here who did online training with Makaton and it didn't cost much (if anything). If you're interested in getting more support online, I can ask her where she went! x


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## moggymay

I would be interested to know where she did online learning makaton as my parents would like to learn to sign with Jack but live a long way away from us


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## AP

Sun, that would be great, thank you xxxx


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## RachA

AtomicPink said:


> I'm so frustrated just now. All the other cities around us use Makaton but for some stupid reason our city has decided to use SignALong.
> 
> I know Makaton is very similar in a lot of ways so we started using Something Special to help us all really. The only SignAlong stuff we have is printed diagrams. :/ yeah exciting for Alex. Not.
> 
> The home teaching service woman came up the other day and DH excitedly told her that Alex was making some little progress and was really getting into it. And the woman made a crappy remark about how that's not what they use blah blah blah.
> 
> I don't care!!!!!!!!! I'm using Makaton and that's that!

I might be wrong - my brain doesn't work properly at the moment lol - but I have a feeling that everywhere is supposed to be moving over to signalong at some point. We have been using Makaton with Esther and when I was talking to her SenCo at Playschool she said that things were having to move over to signalong. It's possible your area have moved over already. 
Still teach the Makaton and don't worry about what other people say, especially as Alex is really responding to it. All the singing is fairly similar to some extent. We have a lady at our church who's just finished doing a degree to do with sign language and I went to a concert where she was signing in it. It was amazing how much I knew even though we are only to Makaton.


----------



## AP

RachA you may know more, but do you feel its quite similar?
I wonder why they are changing over? Makaton seems so universal.

I asked Alex today where mum is is and she pointed to me and said "muh!"


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## moggymay

"muh" <3 Makes me melt every time I get muhmuh


----------



## RachA

AtomicPink said:


> RachA you may know more, but do you feel its quite similar?
> I wonder why they are changing over? Makaton seems so universal.
> 
> I asked Alex today where mum is is and she pointed to me and said "muh!"

I haven't actually used it myself so can only go on what the SenCo told me and she seems to think it pretty similar. No idea why they are changing it though. If I remember I'll try and ask her about it-can't promise that I'll remember or when as I'm not able to do the school/Playschool run at the moment so don't see the SenCo very often. But I will try. 




moggymay said:


> "muh" <3 Makes me melt every time I get muhmuh

Yeah the whole 'muh' etc is so heartwarming. Esther says mummy but not daddy yet. It's going to be so lovely when she does. 
Apparently Esther is now saying her version of 'push'. She does this when my mum is putting her boots on. 
My mum seems to be hearing all of Esther's new words at the moment. Im hardly seeing anything of my two at the moment so between my parents and Playschool they are hearing any new attempts at words. I feel bad that I'm missing it but then I guess the first time I hear them is still a first for me even if it isn't for Esther. 
Part of me is really excited that Esther's getting or trying a few new words but then part of me knows she is still woefully behind.


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## moggymay

she may be a little behind hon but if she is progressing then she is moving forwards...tortoise and the hare and all that :hugs:


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## angelae36

Moggymay is right RachA.

Keep in mind all those new words you are about to hear. They are the best things in the world! xxx


----------



## PepsiChic

Barry is doing great with his alphabet still, hes saying it without seeing the letters which is good, he struggles with H, M & N and X, but all the rest hes pretty good with.

Hes been trying to say his baby brothers name which is sweet, he says "onnor" which im thrilled about, but he says "baby" too. 

He made me laugh today I asked him to get his sippy cup and he put his arms out to the side like he was shrugging and said "where'd go?" - but not pronounced that clearly but I still understood it!

I was shocked he put words together, but laughed at the whole arm gesture/facial expression...too cute!

days like this make me feel better about the days where he wont say a single word no matter how hard i try.


----------



## angelae36

We've just been for our first session of speech therapy.
It lasted 45 minutes. Abbie was quite happy playing and doing the wooden jigsaw (which she can usually do with her eyes shut!) but got irratated when she was distracted from what she was doing to go and do something else. I do know why it was done though. The idea was to see if she could take direction from anyone else than me.

No conclusions have been arrived at yet as the lady we saw wants to see her again as she feels she's not had enough time with her. The problem is she is booked up and leaving soon. But we'll muddle through!

What was picked up on was lack of eye contact - but she does it at home, lots.
She says lots of words but not always at the right time eg. she was holding a fish jigsaw piece but was rattling on in her own language then came out with Dinosaur. But she also said teddy and apple at the right times.

She was playing with a car that had a pattern on it's wheels, she spun the wheel, watched the pattern then carried on playing with the car - and making it fly!
I was asked if she spins wheels a lot. No she doesn't. She does spin them, then the cars go on the floor and whizz across the room!

I was told she does have communication issues. She knows she should be saying something but doesn't quite know how to manage it. This I agree with.

I don't know, I go round in circles. The experts keep insinuating there is more too it than lack of speech, but I see her day in and out and my gut feeling (or is it hope?) is it is a communication issue.
But jumping the gun is not good. I'll let the system work and when or if we do got a diagnosis we will take it from there.

Sigh, I was hoping for a stress free year after last year with our son having to have chemo, but obviously not meant to be!
Feeling a bit fed up, but knowing Abbie is going to get the help she needs is good and we are heading in the right direction.


----------



## aliss

Thanks angelae36, nice to hear how a session went. You are her mum, I can't help but think your instinct is more likely correct.

Well, our update is not good :( We FINALLY got a family doctor after a 2 _year_ waiting list and within 2 minutes she has referred us to multiple specialists (audiology, speech language). She says Alex is "significantly delayed", for example he can't tell her his body parts. Okay, I missed the boat, I never taught him this?? I didn't know to??? He speaks a LOT more than he did with her (he was too excited by her office to talk to her), but whatever........... ergh.


----------



## MikaylasMummy

angelae36 said:


> We've just been for our first session of speech therapy.
> It lasted 45 minutes. Abbie was quite happy playing and doing the wooden jigsaw (which she can usually do with her eyes shut!) but got irratated when she was distracted from what she was doing to go and do something else. I do know why it was done though. The idea was to see if she could take direction from anyone else than me.
> 
> No conclusions have been arrived at yet as the lady we saw wants to see her again as she feels she's not had enough time with her. The problem is she is booked up and leaving soon. But we'll muddle through!
> 
> What was picked up on was lack of eye contact - but she does it at home, lots.
> She says lots of words but not always at the right time eg. she was holding a fish jigsaw piece but was rattling on in her own language then came out with Dinosaur. But she also said teddy and apple at the right times.
> 
> She was playing with a car that had a pattern on it's wheels, she spun the wheel, watched the pattern then carried on playing with the car - and making it fly!
> I was asked if she spins wheels a lot. No she doesn't. She does spin them, then the cars go on the floor and whizz across the room!
> 
> I was told she does have communication issues. She knows she should be saying something but doesn't quite know how to manage it. This I agree with.
> 
> I don't know, I go round in circles. The experts keep insinuating there is more too it than lack of speech, but I see her day in and out and my gut feeling (or is it hope?) is it is a communication issue.
> But jumping the gun is not good. I'll let the system work and when or if we do got a diagnosis we will take it from there.
> 
> Sigh, I was hoping for a stress free year after last year with our son having to have chemo, but obviously not meant to be!
> Feeling a bit fed up, but knowing Abbie is going to get the help she needs is good and we are heading in the right direction.

Hmm it does sound like they are insinuating something else is going on.but it is great that she is saying quite a few words.koby is what his pathologist calls gender aggressive.and wants to do everything his ways so she does follow his lead mostly but sometimes forced him to do things her way,just very gently and as soon as he does something she wants he is rewarded with what he wants to encourage him to do what others want.hopefully he will learn soon,he is already doing great with the cause and effect for speaking/signing and when I ask him to say the word first he often does


----------



## MikaylasMummy

aliss said:


> Thanks angelae36, nice to hear how a session went. You are her mum, I can't help but think your instinct is more likely correct.
> 
> Well, our update is not good :( We FINALLY got a family doctor after a 2 _year_ waiting list and within 2 minutes she has referred us to multiple specialists (audiology, speech language). She says Alex is "significantly delayed", for example he can't tell her his body parts. Okay, I missed the boat, I never taught him this?? I didn't know to??? He speaks a LOT more than he did with her (he was too excited by her office to talk to her), but whatever........... ergh.

Koby won't tell you body parts but he will point to them,however he refused to for his therapist!im sorry your doctor has put him so far behind.hopefully seeing a specialist will put him a bit further ahead because I know kobys pathologist took into account what I said koby does for me at home because she realises he won't do nearly as much fora stranger


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## RachA

angelae36 and aliss - try not to worry too much. They really can't make a decision on just one session. Children rarely perform the first time they meet someone. It took a few session with the SALT before Esther settled into them and was more herself.

Aliss - Esther has only started pointing out body parts in the last 2-3months and even so it's only head, hair, eyes, nose, ears and mouth. She doesn't know her arms, legs, knees, tummy etc. Can you pin the dr down to how far behind he thinks ALex is? We forgot to ask this at Esther's feedback session and so had to phone them up. We were told at the session that she had a severe speech delay. In real terms this means that her speech is 18months behind her actually age. We were really shocked by this as it meant that her speech was majorly behind. She is also behind in social skill (not surprising as she can't talk) and her motor skills are behind but not as much as her speech. I found it really helpful to know what age they are putting her at in order for me to focus on her and what we need to do with her.




An update for us: Esther has finally received her next speech therapy sessions through. It's amazing what happens when the council education department are involved lol. She has 6 more sessions booked in starting in 2 weeks times. I'm really pleased that she is finally getting some more. The last lot of proper sessions she's had were almost a year ago now (she's had a few review sessions to see how she's getting on).
Also - she has learnt to do a roly-poly all on her own!!! She was so pleased and lay on the floor grinning and clapping her hands.


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## mummy3

:hugs: To all!

I only just refound this thread and want to update on my little Eilidh. She's 2 next weekend and we've had some big improvements again! Still no words at all and limited sounds but with her weekly speech therapy her signing is awesome:happydance: Her therapy is being upped to I believe 3x a week but need to check on that and she's starting OT along with her infant teacher :)


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## sun

AtomicPink said:


> Sun, that would be great, thank you xxxx

Sorry for the delay - it took a while for her to get back. So she said that basically she just used youtube videos, advice from a group she is part of and material from Makaton.org. So not more info than you probably already have. Sorry I couldn't be of more help! :(


----------



## sun

mummy3 said:


> :hugs: To all!
> 
> I only just refound this thread and want to update on my little Eilidh. She's 2 next weekend and we've had some big improvements again! Still no words at all and limited sounds but with her weekly speech therapy her signing is awesome:happydance: Her therapy is being upped to I believe 3x a week but need to check on that and she's starting OT along with her infant teacher :)

Oh wow that's fantastic news! :thumbup:


----------



## Peanut78

aliss said:


> Thanks angelae36, nice to hear how a session went. You are her mum, I can't help but think your instinct is more likely correct.
> 
> Well, our update is not good :( We FINALLY got a family doctor after a 2 _year_ waiting list and within 2 minutes she has referred us to multiple specialists (audiology, speech language). She says Alex is "significantly delayed", for example he can't tell her his body parts. Okay, I missed the boat, I never taught him this?? I didn't know to??? He speaks a LOT more than he did with her (he was too excited by her office to talk to her), but whatever........... ergh.

Back in the day when our son had his first appointment with a neurologist (he was 20 months old) she was asking about pointing to body parts, which our son didn't do. BUT I had never thought to teach him that at that point, was too wrapped up in his issues with his walking walking. So I remember when I received the report saying he had a cognitive delay because he didn't point out body parts I felt really hard done by - why did she indicate this as a delay if he had never been taught it!?!? The label of "cognitive delay" was later changed as he went in to therapy and they saw how much he did understand and how picking up conceptual stuff wasn't where his problems were. 

Now thinking back, the neurologist also made an issue of the fact that my son didn't cry (show signs of separation anxiety) when I left him at nursery :wacko::dohh:

It's really hard to determine what a child's abilities are or aren't when seeing him once (they could be shy, distracted, acting up, having an off day etc. :nope:


----------



## angelae36

RachA said:


> angelae36 and aliss - try not to worry too much. They really can't make a decision on just one session. Children rarely perform the first time they meet someone. It took a few session with the SALT before Esther settled into them and was more herself.
> 
> An update for us: Esther has finally received her next speech therapy sessions through. It's amazing what happens when the council education department are involved lol. She has 6 more sessions booked in starting in 2 weeks times. I'm really pleased that she is finally getting some more. The last lot of proper sessions she's had were almost a year ago now (she's had a few review sessions to see how she's getting on).
> Also - she has learnt to do a roly-poly all on her own!!! She was so pleased and lay on the floor grinning and clapping her hands.

I'm not so much worried, I knew it would take a few sessions for any form of opinion to be made and Abbie spent half of hers saying "bye bye, see you soon"!!!
I'm just a bit frustrated that they seem to be picking up on the little things that she doesn't normally do at home and almost focussing on those. I know other conditions have to be ruled out though so presuming that is why.
I'm going to spend the next few weeks doing as I have been asked and trying to get her to play more WITH me rather than me sitting by her and also getting her to play something I want to play with (if you get my drift?!) and for longer than 5 minutes. This should be a challenge then!!

As for pointing to body parts, Abbie won't do it either, I think she might know head, shoulders,knees and toes from the song but that is it!
It's not something I've really done with her and not pointed it out in books as she will only let me read about 4 books to her and only at bedtime!
But she can count to 10 and knows the alphabet so thats fine by me!

RachA - thats great news that things are finally happening for you. A year in between proper sessions is no help at all really.
And Esther doing a roly-poly too must have been a magic moment for you all! It's made me smile just reading about her!


----------



## angelae36

Peanut78 said:


> Back in the day when our son had his first appointment with a neurologist (he was 20 months old) she was asking about pointing to body parts, which our son didn't do. BUT I had never thought to teach him that at that point, was too wrapped up in his issues with his walking walking. So I remember when I received the report saying he had a cognitive delay because he didn't point out body parts I felt really hard done by - why did she indicate this as a delay if he had never been taught it!?!? The label of "cognitive delay" was later changed as he went in to therapy and they saw how much he did understand and how picking up conceptual stuff wasn't where his problems were.
> 
> Now thinking back, the neurologist also made an issue of the fact that my son didn't cry (show signs of separation anxiety) when I left him at nursery :wacko::dohh:
> 
> It's really hard to determine what a child's abilities are or aren't when seeing him once (they could be shy, distracted, acting up, having an off day etc. :nope:

I'd have thought not getting upset when you leave him at nursery was a good thing????? The mind boggles with some of these "experts".


----------



## RachA

angelae36 said:


> RachA said:
> 
> 
> angelae36 and aliss - try not to worry too much. They really can't make a decision on just one session. Children rarely perform the first time they meet someone. It took a few session with the SALT before Esther settled into them and was more herself.
> 
> An update for us: Esther has finally received her next speech therapy sessions through. It's amazing what happens when the council education department are involved lol. She has 6 more sessions booked in starting in 2 weeks times. I'm really pleased that she is finally getting some more. The last lot of proper sessions she's had were almost a year ago now (she's had a few review sessions to see how she's getting on).
> Also - she has learnt to do a roly-poly all on her own!!! She was so pleased and lay on the floor grinning and clapping her hands.
> 
> I'm not so much worried, I knew it would take a few sessions for any form of opinion to be made and Abbie spent half of hers saying "bye bye, see you soon"!!!
> I'm just a bit frustrated that they seem to be picking up on the little things that she doesn't normally do at home and almost focussing on those. I know other conditions have to be ruled out though so presuming that is why.
> I'm going to spend the next few weeks doing as I have been asked and trying to get her to play more WITH me rather than me sitting by her and also getting her to play something I want to play with (if you get my drift?!) and for longer than 5 minutes. This should be a challenge then!!
> 
> As for pointing to body parts, Abbie won't do it either, I think she might know head, shoulders,knees and toes from the song but that is it!
> It's not something I've really done with her and not pointed it out in books as she will only let me read about 4 books to her and only at bedtime!
> But she can count to 10 and knows the alphabet so thats fine by me!
> 
> RachA - thats great news that things are finally happening for you. A year in between proper sessions is no help at all really.
> And Esther doing a roly-poly too must have been a magic moment for you all! It's made me smile just reading about her!Click to expand...

It sounds like Abbie is quite like Esther in some ways. I can't get her to play with things that i want her to play with and she doesn't really play that much with me. But playschool are really working at that with her. She really seems to respond much better to her SenCo at playschool than she does with me :dohh:

I guess they pick up on the little things as sometimes they are more noticeable and a good benchmark to go by when they see the child next. I'm sure we've had instances when Esther has done something and we were asked does she do that a lot and we were like 'um she's never done that before' lol.

It's funny because sometimes i think that when you have a child that seems to be delayed, you appreciate it more when they do things. Like i don't actually remember Daniel doing his first roly-poly but with Esther it's such a big deal. I feel a bit bad that i obviously missed out on a few things Daniel achieved because he just did them at the right time.


----------



## RachA

angelae36 said:


> Peanut78 said:
> 
> 
> Back in the day when our son had his first appointment with a neurologist (he was 20 months old) she was asking about pointing to body parts, which our son didn't do. BUT I had never thought to teach him that at that point, was too wrapped up in his issues with his walking walking. So I remember when I received the report saying he had a cognitive delay because he didn't point out body parts I felt really hard done by - why did she indicate this as a delay if he had never been taught it!?!? The label of "cognitive delay" was later changed as he went in to therapy and they saw how much he did understand and how picking up conceptual stuff wasn't where his problems were.
> 
> Now thinking back, the neurologist also made an issue of the fact that my son didn't cry (show signs of separation anxiety) when I left him at nursery :wacko::dohh:
> 
> It's really hard to determine what a child's abilities are or aren't when seeing him once (they could be shy, distracted, acting up, having an off day etc. :nope:
> 
> I'd have thought not getting upset when you leave him at nursery was a good thing????? The mind boggles with some of these "experts".Click to expand...

I would of thought that too - neither of mine showed much signs in the way of separation anxiety when at playschool and i didn't think anything of it.


----------



## PepsiChic

Barrys completely independent, hes fine If i go shower, feed the baby,make dinner, take the trash out, doesnt so much as look at me most of the time. 

Hes only clingy if he dosnt nap and gets over tired.

he doesnt go to nursery but Im sure if he did, he wouldnt care about me leaving him there. hell when MIL took him for the night when I had connor it was his first time EVER away from me...he didnt so much as fuss!

Im still waiting for medicaid to be approved for the boys, and Im wondering if I should ask Barrys dr about speech therapy or not...its quite daunting thinking about it tbh. but when i read this thread I see how it may be helping others and I wonder if its in hisbest interests


----------



## RachA

It certainly won't hurt for him to go see a speech therapist. Some children only need a few sessions too :)
Do you have to pay for it or does the Medicaid cover it?


----------



## mrsthomas623

PepsiChic said:


> Barrys completely independent, hes fine If i go shower, feed the baby,make dinner, take the trash out, doesnt so much as look at me most of the time.
> 
> Hes only clingy if he dosnt nap and gets over tired.
> 
> he doesnt go to nursery but Im sure if he did, he wouldnt care about me leaving him there. hell when MIL took him for the night when I had connor it was his first time EVER away from me...he didnt so much as fuss!
> 
> Im still waiting for medicaid to be approved for the boys, and Im wondering if I should ask Barrys dr about speech therapy or not...its quite daunting thinking about it tbh. but when i read this thread I see how it may be helping others and I wonder if its in hisbest interests

I am pretty sure all states have the Help Me Grow program and it has been a god send to us. They come and evaluate your child and see if they think there is a need for extra help. If he qualifies, they cover the cost of a speech therapist and possibly occupational therapist if there is a need for one. 

They only go up to age 3 and then they will have the school district out to evaluate the child and see if he qualifies for the special preschool programs. Nolan starts his evaluations for preschool this month. It will be 4 days a week for 2.5 hours a day and once a week he will work with a speech therapist and OT. The most amazing part is that is all paid through our tax dollars, so no out of pocket cost. :thumbup:

Definitely something I recommend asking about. :flower:


----------



## MikaylasMummy

I am so pleased with kobys progress in the last week!!he seems to have just picked up soooo much with his sounds and added a bunch of new words and even some two word phrases he uses a lot.he says what's this about 50 times a day at different things.i had a convo with him this arvo (its about poo sorry tmi lol) "koby have you done a poo?" He said "what?" I said "have you finished your poo" and pointed to his bum and he said "oh yeah"!!!clear as day.his teacher at daycare said today she offered him a dip of the cake frosting and he said clear as day "no yuck!"..and he has actually being saying yes instead of just shaking his head for yes and no.this has all just happened within a week!and it really is quite a shock as he really did have pretty much NO speech and especially none heused regularly in the right context.i hope he continues to move in this direction.oh is so impressed at his improvement he is really happy with the speech therapist.


----------



## RachA

That's really good news :)

Esther's trying to copy the odd word here and there which is progress for her - they are not recognisable to anyone else though. It's usually only because i've said the word first that i know what it is.

The other day she signed bed and pointed out of the room so i assumed she meant she wanted to go to bed. So i walked out of the lounge and stopped and asked what she wanted and she signed bed and pointed at the stairs. So i took her up :) She also pointed at the kitchen door and signed 'orange' and tried to say it. So i gave her one (shame she didn't actually eat it lol). Ours is coming slowing but at least it happening. She starts a 6 week block of speech therapy next friday.


----------



## angelae36

Yay progress for you both, thats lovely :happydance::happydance::happydance:

I've had to pick Abbie up from pre-school half an hour early again, this time she wasn't asleep but from 2.30 kept saying bye bye, see you soon, going to the gate and in sheer desperation went and picked her bag up, having found it in amongst all the others. Now if that's not communication I don't know what is!!!!

She's more into books now and pointing out pictures and trying to name them. She's getting really good at the animals in "Dear Zoo" even down to the camel - watch out they spit!!!


----------



## AP

We had a bit of progress here with Alex, shortened versions of words but she says them if we do! :happydance:
"na" for nappy
"mu" for mum
"da" for dad and
"tay" for Tori. 

I cant even begin to tell you how amazing signing is coming on though! Both the girls are intrigued by Something Special and thanks to Apple TV we keep pulling the old stuff of YouTube for them and they love it! After the worry about Makaton vs Sign-a-long, I also noticed last night all the signs we use are the same as each and BSL? :wacko: I dunno what her home teacher was moaning about TBH, I'm sticking with Makaton. 

Although I do think I will have another _"2 and not talking"_ by next months *sigh* but I think Tori will progress soon, as she has much more babbling. Her only word is "cat" and "moo".

I was so excited to hear Tori pretending to read a book and she read each page in the same "tone" as DH uses reading that book, hard to explain but it was there!


----------



## daddiesgift

Had my sons 18 month check up this week and they've referred us to a speech therapist mostly because his words are shorten or not pronounced right. He calls daddy DA but calls me mama. He says thank you= dank to. But other words he says fine like go bye bye, baby, all done. I was hesitant to take him as I think he's a little young to worry about pronunciation but a few friends who've gone said its worth it. So his evaluation is Wednesday. I'm worried since he won't say or repeat anything on que sooo not sure how this is going to go


----------



## MikaylasMummy

RachA that's great that she is signing without prompting.i asked my speech therapist if signing will discourage speaking but she said it encourages it apparently and the speaking will come along.
Angelae36 that's great she's naming things in books!koby will point to things but is not that into books.and he won't name animals he still calls them all by their sounds.
Aww atomic,do you think she is behind purely because she models big sis?does she spend much time with other kids?i know ours is the opposite problem with mikayla doing all of kobys talking so now we shush her koby is coming out of his shell a bit more
Daddies gift i agree I think he is too young and I also think he's doing really well!!maybe a few sessions wouldn't hurt but personally I would wait.i don't know many 18 month olds who say words perfectly!!my daughter who was very advanced with speech still called herself tayla til she was almost three!as did her two cousins who are also extremely ahead with speech


----------



## PepsiChic

wow on cloud nine to hear all the progress our little munchkins are making! how exciting for us all!


----------



## Babeonthego

Hey everyone.

My little boy is 28months and is also not talking at all. He has now been referred for speech therapy so I am just waiting for his first appointment to come through the post. His understanding of instructions etc are all perfect. He is also a very clever and bright little boy in many other ways. Any tips or advice to start encouraging him whilst waiting for his appointments would be fab. X


----------



## MikaylasMummy

Babeonthego said:


> Hey everyone.
> 
> My little boy is 28months and is also not talking at all. He has now been referred for speech therapy so I am just waiting for his first appointment to come through the post. His understanding of instructions etc are all perfect. He is also a very clever and bright little boy in many other ways. Any tips or advice to start encouraging him whilst waiting for his appointments would be fab. X

Hi there,
The only tip I have really so far is to teach him cause and effect with communication.show him that signing or speaking is the only way to get what he wants.my son used to scream or whinge for things and his speech therapist says we should ignore him if he is having a tantrum and then encourage him to sign or say the word.so maybe look up child signing and begin with that,always saying the word with it.it is also ok to help him sometimes by doing the movement for him with his hands to show him in the beginning.it has really helped my lo realizing that talking is easier than other ways


----------



## AP

Mikayasmummy I think it might be a factor. It's no coincidence their first clear broad words were cat and moo, so I think they are just bouncing off each other.


----------



## KellyC75

Hi all...havent been on b&b for ages, as only have internet on my phone & its hard to read!!
Glad ive found this thread, as am at wits end! :0(

My dd1 is 27 months now & only says a handful of words, mistly 'b' words...ball, bird, bowl etc
She gets sooo frustrated most of the time & makes for an unhappy stressful household :0(

Any advice please??

Have managed to get referal for speech therapy, but taking ages!


----------



## PepsiChic

MikaylasMummy said:


> Babeonthego said:
> 
> 
> Hey everyone.
> 
> My little boy is 28months and is also not talking at all. He has now been referred for speech therapy so I am just waiting for his first appointment to come through the post. His understanding of instructions etc are all perfect. He is also a very clever and bright little boy in many other ways. Any tips or advice to start encouraging him whilst waiting for his appointments would be fab. X
> 
> Hi there,
> The only tip I have really so far is to teach him cause and effect with communication.show him that signing or speaking is the only way to get what he wants.my son used to scream or whinge for things and his speech therapist says we should ignore him if he is having a tantrum and then encourage him to sign or say the word.so maybe look up child signing and begin with that,always saying the word with it.it is also ok to help him sometimes by doing the movement for him with his hands to show him in the beginning.it has really helped my lo realizing that talking is easier than other waysClick to expand...

I second this, Barry knows how to say please but he will just stand and point and start whinning. I ask him to say please, and ignore him if he doesnt, he has a little bit of a tantrum for a while I let him go do his own thing, once hes forgotten about it, I ask him to say please for it and then he generally will. Infact yesterday he pointed at the fridge and said "juice please" which was a first!


----------



## MikaylasMummy

That's awesome gp Barry!


----------



## MikaylasMummy

KellyC75 said:


> Hi all...havent been on b&b for ages, as only have internet on my phone & its hard to read!!
> Glad ive found this thread, as am at wits end! :0(
> 
> My dd1 is 27 months now & only says a handful of words, mistly 'b' words...ball, bird, bowl etc
> She gets sooo frustrated most of the time & makes for an unhappy stressful household :0(
> 
> Any advice please??
> 
> Have managed to get referal for speech therapy, but taking ages!

For a very long time koby only said words beginning with b and some starting with d.his word bank consisted of ball,bath,bottle,bike,daddy,Dora and dee(woody). He is only just coming out of this now and what I noticed was he said these words but in the mean time he was following all the speaking milestones just very late ie he could say those words but at the same time he was just starting to point at absoloutley everything when we were out then he started babbling a bit more then he started babbling different sounds like sentences in response to something I'd say to him,and now he is starting to come out with new sounds and words.so he did follow the usual track just later on.does your lo seem to be doing this or have they not shown many developmental signs of speaking?if they have in my experience the speech will come along.although I definatley think speech therapy will help a bunch and is necessary to eventually perfect that word formation.


----------



## MikaylasMummy

Also Kelly not sure which country your in but we went private instead of waiting for the free public system.i am amazed at how good our therapist is and I am so glad we went private and got started straight away.


----------



## mumandco

Had a letter today saying that Zack is on the waiting list for speech therapy I think the wait is 3-4 months though :( 

Zack is starting to get a little frustrated now when he can't say something and as horrible as it sounds I'm getting slightly frustrated to,though I try not to show it.
He is making improvement even if its only slight,he is starting to try and copy more words and is using hand gestures for a lot of things.
It's amazing how he can get across what he wants with limited speech.


----------



## KellyC75

MikaylasMummy said:


> KellyC75 said:
> 
> 
> Hi all...havent been on b&b for ages, as only have internet on my phone & its hard to read!!
> Glad ive found this thread, as am at wits end! :0(
> 
> My dd1 is 27 months now & only says a handful of words, mistly 'b' words...ball, bird, bowl etc
> She gets sooo frustrated most of the time & makes for an unhappy stressful household :0(
> 
> Any advice please??
> 
> Have managed to get referal for speech therapy, but taking ages!
> 
> For a very long time koby only said words beginning with b and some starting with d.his word bank consisted of ball,bath,bottle,bike,daddy,Dora and dee(woody). He is only just coming out of this now and what I noticed was he said these words but in the mean time he was following all the speaking milestones just very late ie he could say those words but at the same time he was just starting to point at absoloutley everything when we were out then he started babbling a bit more then he started babbling different sounds like sentences in response to something I'd say to him,and now he is starting to come out with new sounds and words.so he did follow the usual track just later on.does your lo seem to be doing this or have they not shown many developmental signs of speaking?if they have in my experience the speech will come along.although I definatley think speech therapy will help a bunch and is necessary to eventually perfect that word formation.Click to expand...




MikaylasMummy said:


> Also Kelly not sure which country your in but we went private instead of waiting for the free public system.i am amazed at how good our therapist is and I am so glad we went private and got started straight away.

Thanks for your reply.

My daughter doesnt seem to make effort (iykwim) she just says mum mum mum....when i reply she says 'ehhh'....so i have no idea what she means???
Also....if we are looking at picture books and i say (for example) cat, you say cat....she will go 'bah'....nothing like cat or k???
Ive had 2 boys before her & they talked on target...so this is all new to me, so im truly grateful for support....thank you again

Im living in the uk now....having moved back from australia last year. To be fair, the referal had to be moved to a new health nurse/visitor team, after i moved to a new area here in thd uk since getting back!! So hopefully it wont be much longer?!


----------



## MikaylasMummy

My son won't copy either.he says things when HE wants he has never ever ever copied words even now.it is frustrating because to me I think seeing our mouths moves and mimicking would be the best way to learn.he also just didnt make an effort to speak as he would get what he wanted by just making noises that were easy so as I mentioned to before teaching cause and effect and finding the signs for things and using the word along with the sign and refusing things until they make some effort to use the right communication.even if she refuses and you make the sign for her moving her hands she may start learning(like koby has) that using the right communication is a quicker easier way to get what they want


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## KellyC75

Is it hard work to learn the signing?


----------



## RachA

KellyC75 said:


> Is it hard work to learn the signing?


Hi.

I would say its not to hard to learn the signing. I try to sign with Esther and i know quite a lot of it. I just don't use it as much as i should because 9 times out of 10 and have things in my hands and you can't really sign one handed.

It is worth doing but you won't necessarily get a response straight away. Esther doesn't use that many at the moment (it's mainly thank you, please, more, yes, orange, milk, pig, rabbit) but having those signs pretty much doubles the amount of words she can 'say'. I have noticed that she is picking up the signs as quickly as she is getting new spoken words now so i would imagine that it will get to a point where she will sign and talk a lot.
Signing doesn't stop them talking. It gives children a visual way to express the word.

I would look at buying some Singing Hands DVD's - they are quite expensive but worth it. Esther has 2-one is Christmas Carols and the other is just nursery rhymes. When i have the dvd's on Esther will quite happily 'sign' along with it and sing, although at the moment both the signs and the words are what they should be.
The other thing you can watch is Something Special. But it depends on your child. Esther is very music orientated so she loves the dvd's but she doesn't like Something Special.

Also, If you are interested i have some sheets of paper given to me by Esther's playschool with a load of the signs on it. If you PM me your address i can send them to you.


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## KellyC75

Thank you so much....off to look at thd dvds, as my daughter loves music too x


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## MikaylasMummy

Well no for me as we are just using some simple signs for every day requests like on open help etc.but since I am learning with the speech therapist I guess it makes it easier.i don't think I would want to learn the total language just what I needed to help him start speaking


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## PepsiChic

I tried to do signing with Barry he showed no interest at all, tried it every day for 2 weeks and he didnt want to look at my hands by the end of the second week he should say "no no no" and push my hands away.

was a pretty clear message for me that signing wasnt for him!


----------



## RachA

PepsiChic said:


> I tried to do signing with Barry he showed no interest at all, tried it every day for 2 weeks and he didnt want to look at my hands by the end of the second week he should say "no no no" and push my hands away.
> 
> was a pretty clear message for me that signing wasnt for him!

It might be worth carrying on with but not in a way where you are teaching him. It has taken Esther from last April until the last month for her to actually take an interest in it. She picked up 'more' from the speech therapist last April but all the other signs she now knows are new fairly recently.


----------



## mrsthomas623

RachA said:


> PepsiChic said:
> 
> 
> I tried to do signing with Barry he showed no interest at all, tried it every day for 2 weeks and he didnt want to look at my hands by the end of the second week he should say "no no no" and push my hands away.
> 
> was a pretty clear message for me that signing wasnt for him!
> 
> It might be worth carrying on with but not in a way where you are teaching him. It has taken Esther from last April until the last month for her to actually take an interest in it. She picked up 'more' from the speech therapist last April but all the other signs she now knows are new fairly recently.Click to expand...

It took Nolan about 3 months to really work with the signs and then boom! he was signing and asking for milk. I was glad he was able to sign it because he pronounces it "nook" and I had no clue what he was asking for until I realized he was signing milk. 

He definitely doesn't sign much but it gives them another, easier form of communication. I never pushed it, just would sign "milk" when I gave him milk or "airplane" when we would see one and so on.:thumbup:


----------



## AP

I find signs easy to pick up from Sonething Special. The bare basics are there. Alex is in love with it right now, she's got two particular ones she likes and tonight she signed "baby" and Said "na" (for nappy). I knew then that she wanted to watch the one with the baby and the nappy sign in it. That was pretty awesome.

Signing didnt work right away. She had no interest at first. But eventually she took little things on board. When we introduced Sonething Special, she saw "look" and "listen" signs and realised he was doing what she had been taught. She was really excited


----------



## moggymay

we saw the slt last week for her to assess Jack, she is pushing that we teach him makaton - which we are trying to do - and persevere with that as his speech is evolving, we have more words - that we understand - but are finding he is expanding his communication via a combination of speech and sign, still completely unintelligible for the most partfor those who dont know him but it is definite progress. Dyspraxia was mentioned but she doesnt feel fully able to besure it is that and not something else as he only has issue verbally. She also picked up on the fact he plays always near the adult at nursery and if they move so does he, he doesnt really interact yet with the others more plays side by side but not with them side by side if that makes sense? Nursery have a plan they have put together after last weeks meeting, we will find out what they are thinking later today.

It is all hard work but worth it in the end Im sure, each little stepis fab so cant imagine how it is going to feel the first time he says something to me that everyone can understand :) 

We start regualr therapy as nursery and home once they arrange it, can anyone help with what to expect during these sessions please :flower:


----------



## angelae36

Abbie had her second appointment with the speech therapist on Tuesday.
Humm. 

She got her to do the wooden jigsaw again, but because Abbie could only have 1 piece at a time and only got one when she gave eye contact or attempted it she got bored pretty quickly. She did complete it though and named the pictures as she went along.

Then while we were talking she spotted some more toys and wanted them so she was allowed the bricks which again she was given 1 at a time. She got about 6 or 7 in the end.
So again while we were talking for 10 minutes or so she was sat building them, knocking them down and building them again.
The SLT pointed out that she seems to do a lot of repetative play and does she do that at home? It was a similar thing to "she's spinning the wheel on a car, does she do that a lot at home"?
The answer to both is no more than any other child we have. I also pointed out there is not a lot else to do with blocks other than build and knock down.

Anyway, the SLT has put lack of eye contact, social interaction problems, lack of speech with repatative play and spinning wheels and decided she is Autistic - which it could be.
We are being referred to the SLT's at the hospital and waiting for an assessment which takes months.

Now. I am not saying Abbie isn't Autistic, I am keeping an open mind, but this SLT has spent little over an hour with her, observed her do a couple of things that are markers for Autism that she rarely does at home and concluded that is what it is. She gave little consideration to what I was saying, almost like she doesn't believe me.
It feels a lot like she had decided about Abbie before she's even seen her and was finding ways to prove she was right and offered absolutley no advice on how I can help Abbie while we wait.

Hopefully the new SLT's will be better and take time to get to know Abbie before deciding about her.
It's all very frustrating!


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## AP

angelae36 if you didnt have a different name, location and child I would honestly swear you were my best friend, everything you said was EXACTLY what happened at her 2nd appointment (or third?) . Shes on this forum but doesnt use it much. They have decided to refer him but it does seem a huge thing to comment on when its only a second appointment in a different enviroment so your LO can be acting different! I know our SALT came to our house and goes to the nursery now because she plays up at the clinic. 

:hugs:


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## AP

I'm so excited, I've booked a Makaton.org course for my DH, and hes even more excited! I will try it out next time they have one cause we have no childcare to go together!


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## aliss

I'm in a bad mood today. Why do people feel the need to point out that my son's speech is behind? Do they think I'm stupid and don't know??? It's none of your business to know we are in contact with therapists!! You spend a few minutes per week with him and suddenly you are an expert on my apparent neglect to teach him how to speak??? ARGHHHHHHH. please, tell me, how do I force a 3 year old to talk? Do I write words on paper and shove them down his throat to make them come back up??

I am annoyed sorry. I know you girls have probalby gone through this too.


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## angelae36

That sounds really exciting AtomicPink and a really good idea!

The SLT did say that the one's at the hospital are able to come out to homes and pre-schools too so I do hope they can be more use!
Although if they come to our home, she has suddenly decided she like to play in her room so we might all have to de-camp up there!!!

Pre-school are also applying for help for her too - I wonder if they'll be able to convince her to do the full 3 hour sessions!!


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## angelae36

Don't let other thoughtless people get you down Aliss.
You are doing all you can to help your son and that's all that matters.

As for how do you get them to talk? No idea, I was hoping the SLT would give me some pointers! 
Although in the last 3 weeks or so Abbie has been able to name most of the Peppa Pig characters, asked "What's that" and took daddy to the window when a digger turned up next door and yesterday answered when she was asked what the Zebra in Peppa Pig is called, to name but a few new achievements.
We've not done a great deal different with her, she just seems to have exploded!
We are a long way from having a conversation with her but we're heading in the right direction!


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## AP

:hugs: Aliss. Its frustrating. Peoples expections tend to be too high though. People always talk to Alex expecting an answer from her and she just smiles or walks away unaware, when i say she cant talk the all the questions kick in. Arrrgggh!!

Managed to get one over on the folk who are demanding we use Signalong. DH told the nursery today he was going on the course and nursery said they are previously taught through Makaton anyway so will use Makaton if WE want.

:happydance:


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## moggymay

fab news getting on to a course...our SLT is supposed to be arranging one for us but she doesnt give me much faith that she will as she was supposed to be doing it in December and advised us then the next places available were in February, we said yes please....we saw her again last week and she asked if anyone had mentioned a makaton course :dohh: 

excuse the rant but she pointed out to pre-school that my son wasnt able to work the soap dispenser :wacko: and said it was an issue with his personal care? Pre-school arent concerned and say they would expect it to be something he could do if he were potty training but until then dont worry as he can do his shoes/boots/hat/scarf/coat etc.

I bought a Something Special magazine for my son in the supermarket the other day and was really chuffed to discover pictures of signs in there :) Simple ones like colours and everyday items, I never knew it had them inside, a fab bonus as my son is interested and it is also helping my older son learn makaton signs too to use with his little brother. 

Did you book the course through the makaton website? Wish they offered something as an evening class near us as evening is easier to go to and means childcare not such an issue as sitting downstairs while they sleep is easier than entertaining them - eso with family a long way away!


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## daddiesgift

Took my 18 month old to speech evaluation this week as his doctor thought he should be saying around 25 words. I was pretty nervous but speech therapist said he is not delayed developmentally at all and doing great. They did puzzles, toys and flash cards. She said he learns quick and seems to just be independent. He just picks up on things and does it. Example when I start to cook he'll just go sit in his high chair instead of asking. If he's thirsty he doesn't ask he just goes and gets his own drink. She said it wasn't necessarily needed but to bring him once a week for 30 mins to help him learn signs and help him learn to request more and not talk in "tantrums". At one point he could tell something was up so he went to door and tried to leave so I said no and he said bye bye then cried. Cried when I wouldn't pick him up instead of asking up ect. So I guess we'll go and try it out. Not sure how long it will last as I hate seeing him uncomfortable and you could tell he was :( 30 mins isn't bad though


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## mrsthomas623

aliss said:


> I'm in a bad mood today. Why do people feel the need to point out that my son's speech is behind? Do they think I'm stupid and don't know??? It's none of your business to know we are in contact with therapists!! You spend a few minutes per week with him and suddenly you are an expert on my apparent neglect to teach him how to speak??? ARGHHHHHHH. please, tell me, how do I force a 3 year old to talk? Do I write words on paper and shove them down his throat to make them come back up??
> 
> I am annoyed sorry. I know you girls have probalby gone through this too.

Oh, Aliss! These boys are way too similar. :haha: I struggle some days with all the unwanted advice, as if I have not been trying to get Nolan talking. I know people are trying to helpful but it comes across as a snub to my parenting abilities. :nope:

Today was a very bad day for stupid comments. My MIL came to help me with the boys at Urgent Care (Griff bloody his lip walking. :dohh: ) I was super appreciative of that... BUT she keeps going on and on about how she tells people "about" Nolan. Comments like that break my heart, I literally have to try not to cry. I don't understand her need to tell people "about' him and his delays. He is 2.5 years old, I don't want to label him- I just try every day to give him all that I can. I don't even know if that makes sense. :wacko:


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## sun

aliss said:


> I'm in a bad mood today. Why do people feel the need to point out that my son's speech is behind? Do they think I'm stupid and don't know??? It's none of your business to know we are in contact with therapists!! You spend a few minutes per week with him and suddenly you are an expert on my apparent neglect to teach him how to speak??? ARGHHHHHHH. please, tell me, how do I force a 3 year old to talk? Do I write words on paper and shove them down his throat to make them come back up??
> 
> I am annoyed sorry. I know you girls have probalby gone through this too.

I know how you feel Aliss. I always got the question "Have you tried reading books to him", like I hadn't thought of it. I know they are just trying to help, but really? Obviously I've read books to him - he's 3!!! :dohh:


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## moomoo

Ugh.. I know Reggie does talk now but I thought I'd come here and share my frustration at this kind of comment!

"Oh my son/daughter talks a lot because we are always talking to them!"

Really, so my son was late talking because we didn't talk to him right?? :dohh:

If that was the case, then my DD would be completely mute as she was spoken to even less being a second child! 

People! :dohh:


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## Meredith2010

It's been a while since I've posted in here, hi everyone. Nat is now 22 months and has said a couple of words this week! He now has one regular word - "gone" which he applies to EVERYTHING, and he also repeated a word for the first time ever (tree, which came out as eeee but it was most definitely an effort to repeat).

So he's now has 4 words he has said - car, ball, gone and eeeeee although gone is the only one he uses regularly.

Progress! He's still being referred for speach therapy as obviously 4 words isn't much for someone his age, but it's great for us to hear him develop.


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## KellyC75

I have 4 children now & ive never experienced late talking before, ds1&2 on target. Im also confident dd2 will talk on target too, as at only 1 she is already saying a few words!

I havent done anything different with dd1 , so people can jog on if they comment it may be something i am or am not doing!!

What i will say is dd1 is defo my most demanding child, she is stubborn too & if she wants something all is good, if she doesnt....all hell breaks loose!!! I really think that its her personality that is having an effect on her late talking, basically she doesnt want to!! Lol


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## RachA

I've been quite fortunate in that i have only had one comment about Esther's lack of speech. I wonder if it's because if someone talks to her i will quite often say 'oh her name is Esther, she isn't talking yet'. Or else it could be that she is quite little so people assume she is younger than she is anyway.
I feel for all you ladies that have people saying things about reading/talking to the child. I wouldn't be impressed if people said that to me either.

We had quite a good session at the speech therapists on Friday this week - Esther has 6 sessions booked in but because of the Easter Hols there is another 3 or 4 weeks before her next appointment. It was a different therapist this time (her last one was really good too) and Esther actually responded really well with her. In true form the SALT didn't really seem to do much but she got some really good observations. She was able to get Esther to complete a puzzle and Esther actually tried to say a number of the objects and most of them were words i've not heard her say before. But she still won't use those words in conversation so we've got to try and get her to see the link between say, seeing a picture of a house in a puzzle and saying 'house' and seeing our house and saying 'house' etc.
I'm hoping that by the time Esther's 4 she might actually be talking :)


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## angelae36

RachA, did the speech therapist give any ideas how to try and help her make the connections or is it just a case of pointing these things out along the way?

We got the report back from our SLT and there is no surprise that the picture painted is of an autistic child.
I do however disagree with a lot of what is in the report, the main one being she said that stickers is Abbies current "obsession". She has deduced this from asking me what Abbie's favourite toys are and that particular week it was stickers. The stickers are definately not an obsession and she has now moved onto other toys.
She has also twisted what I said in answer to her questions and exaggerated others. It made me quite cross actually.

Anyway on a positive note, Abbie has learnt another new word -sh1t - used in the right context if there is such a thing!
She is also starting to answer questions eg: whats the name of the zebra (in peppa pig) and would you like number 1,2 or 3.
It's not every time but it's more often than not!


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## RachA

angelae36 said:


> RachA, did the speech therapist give any ideas how to try and help her make the connections or is it just a case of pointing these things out along the way?
> 
> We got the report back from our SLT and there is no surprise that the picture painted is of an autistic child.
> I do however disagree with a lot of what is in the report, the main one being she said that stickers is Abbies current "obsession". She has deduced this from asking me what Abbie's favourite toys are and that particular week it was stickers. The stickers are definately not an obsession and she has now moved onto other toys.
> She has also twisted what I said in answer to her questions and exaggerated others. It made me quite cross actually.
> 
> Anyway on a positive note, Abbie has learnt another new word -sh1t - used in the right context if there is such a thing!
> She is also starting to answer questions eg: whats the name of the zebra (in peppa pig) and would you like number 1,2 or 3.
> It's not every time but it's more often than not!

No - that wasn't something that was discussed - it's more my own observations etc. She's seen quite a lot of different people and i've picked up how to observe her and work out whats happening. I think it's really just a case of encouraging her to use the words and pointing out the item in real life along with in pictures.

TBH iro Abbie, she sounds similar to Esther and they are not trying to point us in the direction of autism at all. Part of me feels that this age is very young to diagnose that as toddlers do have obsessions about things etc but they grow out of them. If you are not happy with the picture painted then i would try and see someone else. If it was us in this situation we would want to see a couple of different people to make sure that both of them agree. I guess i'd feel that one person can make a mistake but two people aren't likely to make the same mistake.

Love her new word btw :haha:


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## angelae36

We are being referred to the SLT at the hospital so will be seeing other people, just waiting for the appointment.
She did warn me that the report had to be the way it is so she'd be seen or something like that. I was expecting an honest report though, not one that contains half truths and conclusions based on Abbie doing something once. 

The HV is coming out to see us on Monday so I'll let her read the report and see what she thinks.

Another question, I hope you don't mind, when the SLT tries to get Esther to "play", does she try and make it interesting and exciting for her? 
Abbie was asked to do a wooden jigsaw in both sessions and could only have one piece at a time. She can do those type of jigsaws easily and got quite frustrated she couldn't have all the pieces and quickly lost interest. No attempt was made by the SLT to make it exciting or interesting.

Hopefully I'll get as good as you at observing, it's all still new to me, but I'm getting there!
I'm not so sure I like the new word - especially as not long ago in frustration she added bugg*r too it as well! That's one word she hasn't forgotten :rofl:


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## RachA

When the HV comes i would let her read it and they chat to her about it.

lol question away. No she doesn't really make it exciting. Giving them one piece at a time is method of encouraging children to concentrate, make eye contact, use words etc.
Children don't learn to talk if they can't maintain eye contact so by holding all the pieces back the lo has to ask the adult for a piece, this can either be by gesturing or using a word or sign. If the SALT was to give Abbie all the pieces then all's that would happen is that Abbie would put them in and not really interact with the SALT and that in turn wouldn't help her to talk. I hope that makes sense.


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## angelae36

Ah thank you, that makes perfect sense now. I'll let her off that one then!


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## PepsiChic

angelae36 said:


> Anyway on a positive note, Abbie has learnt another new word -sh1t - used in the right context if there is such a thing!
> She is also starting to answer questions eg: whats the name of the zebra (in peppa pig) and would you like number 1,2 or 3.
> It's not every time but it's more often than not!

Barrys first CLEAR word was "Sh1t!" and now when he drops something he says "OH SH1T!"

its hard not to laugh, I have to turn away take a deep breath and then carry on like I didnt hear it. husbands fault he always says the S word :dohh:


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## momof2babies

ds learn a couple words at 18 months then stopped speaking all together after a seizure he has recently been diagnosed with autism as well he now says a few words though mommy and juice are his favorite words he also says key (kitty) bow(meow) and detsa (jessica) there are more but those are the main ones


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## RachA

Esther is actually trying to copy words now - its been a heck of a long time in coming though. She won't copy everything - it's literally just words that she wants to say, when she wants to say them. Her new word for the weekend is 'cuggle' for cuddle. I just wish she'd actually use the words she can say though as she will repeat them but she doesn't actually use them to communicate with us. She's 2 months away from her next review and i know she has progressed but a big part of me is worried that she won't of progressed enough. At her last assessment she was 18months behind. At her next review she really needs to still be at 18months behind or less. If she is more that 18months behind it means that she is getting further and further behind and that she'll never catch up etc. We decided that if she stays at 18months behind it won't be too bad as she is an October birthday so it'll be a bit like she started school as a summer birthday rather than a winter birthday, and that's not too much of an issue really.


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## AP

Its great she's using two syllable words RachA!


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## RachA

Thanks. It is :) She's as pleased as punch when we praise her for a new word.


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## angelae36

Yay go Esther!!!! :happydance::happydance::happydance:


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## AP

I dunno if it was sheer chance but when I got home from work Tori was standing in the hall waiting and shouted HIYAAA! clear as day. i always make a point in saying hiya so I hope she does it again!

Tori really helps Alex in terms of speech, she really does. If I can get Tori going then Alex will follow suit if at least a little.


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## Babeonthego

I just feel so frustrated at the system here. Coles name is down for the nursery but as usual he will have to wait for ages to get a place. It's like if your a hard working decent family you don't get anything here:( so frustrating. Cole will be 2 and a half at the end of April and is not saying any words whatsoever. He babbles a lot and understands absolutely everything we ask him to do. Here's the most frustrating part. I genuinely feel that he does not have any developmental issues or delay but I feel that he just doesn't want to do it. He gets annoyed if we try and encourage him to speak or to teach him too. It's like he just doesnt want to and is very stubborn in this respect. We don't pressure him often as I don't want to associate talking with negativity. I'm just lost as to how to encourage him:( we are also on a waiting list for some speech therapy. 

I have purchased some makaton books for him and we will start that today


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## AP

Babeonthego my friend is the same position right now, shes so frustrated by it all! Where in Scotland are u hun?


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## Babeonthego

We r in Glasgow. It's just mega frustrating as I just want him into nursery. I really think that will bring him on. I am so confident that he's just a little lazy monkey.x


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## RachA

Are you able to take him along to other children's groups while you are waiting for playschool to start?
My MIL was insistent that we start Esther at playschool when she had just turned 2 as she wasn't talking - we didn't want to so she didn't go. I honestly don't think it would of helped with her talking any more than the other groups that we went to. The progress that she has made has been due to speech therapy plus having one-one at the playschool which is only given if a child has a speech issue.

If you haven't already i would recommend getting Singing Hands DVD's. Esther's picked up much more from those than she did from the Makaton books.


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## AP

We did exactly the same as RachA said, we couldnt do paygroups or anything like that until she was older and grew out of her sickness and things, but nursery she has the speech therapy and its helped, but the makaton has well and truly been the magical step


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## daddiesgift

Took my LO to his first speech appointment today.. What a disaster! At his evaluation she said he didn't seem too behind and just to bring him if we wanted. Seeing him one on one in a quite room like that really makes me worried :nope:

They started with puzzles.. Which we never do at home but I bought some today. Even when she would point to where the Cow went he'd try others before trying that one. He never put it in right place at first try it took him awhile. Before he was done with puzzle he wanted down and kept getting mad. 

Then they tried matching a block that had a sun in it and on it so you can put the right ones in the blocks. He just took the car and ball ones.. The toys he plays with most and that was it. He wouldn't repeat here, he didn't want her touching him to teach him the signs. Ugh. 

The she brought out a bunch of trucks his favorite toys and that was it he wouldn't do anything else. 

Idk what to think :nope: I feel horrible like this is my fault. I didn't know an 18 month old should know stuff like that or do puzzles yet so I never tried. Since we've been home I tried to help him do the puzzles we bought and the firing shapes in shapes slot and he was over it as soon as we started and throwing the stuff off his chair. I keep doing the signs at the right times and he watched but slaps my hands down. I hope it's that he's sickly and not something more. I'm going to practice with him more so maybe next time goes smoother. 

He says often 

Go
Night night
Bye bye
Baby
Ball
Wa (water) 
Mama
Da (dad)

I've heard him say other things but not all the time.


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## PepsiChic

daddiesgift said:


> Took my LO to his first speech appointment today.. What a disaster! At his evaluation she said he didn't seem too behind and just to bring him if we wanted. Seeing him one on one in a quite room like that really makes me worried :nope:
> 
> They started with puzzles.. Which we never do at home but I bought some today. Even when she would point to where the Cow went he'd try others before trying that one. He never put it in right place at first try it took him awhile. Before he was done with puzzle he wanted down and kept getting mad.
> 
> Then they tried matching a block that had a sun in it and on it so you can put the right ones in the blocks. He just took the car and ball ones.. The toys he plays with most and that was it. He wouldn't repeat here, he didn't want her touching him to teach him the signs. Ugh.
> 
> The she brought out a bunch of trucks his favorite toys and that was it he wouldn't do anything else.
> 
> Idk what to think :nope: I feel horrible like this is my fault. I didn't know an 18 month old should know stuff like that or do puzzles yet so I never tried. Since we've been home I tried to help him do the puzzles we bought and the firing shapes in shapes slot and he was over it as soon as we started and throwing the stuff off his chair. I keep doing the signs at the right times and he watched but slaps my hands down. I hope it's that he's sickly and not something more. I'm going to practice with him more so maybe next time goes smoother.
> 
> He says often
> 
> Go
> Night night
> Bye bye
> Baby
> Ball
> Wa (water)
> Mama
> Da (dad)
> 
> I've heard him say other things but not all the time.

Hes doing great! please try not to worry! Barry was very good at puzzles and sorting at 18 months but didnt say ANY of those words. I really think kids put their energy into different areas at different times. Barry refused to learn sign language, he would also slap my hands out the way and get very upset. Ive left it he doesnt want to do it and i dont want to make it a stressful experiance.

Ive recently found though that he loves to try and copy words in songs, so i sing a lot of nursery songs and then make the hand gestures, so twinkle twinkle little star and the itsby bitsy spider...look on you tube theres videos of the hand movements. hes just started saying "inkle inkle" "star" "high" and "spider", he also enjoys ring-a-ring-a-rosie.

try to not concentrate o too many words at once though. thats a BIG thing with Barry! we pick maybe 5 words for one week and say them over and over, we try to make them words for things he'll see every day, like cat, shoe, fork, light, ball. we'll say them all day long pointing at them or writing them down. and by the end of the week hes normally trying to say at least 2 of them. the ones he doesnt say we continue the next week and replace the ones he did say. 

I think your son is doing great for his age. keep it up with the puzzles, also try to get bath letters (the ones that stick on the tiles) or magnetic ones that stick on the fridge. 

also Leapfrog has some really good "movies" they are abotu 30 minutes long, alphabet, phonics, numbers etc. Barry loves them and can now say his alphabet A-Z and Z-A and count to 20! he loves watching them and joins in.

(for any US mummies they are on netflix, just search "leapfrog"


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## sun

daddiesgift said:


> Took my LO to his first speech appointment today.. What a disaster! At his evaluation she said he didn't seem too behind and just to bring him if we wanted. Seeing him one on one in a quite room like that really makes me worried :nope:
> 
> They started with puzzles.. Which we never do at home but I bought some today. Even when she would point to where the Cow went he'd try others before trying that one. He never put it in right place at first try it took him awhile. Before he was done with puzzle he wanted down and kept getting mad.
> 
> Then they tried matching a block that had a sun in it and on it so you can put the right ones in the blocks. He just took the car and ball ones.. The toys he plays with most and that was it. He wouldn't repeat here, he didn't want her touching him to teach him the signs. Ugh.
> 
> The she brought out a bunch of trucks his favorite toys and that was it he wouldn't do anything else.
> 
> Idk what to think :nope: I feel horrible like this is my fault. I didn't know an 18 month old should know stuff like that or do puzzles yet so I never tried. Since we've been home I tried to help him do the puzzles we bought and the firing shapes in shapes slot and he was over it as soon as we started and throwing the stuff off his chair. I keep doing the signs at the right times and he watched but slaps my hands down. I hope it's that he's sickly and not something more. I'm going to practice with him more so maybe next time goes smoother.
> 
> He says often
> 
> Go
> Night night
> Bye bye
> Baby
> Ball
> Wa (water)
> Mama
> Da (dad)
> 
> I've heard him say other things but not all the time.

I agree with above - it sounds like he is doing great! My son started speech therapy very early (18mo) because he did not vocalize at all - ie: babbling or sounds. Your little guy seems to have normal speech for 18mo - at least where I live. I find the US does jump on speech very early compared to many other places (not sure if that's where you are though). 

Also I know those were your observations of the appointment, but what did they say afterwards? At our 18mo appointments they used many different tools and games to interact with my son - many were years above him. It didn't necessarily mean they expected him to be able to do everything. From what you write he sounds like most other 18mo kids. And one appointment is hard to judge - lots of kids won't say a word or cooperate at all. It takes time for them to feel comfortable. Some kids don't want to be pushed either - my son can do many things, but if I start to push him them he shuts down completely. Lots of hugs! x


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## daddiesgift

Thanks ladies. Makes me feel better. The teacher didn't say anything after we were done so I'm not sure what she was thinking. Ill try the 5 words a week thing. He does seem to completely shut down when asked to do too much. He seemed excited to be there but once the door was shut and he was sat down he looked very uncomfortable. He's always been independent and really doing his own thing. I guess we'll keep going and see how it goes! Ill start the singing too though he laughs everytime I sing!


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## PepsiChic

daddiesgift said:


> Thanks ladies. Makes me feel better. The teacher didn't say anything after we were done so I'm not sure what she was thinking. Ill try the 5 words a week thing. He does seem to completely shut down when asked to do too much. He seemed excited to be there but once the door was shut and he was sat down he looked very uncomfortable. He's always been independent and really doing his own thing. I guess we'll keep going and see how it goes! Ill start the singing too though he laughs everytime I sing!

theres loads of easy ways to encourage it as well. 

stickers, just any type of stickers, animals, letters, stars...when he says one of the 5 words he gets a sticker. really helps them become eager to learn, and its much better then say chocolate. you may find he gets only 1 sticker the first day and 5 the next and by day 7 when hes caught onto the new words = stickers he'll becovered head to toe :) 

OR if you wanted to do it another way, get a note pad write the word at the top of each page and have him put the sticker on the page of the word he said...thats a good way of seeing visually which words hes picking up on faster.

like Barry went through a phase of saying "sh" words, and this week hes decided to say words that start with the "k" sound.


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## MikaylasMummy

Babeonthego said:


> We r in Glasgow. It's just mega frustrating as I just want him into nursery. I really think that will bring him on. I am so confident that he's just a little lazy monkey.x

Your son sounds a lot like koby did before he started with his speech therapist.he seemed to understand everything as as far as we could tell was doing well developmentally but just didnt see why he had to speak and would just walk away if we tried to get him even if he wanted something.the speech therapy has changed that tremendously and he is even starting to copy things when we ask him to say them and only has to be told once to use a sign/word if he wants something.it has really helped him realize he needs to communicate.koby was 2 in November so he is 2.5 in may


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## Babeonthego

Thanks so much mikaylasmummy that has made me feel so much better. That's exactly what cole is like. He doesn't feel the need to talk and has a mini meltdown if we try and get him to. I've just booked him into nursery for 2 mornings per week so we are hoping that will encourage him as well:)


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## MikaylasMummy

Another big jump here in the last two weeks!we now have copying!!yay!he is FINALLY watching our mouths and at least trying to sound out the words we are saying.when I put him in bed I usually sit down and chat to him a bit while he's tucked in and last night especially he was really trying!so I was slowly sounding out his own name with big accentuated mouth movements.i think saying koby Is a bit tricky for him yet though.
But he has started saying lots more names and using them lots.for grandma he says "ma" or mama which is close to what dd could say anyway and when we pull up at her house he starts yelling it excitedly.likewise with nanna he says nan and yells it the same.he has done more double words sentences that I should have written down cos yesterday he said a great one.but he says more bottle a lot now,who's that,who's this,what's that.he says "what?" Whenever you say something he didnt hear and then usually answers after wev repeated with yeah or oh(as in oh I get it).and in speech therapy his therapist is amazed at how quickly he's coming along especially developmentally.in the last session he said swimming and running,more bubbles,got it and lots of others,and had improved so much with his ability to complete an activity she said he is now at a normal developmental stage.as he managed to do 15 mins of completing activities at 5 mins each until she put them away before he started wanting to do thing his way again or spending less time at each one.im really hoping now he is doing so much conversational babble and now trying to parrot words that words will just start flying out of his mouth.he is 2 1/2 in may so hes got 1.5 months to prove everyone else right that by 2.5 hel be talking!
His little mate the same age at school that I think I have mentioned before was there at his easter hat parade and as we were leaving koby yelled BYE!to him and the little friend replied with "see you later koby".i was a bit flabbergasted really,even his pronounciation sounds like a 4-5 year old.i thought he was going to say see you later mate!


----------



## AP

Omg it's lovely to have some progress isn't it?!

We've had Alex signing even more and now tries to say car. She was diagnosed with autism yesterday so it's a little more clearer now.


----------



## Ohmy4

Glad I found this thread. My son just turned 2 and doesnt talk. He babbles and screaches but no formal words. We just got the referal today for a speech eval and he is scheduled for a hearing test. Although I know he hears just fine. He was a failure to thrive baby...thinking he is just delayed.


----------



## daddiesgift

Do any of you ladies use the signing time/baby signing time videos? My son loves it! He's been signing everyday ever since we started using them. Idk what's cuter seeing him sign or hearing him say a word. I guess signing since its out of the norm of what's he's use to doing. 

I've started to notice he says lots of half words.. Example Water=wa


----------



## MikaylasMummy

AtomicPink said:


> Omg it's lovely to have some progress isn't it?!
> 
> We've had Alex signing even more and now tries to say car. She was diagnosed with autism yesterday so it's a little more clearer now.

:hugs: At least now you know the cause of her delay and hopefully will receive more help.thats great that her communication is increasing!


----------



## MikaylasMummy

Ohmy4 said:


> Glad I found this thread. My son just turned 2 and doesnt talk. He babbles and screaches but no formal words. We just got the referal today for a speech eval and he is scheduled for a hearing test. Although I know he hears just fine. He was a failure to thrive baby...thinking he is just delayed.

Koby was born at 36+5 and lost a lot of weight although still within acceptable limits and stayed small for quite a while.he has also always been a bit delayed so i think their very start in life can have an impact as well.i hope u find slt helps your boy as much as it has mine.x


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## MikaylasMummy

Daddies gift that's exactly koby.he doesn't complete words,grandma is ma,nanna is nan,he can say daddy perfectly clearly but only says mum.most of his words are halved


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## AP

Ohmy4 said:


> Glad I found this thread. My son just turned 2 and doesnt talk. He babbles and screaches but no formal words. We just got the referal today for a speech eval and he is scheduled for a hearing test. Although I know he hears just fine. He was a failure to thrive baby...thinking he is just delayed.

Hey Hun - babbling is a great sign! Our youngest is 2 and she's the same, but the babbling is reassuring, my oldest didn't have that at this stage, so like you, I think my youngest is just taking her time! She can only say two words (cat and "gaga" (lady gaga ) ) lol


----------



## AP

daddiesgift said:


> Do any of you ladies use the signing time/baby signing time videos? My son loves it! He's been signing everyday ever since we started using them. Idk what's cuter seeing him sign or hearing him say a word. I guess signing since its out of the norm of what's he's use to doing.
> 
> I've started to notice he says lots of half words.. Example Water=wa

When we started using signing, it just blew doors open for us. It's magic!


----------



## sun

AtomicPink said:


> Ohmy4 said:
> 
> 
> Glad I found this thread. My son just turned 2 and doesnt talk. He babbles and screaches but no formal words. We just got the referal today for a speech eval and he is scheduled for a hearing test. Although I know he hears just fine. He was a failure to thrive baby...thinking he is just delayed.
> 
> Hey Hun - babbling is a great sign! Our youngest is 2 and she's the same, but the babbling is reassuring, my oldest didn't have that at this stage, so like you, I think my youngest is just taking her time! She can only say two words (cat and "gaga" (lady gaga ) ) lolClick to expand...

Totally agree about the babbling - it's a great sign. My son has a speech delay (he's 3.5now) and never babbled, whereas my daughter does all the time. She also doesn't talk at all yet (only 17mo), but the difference in their verbalizing and communicating at the same age is like night and day.


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## RachA

Sounds like there is some good progress going on here :)

I wrote down a list of words/signs that Esther uses regularly and in context and we have about 33 - pretty good considering that about 4 months ago she had about 5 words and 5 signs :) Still such a long way to go though but i am pleased with her progress. She had her review book come back from playschool yesterday and in it we are given her next lot of goals for the summer term. The one thing from it that i really want to work on is jumping - her speech is coming on well but she won't jump off things lol.


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## Mama1985

YAY I'm not alone! lol

My youngest is 2 and he has just started babbling a lot! He can say some words like Daddy, Grandad (dandad) Nanny and various others (not clearly though) so I was getting a little worried, *sigh* I'll just have to be patient and keep talking to him!

Thanks everyone!


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## vhal_x

Hey, just noticed this thread and thought I'd say Hi! :)

I'm Vanessa, my son turned 2 in November and he still doesn't really talk. He has a few words, but compared to my friend's son, who is a month younger than my son, who can speak in full sentences, I keep feeling worried that he'll never talk :rofl:

He says the following words correctly, but never says them in sentences:

Hi
Bye bye
Ball
Door
Daddy
Mama
Bath
Juice
Shoes
Socks
Feet

and he says "bo" (pronounced bow, like a hair bow) for Bottle and "Baw-baw" for Spongebob 

He has a few other words that randomly appear here and there, but I feel like he's never going to progress as he's been like this since before his birthday xx


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## RachA

Hello both of you.

Hopefully your los will pick up the idea soon. Neither are doing too badly. It is hard when other children seem to be saying a lot more that your lo. I had a friend around with her girl on Monday and she is 2 years 3 months (almost a year younger than Esther) and she is talking way more than Esther is. 6 months or so ago it would of really bothered me that a child much younger than Esther was saying much more than her. Now i've just accepted that she isn't your average child lol.


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## MikaylasMummy

vhal_x said:


> Hey, just noticed this thread and thought I'd say Hi! :)
> 
> I'm Vanessa, my son turned 2 in November and he still doesn't really talk. He has a few words, but compared to my friend's son, who is a month younger than my son, who can speak in full sentences, I keep feeling worried that he'll never talk :rofl:
> 
> He says the following words correctly, but never says them in sentences:
> 
> Hi
> Bye bye
> Ball
> Door
> Daddy
> Mama
> Bath
> Juice
> Shoes
> Socks
> Feet
> 
> and he says "bo" (pronounced bow, like a hair bow) for Bottle and "Baw-baw" for Spongebob
> 
> He has a few other words that randomly appear here and there, but I feel like he's never going to progress as he's been like this since before his birthday xx

My lo was 2 in November as well.he doesn't have as many clear words as that though.but he says bottle similar,it has progressed to bo'ole,so like bottle with a cockney accent.lol.the only other really clear word he says is daddy.has he been referred to speech therapy at all?it has been fantastic for ds


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## angelae36

Hello everyone, I hope things are continuing to improve for you all.
We're off to see the hospital speech therapist today.

I'm actually quite nervous now as the last one who assessed Abbie decided after the 2 sessions that she was autistic and she needs further investigation. No suggestions on how we can help improve her speech at all
This was after talking to me and asking questions like "What is her favourite toy" and then putting in her report "stickers are her current obsession".

My concern is that she is labelled incorrectly. So fingers crossed this new therapist has a little more time to spend getting to know Abbie and will actually try and help rather than label her.

EDIT: The SLT was lovely, really seemed to know what she was talking about!
My first step is to stop doing everything for Abbie and anticipating her every need!
Next step is a home visit to see her natural comfortable surroundings, then we work on a plan!
Feeling really positive!


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## nicole_

my LO is two in three weeks and we dont have much out of him at all. he can say a selection of things but he picks and choses when he wants to say things and would rather point at stuff when he wants something. 
Im pretty worried how behind he seems, but this thread is pretty reassuring :)
just wondering at what point he would be referred to a speech specialist?
he's registered at the doctors near his dads 200 miles from me and i'd really like to be the one to take him to things like that :shrug:


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## moggymay

I am after a little advice please...my son has been referred by SLT for some one on one sessions, unfortunately they will not start until June (a whole 16 months after we raised the speech issue with the HV) 

In the meantime we have been invited to a "Meet and Play" group which is run by the local SLT and Portage service....the sessions are once a fortnight for 90 minutes and will involve up to 8 children (plus a parent) my dilemma is that the session we have been invited to clashes with the nursery session he does - we had waited so long for SLT we requested a second nursery session to try and boost his skill there. 

What would you recommend we do? Im confused because if we dont go to the new group will he miss out.....if we do go will he be better aided than by the SENCO at nursery....we would continue with the nursery session the fortnight the group isnt on and would have to wear the cost of the session if he doesnt attend because he is at the other group...I have no experience of these sessions so I really dont know what to do for the best? 

Can anyone give me a clue what these sessions entail? The first session will be next monday and I cannot speak to nursery until Monday as they are a termtime nursery within a pre-school on site at the local primary school. Thanks ladies :flower:


----------



## angelae36

nicole_ said:


> my LO is two in three weeks and we dont have much out of him at all. he can say a selection of things but he picks and choses when he wants to say things and would rather point at stuff when he wants something.
> Im pretty worried how behind he seems, but this thread is pretty reassuring :)
> just wondering at what point he would be referred to a speech specialist?
> he's registered at the doctors near his dads 200 miles from me and i'd really like to be the one to take him to things like that :shrug:

Your little one should have a 2ish year check-up.
If you are still worried at this point mention it - although you should be asked about his speech at his appointment anyway.

I would also consider swapping to a Dr. closer to where I live as it will make any necessary appointments easier, but that's just me.


----------



## angelae36

moggymay said:


> I am after a little advice please...my son has been referred by SLT for some one on one sessions, unfortunately they will not start until June (a whole 16 months after we raised the speech issue with the HV)
> 
> In the meantime we have been invited to a "Meet and Play" group which is run by the local SLT and Portage service....the sessions are once a fortnight for 90 minutes and will involve up to 8 children (plus a parent) my dilemma is that the session we have been invited to clashes with the nursery session he does - we had waited so long for SLT we requested a second nursery session to try and boost his skill there.
> 
> What would you recommend we do? Im confused because if we dont go to the new group will he miss out.....if we do go will he be better aided than by the SENCO at nursery....we would continue with the nursery session the fortnight the group isnt on and would have to wear the cost of the session if he doesnt attend because he is at the other group...I have no experience of these sessions so I really dont know what to do for the best?
> 
> Can anyone give me a clue what these sessions entail? The first session will be next monday and I cannot speak to nursery until Monday as they are a termtime nursery within a pre-school on site at the local primary school. Thanks ladies :flower:


Humm this is a tough one. I have never been to one of these so can't help you with what to expect.
It sounds like it is set up by the very experts who can help your child best though. I wish we'd been offered it!

So to answer part of your question, I would take the play sessions and try and swap the nursery days around. I'd hope nursery would be accommodating given the circumstances.


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## MikaylasMummy

Hi ladies.been a while since this thread was used but I had a question only you ladies could help with.those of you with older Los did you find you had to postpone potty training until language improved?ds is 2.5 almost and dd was fully trained at 2 and I'm thinking ds needs to start but with his language being behind I'm not sure it's going to work.should I just try any way and I might be surprised by him or should I hold off til 3?


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## Peanut78

MikaylasMummy said:


> Hi ladies.been a while since this thread was used but I had a question only you ladies could help with.those of you with older Los did you find you had to postpone potty training until language improved?ds is 2.5 almost and dd was fully trained at 2 and I'm thinking ds needs to start but with his language being behind I'm not sure it's going to work.should I just try any way and I might be surprised by him or should I hold off til 3?

Hi hun,

My eldest son is pretty much non-verbal and we potty trained him. We taught him other ways to indicate he needed to go to the toilet. He still has the occasional accident, usually if he is in a large group or with unfamiliar people - because in those instances I think he can find it difficult to get his message across :shrug:

See how you go and if doesn't seem to be taking to it maybe give it a miss for a month or two.


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## RachA

I don't think that they need to be able to talk in order to communicate what they want. I haven't trained Esther yet but that isn't because of her lack of talking. 

You can teach Koby a different way of letting you know he needs to go. I would give it a try, it can't hurt.






On a more personal note - Esther had her 6 month review yesterday. She is still really behind but not as much as she was :) At her last assessment she was 18months behind her actual age. She is now somewhere between 12 and 18 months behind so she isn't dropping further behind and is actually picking up very slightly. They anticipate that by the time she starts school in Sept 14 she will only be 12 months behind :)

It's good news but still frustrating that she still doesn't actually have much in the way of words.


----------



## sun

MikaylasMummy said:


> Hi ladies.been a while since this thread was used but I had a question only you ladies could help with.those of you with older Los did you find you had to postpone potty training until language improved?ds is 2.5 almost and dd was fully trained at 2 and I'm thinking ds needs to start but with his language being behind I'm not sure it's going to work.should I just try any way and I might be surprised by him or should I hold off til 3?

I started potty training my son at 2yrs 7mo because he couldn't be in diapers when he started preschool. We're a bit unlucky in that he has a speech delay but is also the youngest in his class (age cutoff date here is Dec). He started preschool at 2yrs9mo with kids who were over 3.5, so we were forced into it a bit early. I wasn't sure what would happen when we started, but in the end he was using the toilet in time! I would try it out and see - if things don't seem to be working, then you can always stop and try again in a month or 2. Ideally I would have waited with my son, since he didn't seem to understand it at all initially - but once he got a taste of diaper-free life then he would have a complete meltdown if we tried to put a diaper on him. So that pushed us to keep going with it. When we started he didn't have any words for poo/pee/etc x


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## aliss

We are struggling with potty training, I cannot get him to say potty or pee pee or anything (he'll be 3 in a few weeks), I'm sure it would be easier without a significant speech delay.

We are falling more and more behind... :( He is improving, but his delay is becoming very obvious now at this age.


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## AP

No way to potty training here so far

Today Tori is being referred to speech therapy. I'm a bit upset, cause I always believed being the strong term baby it wouldn't come to this. Now two kids in speech therapy :(


----------



## aliss

Sorry AP, that must be hard :(


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## RachA

AtomicPink said:


> No way to potty training here so far
> 
> Today Tori is being referred to speech therapy. I'm a bit upset, cause I always believed being the strong term baby it wouldn't come to this. Now two kids in speech therapy :(

:hugs:


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## RachA

Aliss-potty training isn't something I'd worry about being behind in. My son wasn't properly trained until he'd already started school (so he was over 4). He was out of nappies but had a lot of accidents frequently. He was very advanced in everything else so potty training isn't really something that shows how behind they are. 
I've tried Esther twice since she turned 3 just to see if anything would happen, it didn't so she's back in nappies. She's got do many other things going on in her life that I just don't want to add another pressure.


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## MikaylasMummy

Thanks ladies its so good to have so many of you for support and advice.i think ill go out and buy some exciting toy story undies and start trying from Saturday (daycare day Friday so no point when I can't follow through)he follows us and dd to the toilet and watches and once or twice has wanted to sit on the potty but as soon as he gets on he freaks out I think cos his willy touches the front of it.hes funny about being naked without a nappy so I think undies will get him used to feeling a bit more free.
I think I may be hindering him a bit by not giving him enough credit with understanding and maybe delaying his development a bit.i assume cos he can't speak simple things he won't understand more complex things like counting and colours.but I'm starting to introduce them cos i feel he may understand.
I'm sorry AP =(


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## PepsiChic

Barry is half potty trained? he now pees in it fine, we just kept saying pee pee over and over nd he picked it up. pooping took a while, he kept pooping on the floor....now he'll poop in the poty turn around and grab it yuck. Hes had a bath eveyr day this week because of it!

Ive noticed hes getting frustrated when he doesnt know the word to something or sturggles to say it. He wanted a snack and normally he says "nack" but today he seemed tohave forgotten that altogehter and got reall upset pointing at the cabinet whining and making noises, no matter how much i tried to encourage himt o say it he just got more upset. 

No idea how he goes from saying a word to forgetting it the next day.

AP sorry hunny *hugs*


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## Peanut78

Big hugs AP :hugs:

How old is Tori now? My youngest is 22 months and although he speaks and has words for the most part it's still not very clear. I do think he is a bit behind, however, I know he doesn't have the same issues as his older brother who at nearly 4 only has a few words and has a diagnosed neurological condition, which affects all areas of his fine and gross motor skills.

At which age did you suspect there was an issue with Tori?


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## MikaylasMummy

Arghh I am starting to really see how lazy koby is and how his laziness and stubbornness is probably soley responsible for his lack of speech!lately he has just been standing in front of a toy and whining or yelling and pointing for me to pick it up for him when he's more than capable!its like he just wants to make sure ill still do things for him!!


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## AP

Peanut78 said:


> Big hugs AP :hugs:
> 
> How old is Tori now? My youngest is 22 months and although he speaks and has words for the most part it's still not very clear. I do think he is a bit behind, however, I know he doesn't have the same issues as his older brother who at nearly 4 only has a few words and has a diagnosed neurological condition, which affects all areas of his fine and gross motor skills.
> 
> At which age did you suspect there was an issue with Tori?

It was when she was approaching 2, thing is, i dont even know whats normal, whats expected, because we had Alex first and thats our "normal" ykwim

Tori and Alex are different though, and Tori learns quickly, i know that. but with her sister not talking and using signing, she obviously reckons thats how you do things :dohh:


----------



## lau86

Hi everyone. Hope you don't mind me butting in but I'm hoping you might be able to help me. I know my LO isn't two yet, he's 19 months but he still says pretty much nothing. He says mama dada and hiya and that's about it. He makes babbling sounds and sings to himself (I know he's singing twinkle twinkle). He understands alot of what I say, if I say lie down, get your teddy, get your shoes, go to your chair etc he will do it. So why isn't he speaking? I saw my gp and she said its fine it may be just family traits and its not linked to intelligence but it makes me feel uncomfertable when I see my friends LO speaking... Am I right to be worried or am I not being patient enough?


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## 24/7

My son is two on Monday and has a few words buy nothing significant or in any way useful and has made no real progress since he started saying those words months and months ago. He has been referred for speech therapy but the wait as always is very long. We have been teaching him to sign and he has picked it up quickly, and in all other areas his development is spot on, aside possibly from socially but that comes from not talking! 

I don't think we would be able to potty train yet, although I would like to give it a try...

AP- :hugs: xx


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## AP

I have tried to think of ways to potty train. She loves her potty, dont get me wrong! :haha: I once sat with her one night playing the ipad in the hope something happened and she might "click" (thats just her character sometimes!) but nothing happened :dohh: The toilet sings if she pees.... I dunno if that might make her run away mid pee though!


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## RachA

lau86 said:


> Hi everyone. Hope you don't mind me butting in but I'm hoping you might be able to help me. I know my LO isn't two yet, he's 19 months but he still says pretty much nothing. He says mama dada and hiya and that's about it. He makes babbling sounds and sings to himself (I know he's singing twinkle twinkle). He understands alot of what I say, if I say lie down, get your teddy, get your shoes, go to your chair etc he will do it. So why isn't he speaking? I saw my gp and she said its fine it may be just family traits and its not linked to intelligence but it makes me feel uncomfertable when I see my friends LO speaking... Am I right to be worried or am I not being patient enough?

If his understanding is good then I wouldn't be worried. My son didn't have many words at your Los age but by two was talking properly. 
Unless you feel that there are other problems I wouldn't be worrying until your lo is 2 or older.


----------



## Peanut78

AtomicPink said:


> Peanut78 said:
> 
> 
> Big hugs AP :hugs:
> 
> How old is Tori now? My youngest is 22 months and although he speaks and has words for the most part it's still not very clear. I do think he is a bit behind, however, I know he doesn't have the same issues as his older brother who at nearly 4 only has a few words and has a diagnosed neurological condition, which affects all areas of his fine and gross motor skills.
> 
> At which age did you suspect there was an issue with Tori?
> 
> It was when she was approaching 2, thing is, i dont even know whats normal, whats expected, because we had Alex first and thats our "normal" ykwim
> 
> Tori and Alex are different though, and Tori learns quickly, i know that. but with her sister not talking and using signing, she obviously reckons thats how you do things :dohh:Click to expand...

Me too!!! I don't have a "normal" comparative framework, so don't know what I should be expecting :dohh: We seem to have similar situations, my youngest learns very quickly and outside the speech I would say he is probably maybe even advanced in certain areas, and "normal range" in others. The fact that my oldest doesn't speak and uses sign means the youngest often uses sign as well (which he has learned from his brother not me). But then rather than say the full word he will say "mo, mo" and sign "more"... :wacko:

Very hard I know, but try not to worry about Tori also having SLT, I think for kids who are borderline in that area it may actually give them more of a springboard than their peers as the one-on-one with any child development specialist often does :thumbup: 

Thanks for your reply :hugs:


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## fluffyblue

My boys vocabulary is massive pronunciation is not very good, he is slowly putting words together like "get down" go away mummys car etc - im not worried but nursery seem to push speech therapy on me!

Ive raised two other kids Ollie is my third I really shouldnt be worried should I - hes 2 and 4 months


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## sun

AtomicPink said:


> No way to potty training here so far
> 
> Today Tori is being referred to speech therapy. I'm a bit upset, cause I always believed being the strong term baby it wouldn't come to this. Now two kids in speech therapy :(

:hugs::hugs::hugs:

I just started thinking about this possibility too. My daughter is only 18mo so I feel like she has loads of time, but people are already starting to ask why she doesn't say anything - sigh! When she was a baby OH and I would talk about how it's going to be so strange to have her walk and talk so early compared to my son lol. But here she is without any words and not really any word-like babbling either, while all her friends are at least saying "mama". But on the other hand, she is miles different from the way my son was - she communicates in other ways, is very social and definitely makes her needs known. I'm not actually concerned at this young, just frustrated to start hearing those same "she isn't talking yet?" comments again. 

Do your two communicate with each other lots without talking? Mine seem to do this, so I think it is having an impact on her speech. It's affecting his too, as he will make noises/screech like her when he wants something, instead of words he used to say :dohh:


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## lauram_92

My LO seems a bit behind in talking :shrug: he isn't very clear either, for example bin lorry he will say 'bee lawlaw' and most people wouldn't understand.. How much should he be saying and how clear should he be?


----------



## fluffyblue

lauram_92 said:


> My LO seems a bit behind in talking :shrug: he isn't very clear either, for example bin lorry he will say 'bee lawlaw' and most people wouldn't understand.. How much should he be saying and how clear should he be?

Hi my little mans the same, I know what he says but others wouldn't. 

Im not worried just wish others would back off and stop trying to make me worry lol xx


----------



## lauram_92

fluffyblue said:


> lauram_92 said:
> 
> 
> My LO seems a bit behind in talking :shrug: he isn't very clear either, for example bin lorry he will say 'bee lawlaw' and most people wouldn't understand.. How much should he be saying and how clear should he be?
> 
> Hi my little mans the same, I know what he says but others wouldn't.
> 
> Im not worried just wish others would back off and stop trying to make me worry lol xxClick to expand...

I don't worry, until I see kids the same age doing full sentences, but then most of them spend all their time with other kids slightly older and learn through them.

An example of his words that sound wrong
"Daddy" - thank you
"Nana" - Granda
"Hi-d" - hi
"Bye-d" - bye

He also uses noises rather than saying words, cars are brmm, sheep are baa (apart from lambs that are lambs lol), cats are meow..

But today he was in the biscuit tin which had skittles in it, and he opened it and said "ooh, deedees in eyer" meaning sweeties in there, and it was quite clear :wacko:


----------



## Meredith2010

Hey everyone, it's been a little while since I've posted in here. DS turned 2 this week and his speech has really come on in recent weeks - if you ask him what something is then he'll try to say the word more often than not which is MASSIVE progress.

However, he's still way behind the "normal" 2 year old even though to me it seems like he has really improved. He's never put 2 words together, and maybe has 20 ish words now:

Car
Boat
Shark (ark)
Crab (rab)
Helicopter (he-copt)
Bounce
Drink (dink)
Cat
Dog
Pig
Bam (Fireman Sam)
Boots
Daddy
Cake
Gone

He rarely pronounces the first part of the word - so cat is "at", dog is "og" etc etc. In fact the only words he pronounces properly are cake and gone I think!

My question is we have a doctors appointment scheduled for Monday, to discuss his speech with the aim of getting referred for speech therapy (the HV suggested this). The appointed was booked weeks ago, before his speech progressed. I kind of feel like he doesn't need the appointment now, as he has come on so much over the last few weeks but would it be silly of me to cancel? I suppose he is still really behind, but to me it seems amazing that he's actually saying several words on a daily basis now.

What would you do? I don't really know what the average 2 year old should be saying really, so I'm not even sure how behind he is!


----------



## Peanut78

Meredith2010 said:


> Hey everyone, it's been a little while since I've posted in here. DS turned 2 this week and his speech has really come on in recent weeks - if you ask him what something is then he'll try to say the word more often than not which is MASSIVE progress.
> 
> However, he's still way behind the "normal" 2 year old even though to me it seems like he has really improved. He's never put 2 words together, and maybe has 20 ish words now:
> 
> Car
> Boat
> Shark (ark)
> Crab (rab)
> Helicopter (he-copt)
> Bounce
> Drink (dink)
> Cat
> Dog
> Pig
> Bam (Fireman Sam)
> Boots
> Daddy
> Cake
> Gone
> 
> He rarely pronounces the first part of the word - so cat is "at", dog is "og" etc etc. In fact the only words he pronounces properly are cake and gone I think!
> 
> My question is we have a doctors appointment scheduled for Monday, to discuss his speech with the aim of getting referred for speech therapy (the HV suggested this). The appointed was booked weeks ago, before his speech progressed. I kind of feel like he doesn't need the appointment now, as he has come on so much over the last few weeks but would it be silly of me to cancel? I suppose he is still really behind, but to me it seems amazing that he's actually saying several words on a daily basis now.
> 
> What would you do? I don't really know what the average 2 year old should be saying really, so I'm not even sure how behind he is!

Great that your son has come on so well! :thumbup:

I would keep the appointment. You may end up seeing the SLT a few times and she/ he can give you some tools to keep working with your son. It can't hurt :shrug:


----------



## RachA

Yeah - I would keep the appointment. It certainly won't hurt and they may be able to give you pointers to help encourage him further. 
Glad he's improved a lot :)


----------



## VieraSky

Rowan's been improving as well. He's started saying why, what, and my personal favorite piggy piggy piggy


----------



## Babeonthego

Hi everyone. Well my little boy is 2 and a half and doesn't say one single word. He follows instructions very well but just doesn't seem interested in talking at all. Actually sitting here in tears today as I feel I've failed him as a parent. We are currently waiting on a referral for speech therapy which I don't know how long it's going to take. I'm just so worried there's something seriously wrong. He's such a happy little boy and very obedient for a toddler. Loves physical activity and playing with his toyS. Just no interest whatsoever in talking


----------



## sequeena

Am I ok to join in here? T is just under 3 months away from 2. We have mum (mumumumumum) and a tentative hiya. He's developmentally the age of a 1 year old and doesn't understand simple instructions. He has lots of specialists now, lots of tests etc so I hope it encourages him more :)


----------



## RachA

Babeonthego said:


> Hi everyone. Well my little boy is 2 and a half and doesn't say one single word. He follows instructions very well but just doesn't seem interested in talking at all. Actually sitting here in tears today as I feel I've failed him as a parent. We are currently waiting on a referral for speech therapy which I don't know how long it's going to take. I'm just so worried there's something seriously wrong. He's such a happy little boy and very obedient for a toddler. Loves physical activity and playing with his toyS. Just no interest whatsoever in talking

I know it's easy to say but don't beat yourself up. It's nothing you've done as a parent. 
The fact that he understands things is really good :)
Hopefully the speech therapy will come through really soon. Don't expect a change overnight. It's possible that they will need to teach him to listen properly before they can start on words. 
Esther's been under speech therapy for 12 months now and the majority of the sessions have been focused on listening skills and concentration. She does has a number of words but doesn't really use them. 

I would try and enjoy your happy boy and not stress too much about the lack of words. Some children honestly aren't bothered by using words but it does eventually come. Because of Esther's speech issues I've come across so many people who didn't start talking til they were 4 and there is nothing wrong with them, they just didn't want to talk.


----------



## RachA

sequeena said:


> Am I ok to join in here? T is just under 3 months away from 2. We have mum (mumumumumum) and a tentative hiya. He's developmentally the age of a 1 year old and doesn't understand simple instructions. He has lots of specialists now, lots of tests etc so I hope it encourages him more :)

Hiya and welcome to this thread :)

You must be very busy with sessions etc that you go to with you lo. Sometimes it feels like they don't seem to be getting much from the sessions but they are.


----------



## Babeonthego

Thanks Rach. I've managed to get him into nursery which I'm sure will have a good impact on him. U have made me feel better so thanks for taking the time to reply x


----------



## lauram_92

Does anyone know how much they should be saying at 2? LO has his 2 and a half year check up on the 5th and I doubt the HV would really notice if he was behind :shrug: for his 1 year check she just looked at him from across the room and said he was fine.


----------



## RachA

Babeonthego said:


> Thanks Rach. I've managed to get him into nursery which I'm sure will have a good impact on him. U have made me feel better so thanks for taking the time to reply x

That's ok. 
That should help him-it didn't have a huge impact on Esther but it did really help with getting help for her iro setting meetings up and pushing the speech therapy etc.


----------



## sequeena

Thanks rach :) yeah trying to get used to all the appointments, remember all the names and I've not even met his paediatrician yet. I've still got to ring his plastic surgeon :dohh: it feels like its never ending. 

Lauren I found this link online and I'm shocked. They apparently can say fewer than fifty words (how much fewer?!) and they start forming 2 to 4 word sentences. What?? Seriously is that the norm? If so it feels like Thomas will never get to that stage!

https://www.babycenter.com/0_developmental-milestone-talking_6573.bc


----------



## RachA

It depends on where you look for the amount of words. From talking to people who work with children the average us 50 words at 2. But that means that even as little as 20 isn't a bad amount. 
Also the 2-3 word sentences can be things like 'see cat' 'more drink' etc. If they have 50 words they are more likely to put 2 of them together.


----------



## sun

sequeena said:


> Thanks rach :) yeah trying to get used to all the appointments, remember all the names and I've not even met his paediatrician yet. I've still got to ring his plastic surgeon :dohh: it feels like its never ending.
> 
> Lauren I found this link online and I'm shocked. They apparently can say fewer than fifty words (how much fewer?!) and they start forming 2 to 4 word sentences. What?? Seriously is that the norm? If so it feels like Thomas will never get to that stage!
> 
> https://www.babycenter.com/0_developmental-milestone-talking_6573.bc

I felt like this with my son who didn't have any words at around 2, still not too many at 2.5, more at 3, and a good amount now at 3.5. I would always hear that everyone's kids had a "word explosion" then wouldn't stop talking - but my guy is just slow and steady. Same with walking - I heard if they walked late then they would get it right away and be running in a week. My son was over 2 before he wasn't falling all the time LOL. It might not be as quick as with the other kiddos, but they do get there!


----------



## xprincessx

Update on Callum

He is now 2 years 7 months but still has absolutely no words whatsoever. went through 4 sessions of speech therapy and responded really well to the activities that they decided not to do anything more with him. He is starting pre-school is September but next month (starting june 5th) he is going to the "opportunity group" at his pre-school. This is a special needs/developmental delay group for children going to the pre-school on a set time just for them so he will be going Wednesday and Friday mornings 9:30-12:00 which is great news!!

We did have a paediatric check and he is at a 12-15 month age level for speech but the rest of his development is great, she said it was extremely unlikely that he had autism or similar but said she will invite him back just after he turns 3 years old (October) and if there is no progress she will conduct blood tests to check for any possible conditions.

Callum has (just this past week) started saying "brrmm" to indicate he wants to watch the film Cars and he opens his mouth and whispers a "rarh" for shrek which is fantastic but he will not say anything else in any other context yet.

Hoping the opportunity group will help x


----------



## MikaylasMummy

Great to hear callum is going into a special group at kindy.being in a group might help him build his confidence and make him participate more.
Koby still hasn't had his "speech explosion" but he is starting to really really try and use words for absoloutley everything even if they all sound the same.he is getting frustrated from trying and not being understood now but I really see this as a good sign as he is trying so hard he will get there quicker.this week he has really picked up on use of some of the commands he's doing in speech.especially "I want ....." Most of the time the third word isn't intelligible (unless its bottle) but he still says the three word sequence in the right context.and he says things like "more bottle/food" and open,finished and on a lot more.im hoping his sounds will improve and his words will start to form better soon.so far we have lots of b,d and w sounds,he also does s well and does shh as well.id really like to hear some t's and p's said so I'm working on him making the sound by doing fun sounds he will copy that have those in them.he is also trying to talk along with me and dd while I'm teaching her phonics


----------



## RachA

xprincessx said:


> Update on Callum
> 
> He is now 2 years 7 months but still has absolutely no words whatsoever. went through 4 sessions of speech therapy and responded really well to the activities that they decided not to do anything more with him. He is starting pre-school is September but next month (starting june 5th) he is going to the "opportunity group" at his pre-school. This is a special needs/developmental delay group for children going to the pre-school on a set time just for them so he will be going Wednesday and Friday mornings 9:30-12:00 which is great news!!
> 
> We did have a paediatric check and he is at a 12-15 month age level for speech but the rest of his development is great, she said it was extremely unlikely that he had autism or similar but said she will invite him back just after he turns 3 years old (October) and if there is no progress she will conduct blood tests to check for any possible conditions.
> 
> Callum has (just this past week) started saying "brrmm" to indicate he wants to watch the film Cars and he opens his mouth and whispers a "rarh" for shrek which is fantastic but he will not say anything else in any other context yet.
> 
> Hoping the opportunity group will help x


Glad Callum's got the chance of going to this special group. 

If you aren't happy with being signed off from the speech therapist then I would talk to your HV. Esther has been seeing one on and off for 12 months now. She responds really well to what they do but they aren't wanting to sign her off until she starts talking.


----------



## KellyC75

Update on my Daughter: They think she hasnt fully developed the use of her tounge (not tounge tie) They want me to get her to 'excercise' it in various ways & keep practicing sounds

They think this could explain why she sometimes gags on her food (she has done this since she was young)

She still only really says 'b' words & mum 

is this something anyone here has heard of before? :shrug:


----------



## AP

Devestated, the Makaton tutor let us down big time. DH had done a beginners course and I was due to do the beginners course in June. Because DH had the resources from the first course, she gave me a discount on the understanding I'd use them at my course. 

Last week work suggested they would pay for it if I agreed to use it if the orgnaisation needed me too. 

I paid the tutor and had told her how excited I was and that I needed a reciept for work.

The tutor *flipped.* She sent me an email venting her anger at me that apparantly, my work were taking advantage of the reduced rate I was given.

Had she took a breath and explained her issue politely, I could have got work to pay the full price, they didnt even know how much it was :shrug: :dohh: 

I told her I was upset, as she is one of the only Makaton tutors around us and I no longer feel welcome at her course, I wanted a refund. She did refund me, but not before launching another email grumbling about her income from the courses (wtf has that got to do with me?) and she added "and you think YOU are upset?" I can't believe the charity allows her to carry their name. :nope:

So sad to see that it all boiled down to money and no thought towards the priceless use of Makaton with a SN child. :cry:

Still reeling and gutted. I can get on another course, but not til next year :(


----------



## hayz_baby

Hi I commented a bit further back about my son and my speech worries with him. He turned 2 on sat (I originally posted when he wa between 18-20 months..ish) his speech is still delayed. He says hiya and bye (like e originally was) but again not improvement on pronunciation (not that I'm expecting perfection!) it's like iya iya and bahh bahh eee he has started to say dad but it is more daa daa. When he talks it can sound forced. When he said his first word he originally said car but refuses to say that anymore. Instead he mimics the meow.. Kinda goes maooo.

I'm going to try and get hold of the HV soon and try to get their opinion. Our original game plan was to wait till he is 2 now that it is here without much improvement I feel like we should take it a step further. Do you think that is the right course of action? Maybe try a different route. We haven't had any notification of his 2 ur check up and I have heard in some areas tht may not happen till they are 2 1/2 and I would not like to wait tht long plus then wait on a waiting list for speech therapy if that is recommended.

What would you lovely ladies suggest? Thanks!!


----------



## sun

AtomicPink said:


> Devestated, the Makaton tutor let us down big time. DH had done a beginners course and I was due to do the beginners course in June. Because DH had the resources from the first course, she gave me a discount on the understanding I'd use them at my course.
> 
> Last week work suggested they would pay for it if I agreed to use it if the orgnaisation needed me too.
> 
> I paid the tutor and had told her how excited I was and that I needed a reciept for work.
> 
> The tutor *flipped.* She sent me an email venting her anger at me that apparantly, my work were taking advantage of the reduced rate I was given.
> 
> Had she took a breath and explained her issue politely, I could have got work to pay the full price, they didnt even know how much it was :shrug: :dohh:
> 
> I told her I was upset, as she is one of the only Makaton tutors around us and I no longer feel welcome at her course, I wanted a refund. She did refund me, but not before launching another email grumbling about her income from the courses (wtf has that got to do with me?) and she added "and you think YOU are upset?" I can't believe the charity allows her to carry their name. :nope:
> 
> So sad to see that it all boiled down to money and no thought towards the priceless use of Makaton with a SN child. :cry:
> 
> Still reeling and gutted. I can get on another course, but not til next year :(

OMG I'm so sorry that you had to deal with this! :nope: 
It sounds like she's bitter about her own situation and taking it out on you?? I don't see any reason she would possibly be angry unless she's not planning on declaring the income? But that's not your problem. It seems totally reasonable that she would give you a discount since you already own the material. How far would you have to travel to fin another tutor? That is so so crappy AP - tons of hugs :hugs:

I do think her behaviour shows how she approaches her job though - so it might be a good thing for you to find someone else if you can. Terrible that you have so few choices and it is so difficult when you are only trying so hard to do the best for Alex :hugs:


----------



## hayz_baby

hayz_baby said:


> Hope u don't mind me talking about my lo as he is only 18 months and I understand a lot can happen in those 6 months but I have recognised a few things that you ladies have mentioned and I wanna ask if you lo did anything my lo has/does do. I am glad I found this thread though.
> Lo has always been a mover.. He was an army crawler from 4 months old and had been trying to do that since he was 1 month old. He was standing by just shy of 6 months old. His walking took a little bit longer due to a problem with his feet he was born with. I always think that he thinks differently and that he isn't "book smart" but is a doer and that is his thought process. I always remember at about 4/5 months he saw his toy roll under the sofa and he lied down and stretched to get it just like an adult would. He figured that out by himself. Speech is of course is another thing I don't really worry about it but I know it's there at the back of my mind. His first word was cat pronounced taaaat. We were so proud but not to long after he stopped saying it. He would only ever say it to the cat ( and would point at him too he loves the cat!) he would never say it at any other time but as time went on he wouldn't say it as often an the word got shorter. Now instead of saying cat he just goes mmmm(quite high pitched) and point at the cat. We think he tries to mimick meowing. He says hiya and goes iya iya iya iya. He says that to me and oh when we walk into the room. He waves to. He recently learnt (don't know where!) to go mmmm when there's food ( like mm tasty) which is cute but that is it. He doesn't show many signs of wanting to learn to talk. We have decided to leave it till lo turns 2 tho. He babbles loads but not to other children. He sings to songs and dances! He is very I independent in playing ad will happily play by himself. When other children are about he tries to hug them and will follow them but won't really interact and play as much. Although he has got better. He blows kisses to say bye too. He understands a lot like when it's bed time. When we have to put shoes on. When we go out. how to use his cutlery and other things. If he doesnt like what i say to him like "do you want to go to bed?" And he doesn't like it he will go errrr and sometimes point at the thing or just point at me. Everytime you say that he will do the same thing. If he wants to do it then he will do it. Sometimes says bye or goes aaaaaaayyy and claps (which he does quite a lot also forgot that one)
> Did any of you lo start saying ten stop saying a word?
> Any recommendations on what we can do to encourage. Do any of you mums think I'm thinking the same when it comes to similarities?
> Thanks for the hijack!

My original post :)


----------



## sun

KellyC75 said:


> Update on my Daughter: They think she hasnt fully developed the use of her tounge (not tounge tie) They want me to get her to 'excercise' it in various ways & keep practicing sounds
> 
> They think this could explain why she sometimes gags on her food (she has done this since she was young)
> 
> She still only really says 'b' words & mum
> 
> is this something anyone here has heard of before? :shrug:

My son has low muscle tone in his face and tongue that either caused or partially caused his speech delay. His other issues are:
Difficulty eating
Couldn't do things like blow kisses (he can now), blow a whistle, give a kiss (lips together), move tongue properly etc
He has related sensory issues too so puts things in his mouth

His speech therapy focuses lots on facial exercise, chewy tubes, and blowing feathers, cotton balls, etc


----------



## sun

hayz_baby said:


> Hi I commented a bit further back about my son and my speech worries with him. He turned 2 on sat (I originally posted when he wa between 18-20 months..ish) his speech is still delayed. He says hiya and bye (like e originally was) but again not improvement on pronunciation (not that I'm expecting perfection!) it's like iya iya and bahh bahh eee he has started to say dad but it is more daa daa. When he talks it can sound forced. When he said his first word he originally said car but refuses to say that anymore. Instead he mimics the meow.. Kinda goes maooo.
> 
> I'm going to try and get hold of the HV soon and try to get their opinion. Our original game plan was to wait till he is 2 now that it is here without much improvement I feel like we should take it a step further. Do you think that is the right course of action? Maybe try a different route. We haven't had any notification of his 2 ur check up and I have heard in some areas tht may not happen till they are 2 1/2 and I would not like to wait tht long plus then wait on a waiting list for speech therapy if that is recommended.
> 
> What would you lovely ladies suggest? Thanks!!

It doesn't hurt to get the ball rolling at this point, and if you find you don't need it later you can always cancel then. You seem to want to take the next step, so I would mention it to the HV and see about getting an evaluation. I wouldn't worry about pronunciation at this point though - that you understand him is the most important thing. When he says the word, just repeat it (modelling the correct pronunciation for him) with lots of smiles and encouragement. Try not to ask him to "say" anything, but lots of attention whenever he tries to communicate with words. xx


----------



## AP

sun said:


> OMG I'm so sorry that you had to deal with this! :nope:
> It sounds like she's bitter about her own situation and taking it out on you?? I don't see any reason she would possibly be angry unless she's not planning on declaring the income? But that's not your problem. It seems totally reasonable that she would give you a discount since you already own the material. How far would you have to travel to fin another tutor? That is so so crappy AP - tons of hugs :hugs:
> 
> I do think her behaviour shows how she approaches her job though - so it might be a good thing for you to find someone else if you can. Terrible that you have so few choices and it is so difficult when you are only trying so hard to do the best for Alex :hugs:

Thing is, once upon a time she was a beginner too, to learn for her child. :nope:
I've managed to find one person who will do a days course to tide me over til their official foundation course but that's not til next year. Horrid really, because that woman knows she's left me in the lurch and she doesn't care.


----------



## PepsiChic

Barry has started to make clicking noises instead of using words and I dont know why!

He knows to say please when he would like something, and thankyou and your welcome, and sorry when hes had a time out.

now he points says "nack!" *click click click* (when he wants a snack) sometimes he doesnt even say nack he just points and clicks. and no matter how much i try to get him to use his words instead of click he just shakes his head no and gets upset.

yesterday i wouldnt get him more water in his sippy cup until he said please, it took over an hour of clicking, point, pulling me to the cabinet and having a tantrum before he finally said "juice pease!" 

(juice is his most recent new word) 

do you think i should ignore the clicking till he uses his words or just deal with it and hope it passes?

its difficult because its taken SO long to get himt o say ANY words and now this!


----------



## sequeena

Oh wow AP that's awful, I would email the charity directly to tell them what has happened it's disgusting the way she's treated you x


----------



## MikaylasMummy

sun said:


> KellyC75 said:
> 
> 
> Update on my Daughter: They think she hasnt fully developed the use of her tounge (not tounge tie) They want me to get her to 'excercise' it in various ways & keep practicing sounds
> 
> They think this could explain why she sometimes gags on her food (she has done this since she was young)
> 
> She still only really says 'b' words & mum
> 
> is this something anyone here has heard of before? :shrug:
> 
> My son has low muscle tone in his face and tongue that either caused or partially caused his speech delay. His other issues are:
> Difficulty eating
> Couldn't do things like blow kisses (he can now), blow a whistle, give a kiss (lips together), move tongue properly etc
> He has related sensory issues too so puts things in his mouth
> 
> His speech therapy focuses lots on facial exercise, chewy tubes, and blowing feathers, cotton balls, etcClick to expand...

My sons only words for a long time started with b and daddy.his fave sound is still b and he uses random sounds starting with b if he can't say a word.i too believed he may have had low muscle tone in his mouth as he was late to start solids as he very very sick up until the age of one with bronchiol problems and never got into an established routine of eating solids as he couldn't keep them down.he is only now at 2.5 after speech therapy trying new sounds and really working at it


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## lovehearts

No major improvements since Tyler turned 2. Everyone told me he would have a language explosion and at 2 years 2 months we have seen no explosion here. He learnt to say 'yeah' last week, accompanied with a head nod, which was a big thing for us. No major spurt in words. 

I rang me HV a couple of months ago and she said they wouldn't refer him until he had his 2.5 year check. She sent me through some leaflets about learning to talk. 

The gap between him and his peers is growing, esp when i hear my friends children talking in full sentences having conversations with their parents.

x


----------



## KellyC75

sun said:


> KellyC75 said:
> 
> 
> Update on my Daughter: They think she hasnt fully developed the use of her tounge (not tounge tie) They want me to get her to 'excercise' it in various ways & keep practicing sounds
> 
> They think this could explain why she sometimes gags on her food (she has done this since she was young)
> 
> She still only really says 'b' words & mum
> 
> is this something anyone here has heard of before? :shrug:
> 
> My son has low muscle tone in his face and tongue that either caused or partially caused his speech delay. His other issues are:
> Difficulty eating
> Couldn't do things like blow kisses (he can now), blow a whistle, give a kiss (lips together), move tongue properly etc
> He has related sensory issues too so puts things in his mouth
> 
> His speech therapy focuses lots on facial exercise, chewy tubes, and blowing feathers, cotton balls, etcClick to expand...

Thanks so much for replying :hugs: I like the ideas about blowing feathers & cotton balls, will try that. Although, she can blow bubbles & did that in the speech therapy class with no probs....so :shrug:
She can blow kisses, move her tongue etc, so im a little unsure how & why they have come to this conclusion, but hey, I will go with it for now!



MikaylasMummy said:


> sun said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> KellyC75 said:
> 
> 
> Update on my Daughter: They think she hasnt fully developed the use of her tounge (not tounge tie) They want me to get her to 'excercise' it in various ways & keep practicing sounds
> 
> They think this could explain why she sometimes gags on her food (she has done this since she was young)
> 
> She still only really says 'b' words & mum
> 
> is this something anyone here has heard of before? :shrug:
> 
> My son has low muscle tone in his face and tongue that either caused or partially caused his speech delay. His other issues are:
> Difficulty eating
> Couldn't do things like blow kisses (he can now), blow a whistle, give a kiss (lips together), move tongue properly etc
> He has related sensory issues too so puts things in his mouth
> 
> His speech therapy focuses lots on facial exercise, chewy tubes, and blowing feathers, cotton balls, etcClick to expand...
> 
> My sons only words for a long time started with b and daddy.his fave sound is still b and he uses random sounds starting with b if he can't say a word.i too believed he may have had low muscle tone in his mouth as he was late to start solids as he very very sick up until the age of one with bronchiol problems and never got into an established routine of eating solids as he couldn't keep them down.he is only now at 2.5 after speech therapy trying new sounds and really working at itClick to expand...

My Daughter insists that a sheep is called a 'baa' because she can say baa, however much I try & 'help' her say sheep.
Same with any other words, she doesnt seem to be able to sound it out.
She can say Jay (her Dads name) & so now, any Dad is called Jay, for example 'daddy pig, peppas dad, is now also Jay' :haha:
But she now calls my DS2 Jay too!! :dohh: 

May I ask, you say your Son is really working at it, how are you doing this, what is working, as much as I try flashcards, reading books, when I say a word she just says 'yeah' (another word she CAN say!) She doesnt try to copy :nope:


----------



## hellohefalump

Just wanted to give you all something positive...

Mojo didn't talk at 2, at his two yr check (age 2.5) he babbled at the health visitor and had very few actual words. We took him to the audiologist and his hearing was fine.

Then suddenly at age three he started talking, and now age three and nearly four months he's talking well! He's just started nursery and I asked the lady who runs it what they thought if his talking, and she said he wasn't far off how he should be at his age!!! Yay!!!


----------



## KellyC75

hellohefalump said:


> Just wanted to give you all something positive...
> 
> Mojo didn't talk at 2, at his two yr check (age 2.5) he babbled at the health visitor and had very few actual words. We took him to the audiologist and his hearing was fine.
> 
> Then suddenly at age three he started talking, and now age three and nearly four months he's talking well! He's just started nursery and I asked the lady who runs it what they thought if his talking, and she said he wasn't far off how he should be at his age!!! Yay!!!

Thank you :thumbup: Im pleased to hear that positive story

Did you do anything to try & help (other than the usual) or do you think he just started when he was ready? 
What sort of nature is he? :shrug: My Daughter can be very stubburn & I often wonder if she just doesnt want to know right now!!


----------



## hellohefalump

KellyC75 said:


> hellohefalump said:
> 
> 
> Just wanted to give you all something positive...
> 
> Mojo didn't talk at 2, at his two yr check (age 2.5) he babbled at the health visitor and had very few actual words. We took him to the audiologist and his hearing was fine.
> 
> Then suddenly at age three he started talking, and now age three and nearly four months he's talking well! He's just started nursery and I asked the lady who runs it what they thought if his talking, and she said he wasn't far off how he should be at his age!!! Yay!!!
> 
> Thank you :thumbup: Im pleased to hear that positive story
> 
> Did you do anything to try & help (other than the usual) or do you think he just started when he was ready?
> What sort of nature is he? :shrug: My Daughter can be very stubburn & I often wonder if she just doesnt want to know right now!!Click to expand...

We didn't do anything special, we just carried on talking to him and he just eventually picked it up. I do wonder if its 'second child syndrome' he didn't NEED to talk because his sister talked for him and he could get by just fine by pointing and babbling! 

He's a very easy going child, always has been since he was a baby. So different to Madeleine as a baby/toddler. Coincidentally Madeleine only talked at three, and it took til she was four to talk properly. She does have hearing problems though.


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## MikaylasMummy

Hellohefalump that's so good to know since everyone who knows koby knows he only doesn't talk cos his sister does EVERYTHING for him!


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## sequeena

Thomas has started biting himself when he's angry. I don't know if it's just a phase or because he can't express himself and gets frustrated. I'm still trying sign language with him but he's not getting that either at the moment. Anyone else had this happen?


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## sun

sequeena said:


> Thomas has started biting himself when he's angry. I don't know if it's just a phase or because he can't express himself and gets frustrated. I'm still trying sign language with him but he's not getting that either at the moment. Anyone else had this happen?

My son took a year to start signing back so I would keep going with it. My son didn't bite, but he did go through a phase of banging his head on the floor or wall when he was frustrated. Until he realized tantrums were more effective and didn't cause him pain :wacko: I think he was around the same age as your LO!


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## RachA

sun said:


> sequeena said:
> 
> 
> Thomas has started biting himself when he's angry. I don't know if it's just a phase or because he can't express himself and gets frustrated. I'm still trying sign language with him but he's not getting that either at the moment. Anyone else had this happen?
> 
> My son took a year to start signing back so I would keep going with it. My son didn't bite, but he did go through a phase of banging his head on the floor or wall when he was frustrated. Until he realized tantrums were more effective and didn't cause him pain :wacko: I think he was around the same age as your LO!Click to expand...

We have been doing signing with Esther since she was 2 and it took until around3 for her to do any back. Even now she doesn't do much. She doesn't generally get frustrated that we don't understand so we've not had any biting etc. 
however our eldest would bang on the wall or hit his head when he got frustrated. I'd say he was around 18 months +


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## sequeena

Thanks ladies, I'll keep going with the sign language x


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## mumandco

We saw a speech therapist a few weeks back,she agreed that Zack does have a speech delay but at the moment the work she needs to do with him to help his speech he is a little young! She said his level of understanding is really good,which was nice to hear.
We have a group parent meeting in 2weeks time,I'm unsure what will happen there,and then the speech therapist will come visit us at home in around 2months to start the speech therapy with Zack.

Zacks speech is coming on quite a lot,still hard to understand but he is wiling to try and copy words we say which he wouldn't do a few months ago!
I know it's a long way off but I just can't wait for him to speak more,he has the sweetest little voice ever


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## AP

Signing didnt kick in for about a year here too sequeena, but mr tumble did kick it off big style. We started with one episode and once she began copying we slowly grew that. Once we realised this was a way forward we were happy to spend more money on resources and things.


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## MikaylasMummy

Just had kobys weekly speech app and she suggested seeing a paediatrician just to make sure nothing else is going on =( she said she always suggests it at this point/age but I'm not so sure i hope she hasn't seen some indicators of anything else =( she said it is just his social issue of wanting everything his way and getting upset and sulking when he doesn't and not wanting to do it.to be honest i thought that was a two year old thing!!even my five year old daughter does that sometimes!he does get his way a lot with us and she said that could be the reason as he doesn't do it with other kids or teachers when I'm not around he just does it around the people who have babied him.other than his tantrums (which are short and infrequent but my mum thinks are pretty bad) his social skill is pretty good in my opninion.hes really coming out of his shell and tries to get strangers attention then babbles to them and won't leave them alone.he will cuddle/kiss anyone you tell him to and joins in playing with other kids,loves noisy things and play wrestling with all his uncles.could this one trait really point to social problems?i also get the hint that she maybe thinks he's not progressing as fast as he should


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## fi123

we are just starting to get a few words strung together and DS is 3 in July. I was not that worried as he is so bright in other ways. Have seen HV twice already and she has only just refrerred him to speach therpy and that was my decision. Sounds like this is quite late to me reading back a bit. Is it normal to leave it until nearly 3?


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## AP

Mikaylasmummy I would say the same about Tori, she is a right one for tantrums but i don't think anything is wrong per say. 

Tori hasnt had her speech therapy app through yet. 
Last night i heard her singing a lot of mumble jumble and heard her say "up" and "down", I realised she was singing Wheels On The Bus 

I would recommend the Signing Hands websites and videos on Youtube to anyone. Tori loves them and thats where she got her signs and songs from.


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## sequeena

The speech therapist suggested mr tumble too. I put it on but T isn't very interested :( I keep putting it on though.

Mikaylasmummy T is being referred to a paediatrician too hun he's had a lot of health issues but I'm not too worried. They're specifically interested in the amount of infections he's had x


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## AP

sequeena said:


> The speech therapist suggested mr tumble too. I put it on but T isn't very interested :( I keep putting it on though.

Same here, Alex wouldnt even tolerate him. It took perseverance thats for sure! I wouldn't suggest the Out and About series yet though. They seem a lot more to take in and more slapstick. 

He had a very basic first series you can find on YouTube, i don't think they were made available on DVD format - you'll know the difference by the beginning of the programme. Definatly entry level for all!

You can find the listing here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Something_Special_(TV_series)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wg6W8NQ0KZI (this YouTube user has a few of the series) (Foogirl recommended them to me) 

Once the girls got into those, they were a little happier watching the Out & About series.

We also invested in Apple TV at Christmas, so can stream YouTube on the TV, so check if any devices in the house (like Wii's and things) have any YouTube apps on them.


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## sequeena

That's great thank you so much x


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## RachA

fi123 said:


> we are just starting to get a few words strung together and DS is 3 in July. I was not that worried as he is so bright in other ways. Have seen HV twice already and she has only just refrerred him to speach therpy and that was my decision. Sounds like this is quite late to me reading back a bit. Is it normal to leave it until nearly 3?

Hiya. 

I think that if the HV really saw a problem they would of insisted on speech therapy before now. We were told Esther needed it as she was so behind. I personally wouldn't of pushed for it so early and wished we could of waited as it definitely been since age was 3 that the intervention has started working.


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## MikaylasMummy

Thanks ladies.i think she has referred him specifically for his not wanting to take turns and wanting things his way :-/ thing is that behaviour is ONLY with new toys in speech therapy that he hasn't played yet.once he's had a go at something the next time he's happy to take turns.and he doesn't really tantrum (except at home) at speech it's just a whinge then he realises he's not getting what he wants so he tries to mooch onto my lap for me to comfort him.i thought this was fairly normal.im not sure what she's seeing that's not maybe not enough progression in speech?
In the last few weeks he's added night night, love you, no way, go away, mine, open, I want...., he still doesn't have a good vocab at all but he is JUST 2.5..argh I hate this worry.i just don't want him to struggle later in life and was hoping this was a temp thing


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## sun

MikaylasMummy said:


> Thanks ladies.i think she has referred him specifically for his not wanting to take turns and wanting things his way :-/ thing is that behaviour is ONLY with new toys in speech therapy that he hasn't played yet.once he's had a go at something the next time he's happy to take turns.and he doesn't really tantrum (except at home) at speech it's just a whinge then he realises he's not getting what he wants so he tries to mooch onto my lap for me to comfort him.i thought this was fairly normal.im not sure what she's seeing that's not maybe not enough progression in speech?
> In the last few weeks he's added night night, love you, no way, go away, mine, open, I want...., he still doesn't have a good vocab at all but he is JUST 2.5..argh I hate this worry.i just don't want him to struggle later in life and was hoping this was a temp thing

That's a bit weird to me actually. I can't think of many 2yos who don't have a hard time sharing and taking turns - it's still a serious work in progress for my 3.5yo. It sounds like he's progressing with his words though! :thumbup: 
My son has really improved from 3 to 3.5yrs - and his pronunciation is getting better too.


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## MikaylasMummy

Thanks Hun.i guess I should just wait and see what the paed thinks.every doctor that's seen him has been under the impression he is just a normal 2 year old.fingers crossed


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## Bambina

My Daughter 3 in June and does not communicate to me or her father in any verbal way. She can not speak many words but will mutter sounds and noise often. Her most common word is da-da however this is never consistent. She Will not even try to pronounce other words. 

This could be down to the fact she does not understand us or just not listening to us. She can not respond to her name nor to any questions we ask. She does not understand when we tell her to get her coat or wash her hands. We are always talking to her and speaking words but it's as if she can't understand us.

We have tried picture cards etc, but these have made no difference to her speech as of yet. 

She has had a CAST test done and we are waiting on hearing the results. The Pediatrician says she does show clear signs of ASD and a formal assessment will be needed if the CAST test comes back. 

A hearing test was done, but all was clear. 

She see's a portage Home Visitor, Speech and Language Therapist as well as ESCO being involved now. She is due to start nursery in September, so there trying to rush the help through.

I'm just so worried how she will be at nursery, she can not even respond to her name and it worrys me how other children will react to her.


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## sun

Bambina - Lots of hugs! :hugs::hugs: My son is 3.5 now and started preschool at 2y9mo. I was also worried about how he would interact with the other kiddos and teachers, but they have been really great for him. We met with the teacher and discussed what he was doing, what he had problems with, and we all worked on a plan. So for us it has been really excellent. He is starting regular kindergarten in Sept (he'll be 3yr9mo so is also the youngest in the age cutoff) but they have been very receptive and proactive so far. Just make sure they have all the info and you have talked to the teachers as much as you need to feel comfortable. I hope you get some answers soon for her so she can get all the extra help she needs. For us preschool has been really great - my son is slow to warm up to things like that, but is now doing great! x


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## RachA

Bambina:

It's great that you have so much help in place :) That is a really good start. Do you know which playschool your daughter will be going to yet? It's important that the playschool she goes to is really supportive as i believe this really helps. The playschool that my daughter goes to is excellent and has helped us no end. TBH i wouldn't say that the other children respond well to her - but they don't respond badly to her like ignoring her etc. They play along side her but obviously they can't talk to her so there is only a limited amount of stuff they can do together. You may find that when your daughter is at playschool that she will have a SEN worker who will do one-one with her. Esther is at playschool 10 hours per week and gets 6 hours one-one which really helps her.


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## hayz_baby

Hey I have pushed through for my 2 yr check up which is on the 21st when I come back to work so OH will have to go instead. I will be giving him a list of what to say and questions. I only mentioned we had a concern and wanted the 2 ur check so will go through everything in detail. I know he doesn't have a problem with hearing as he can respond to what we ask him very well. Even somewhat complex questions like pick up your cup and put it over there (eg) he just doesnt communicate. I posted a thread the other day on here about his tantrums, he gets frustrated so easily and I think the majority of it is down to his inability to talk. His tantrums can very quickly turn to full on meltdowns (I know tantrums will happen lol I was looking for tips to avoid/handle.) tbh I am hoping for some form of referral but I think all he needs is a bit more help rather then it something more


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## Bambina

Thank you both for the support. 
We have her booked in for the nursery 5 minutes away, but we don't recieve a letter to say if she is in or not. They just ask you if you want mornings or afternoons. So i presume she is in. They won't tell us anything else yet. 

Our portage worker is trying to get all the help she can gives us before September, she has been amazing over the past few weeks. 

Jennifer is getting better as the weeks past, she babbles alot more and is aware of when we say the ABC and Numbers but will not try and repeat us. She is also pointing to things in the house which is an improvement.


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## Meredith2010

We've were referred for speech therapy for DS about a month or so ago, and just had a letter through saying that an appointment would be made within the next 18 weeks! I have a feeling it might not be needed though as his speech has come on massively recently - he had 3 new words by 9am this morning! I wrote a list today and he has 45 words now!

The biggest change is that 99% of the time if I say a word and ask him to repeat it, he does. It might not be totally correct but he is making a big effort and the difference is unbelievable.


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## AP

Tori's making a slight improvement, she can sing a few words from "wheels on the bus" and the odd Hello, cat, dog, and ma and da. Although she signs "glasses" for Alex :rofl:
Speech therapy for her still isn't through yet.

As for Alex, well her Makaton is improving and I finally have a earlier course booked :happydance: means an overnight stay down south but I'm willing to do it. No more words as such (cat, hat, go, dog.... Ma, da, and Tay(Tori) but everything else is in Makaton. Thanks to her autism, she's obsessed with it now and signs mr tumble episodes to me all the time, even when they aren't on TV :rofl:


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## MikaylasMummy

Atomic thats great that tori seems to be coming along well!
As for koby,I am still a little disappointed as he is not coming on as fast as I wanted to feel comfortable.he is still in speech once a week and she is really happy with his improvement in turn taking and his really good social interaction,but I wasn't worried about that as its just his bratty behaviour when I'm around and at school and with others that don't baby him hes good as gold and takes turns brilliantly.i did pick him up from preschool a little early yesterday and his sister was still in her school prep lesson inside and his class was outside and he was fully joining in with the other kids very comfortable (I watched for a few minutes before I told him I was there) and getting their attention to talk to them etc.usually he just sits at his sisters classes door waiting for her.so that made me feel really happy that he is letting go of her a bit.
He seems to be answering questions a lot better.he says yes sometimes when he really wants something and will stop a tantrum to nod his head if he gets offered something he wants.he loves animal sounds especially for ducks,cows,dogs,chickens,sheep and horses.he has said a few things like where's daddy to me and says night night and love you ( without the l).he will copy sounds if I do the patting my cheek and making the sounds like the speech does to try and get him to sound out a word but when I go for the whole word he just says some random thing with the easiest sounds he knows.he says tree and car by they are hard to understand.
He has an appointment with the paediatrician but couldn't get in until September!!


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## sequeena

Ladies your LOs seem to be doing so well at the moment I'm glad! Mikaylasmummy that's crap you have to wait until September

T has had another speech therapy session, well assessment I suppose. They're putting him into a group session that doesn't do signing as the kids in that group are more advanced (but he is only 1 still!).

I had a report from his speech therapist. It's only short and it sounds scarier than what it is.

Thomas was seen at the initial assessment group session as detailed as above. A case history was completed and observational assessment was completed by (his speech therapist). Thomas has been seen for a Ruth Griffiths developmental assessment and it's reported that Thomas has a global developmental delay but the most significant delay was seen in the area of his speech and language skills. Observations show that Thomas has difficulties with regards to his listening and attention skills and receptive and expressive communication skills. Further assessment will be completed as soon as possible.

:shrug:


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## hayz_baby

HV has referred us to speech therapy drop in at the hospital which is Monday morning so
Oh is going to that she has also sorting out a hearing test as it may b glue ear. Anyone lo had glue ear? When that was solved was their any inprovment? Was it something that could of been picked up earlier? X


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## PepsiChic

wow its good to see so many people being referred for speech therapy now! 

Im sorry it takes so long in the UK :(

Barry was referred for speech therapy on Thursday, his first assessment is this coming thursday. Im nervous but am glad to be getting anwsers. Barry then has an appointment in 5 weeks for a 3 year health check and he'll be having his eharing tested to make sure there isnt an issue with his hearing because he doesnt proncounce words very well.

He is saying many more new words, he rarely pronounces them correctly though and only says 2 and sometimes 3 word sentances like "where'd it go" "what is it" - though if someone else heard him say those things i doubt they'd understand what he was saying.


doesnt anyone know of any good youtube signing videos? I can access youtube on my xbox so i could play videos for Barry in the living room. he knows how to sign thankyou but thats it!


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## AP

Pepsi I recommend something special series one and Signing Hands

On my course in two weeks so I'm happy to help anyone 

www.facebook.com/iamswilks


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## RachA

Things seem to be coming along nicely for everyone. 

We're in a state a limbo here at the moment-I've got to chase up Esther's next block of speech therapy and we are on the waiting list for Portage but that could be another 6 months away before it starts. Esther's doing ok. She's added a couple of new signs and she will now ask me for milk if she's thirsty but that's about it. She is getting stroppy a bit now when I don't understand her.


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## taylor197878

brooke is 2 and a half and says about 5 words mam hiya and bye yes and no. she doesn't even say dada. she cant talk in senteanse she cant ask for nothing.

my hv got her a nursery place 2 mornings a week but that hasn't helped at all she now has app with speech and launage.

although she can follow orders and if I ask her to go and get something she can she knows what we mean.

I have 3 other kiddies and never had this problem my son zack was slower but he could put words together.


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## moggymay

Jack is moving forwards with his speech finally. He has had two one on one sessions with the SLT now and he has really responded well, he is largely still not understandable to others but hubby and I agree he is trying much more. 

He made me cry last weekend when he was up in the morning as he was stood at his gate and called Mamma like he usually does but then when I got there he said "pee can ah geh up" (please can I get up) he has copied this from hid big brother I think as he still asks having gone through a phase where he would get up and we would have to say sorry no, go back to bed it is 4am!

I have been trying to do the things the SLT does with him, with him myself, we have been doing puzzles where he has to choose if he wants to put the car piece or the ball piece in and after I say would you like the car or the ball he needs to respond car or ball either by sign or word....he tries to say the word and then says "go dere" and puts the piece in. Apparently the repetition helps them learn to speak.

We have been doing makaton with him and he has some signs he knows and uses, he is also putting speech and signs together so he signs some of the sentence and says the bits he can. The SLT has given me a few tips and her biggest one is to stay silent longer than I want to before I speak again.....I think before I was jumping in too quickly when he didnt answer as he is now starting to try to answer....nursery have noticed a difference and he got a lovely comment in his little book that goes back and forth where she described a game they had played with animals playing hide and seek with them and peekaboo....it mostly involved "cat there" and "cat not there" being said and signed over and over, a month ago he couldnt even sign cat and not he can say and sign it, I am so proud of him.

I love that he is finally starting to find his voice but I still feel sad that he is 34 months old and just starting and I am really worried that he is starting pre-school in September and will be off to school next september (2014) what if he is still struggling then - what will happen, what can I do to help him?


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## ihearttc

My little man is beginning to make some progress as well...finally!! He is 31 months and up until 2 weeks ago we only had single words but he has started putting words together. Only 2 at a time but he is definitely getting there.

He has seen the ST twice now and we have to go back in 2 months. She said he is rather confusing because he asks questions...she asked him to do something and he said "why?" but he still can't say other words. A lot of the words he does say are very muddled...water is wawer, lorry is lolla and digger is didda but most of the time I can now understand what he says...I don't think anyone else would though!

To whoever asked about hearing tests for glue ear-Joe was refered for hearing tests as he has suspected glue ear...he has already had his tonsils/adenoids removed as he had repeated ear infections. He has some other ENT issues as well so they hoped taking them out would help. We went about 6 weeks ago and tbh it was a bit of a waste of time. The audiologist said between 2-3 is a really difficult age for hearing tests as they are too old to do the "baby" test and the test they do for the older children can be too difficult for them. They tried Joe on the older test (its usually over 3 that they do it) and he managed about 4 of them and was then just stuffing them in without listening for the noise. They had loads of things to put in correct holes but they could only do it when they heard the noise...He just wanted to show off and put them in bless him!!

He definitely didn't hear one of the noises though so we've got to go back near christmas when he will be 3 and she said to practice waiting for the noises to do things so maybe you could play those sorts of games as well.


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## RachA

moggymay said:


> Jack is moving forwards with his speech finally. He has had two one on one sessions with the SLT now and he has really responded well, he is largely still not understandable to others but hubby and I agree he is trying much more.
> 
> He made me cry last weekend when he was up in the morning as he was stood at his gate and called Mamma like he usually does but then when I got there he said "pee can ah geh up" (please can I get up) he has copied this from hid big brother I think as he still asks having gone through a phase where he would get up and we would have to say sorry no, go back to bed it is 4am!
> 
> I have been trying to do the things the SLT does with him, with him myself, we have been doing puzzles where he has to choose if he wants to put the car piece or the ball piece in and after I say would you like the car or the ball he needs to respond car or ball either by sign or word....he tries to say the word and then says "go dere" and puts the piece in. Apparently the repetition helps them learn to speak.
> 
> We have been doing makaton with him and he has some signs he knows and uses, he is also putting speech and signs together so he signs some of the sentence and says the bits he can. The SLT has given me a few tips and her biggest one is to stay silent longer than I want to before I speak again.....I think before I was jumping in too quickly when he didnt answer as he is now starting to try to answer....nursery have noticed a difference and he got a lovely comment in his little book that goes back and forth where she described a game they had played with animals playing hide and seek with them and peekaboo....it mostly involved "cat there" and "cat not there" being said and signed over and over, a month ago he couldnt even sign cat and not he can say and sign it, I am so proud of him.
> 
> *I love that he is finally starting to find his voice but I still feel sad that he is 34 months old and just starting and I am really worried that he is starting pre-school in September and will be off to school next september (2014) what if he is still struggling then - what will happen, what can I do to help him?*

I relation to the bolded bit - his playschool will help him. They are used to children who have speech difficulties and can do things to help him. 
I feel your pain with this - my daughter is started school in Sept 14 and currently she babbles a lot but only says the odd word here and there. She does have a lot of words she can say but she doesn't use them all the time and she doesn't out them together. Like she can say more and milk but most of the time she will just say milk. I worry that she will still be struggling when she starts school but because of the amount of input we've had from SALT, HV, Playschool, Education etc i now feel that if she is still struggling then she will get a lot of help at school.
It's better for your son if you can get things in place now rather than waiting for him to start at school. We are looking at getting Esther a statement of eductions which will outline how much help she will have to have once she is at school.


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## moggymay

RachA what would I need to do? Jack is currently doing a nursery session at the same place he will go to pre-school as they accept children for specific sessions from age 2 (the sessions are when the pre-schoolers aren't there IYKWIM) Will pre-school guide me? Iam so clueless as my eldest Ionly had to worry he was young in his year - he did everything in his own time but as he was a premmie we had been warned to expect him to be a little behind, once in school though he thrived so with Jack and his speech delay I am clueless! There are two children in my eldest sons class that have a specific "helper", one has someone employed just for him all day, every day and the other has assistance in the afternoons, again from a specific and regular person - does this mean they have a statement of needs?

I am so clueless, really dont want to let him down. Going to ask pre-school when I next see them and get some advice. Any pointers from your experience would be much appreciated though Rach :flower: Looks like we both have the school bullet to bite in September 2014 :shock:


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## Thurinius

I am starting to worry now about my LO. I was always quite laid back and thought 'oh he'll pick it up'. He's now 2 and a half and at toddler group the other day I noticed how the children his age are now saying sentences and having conversations with their Mummies. My LO only has three words, Mum, Dadee and car. And he rarely uses any of them. 
He understands fine, can follow complex instructions. I went to the drop in speech therapist who suggested some activities to encourage him to speak but these are all things we already do, e.g. singing nursery rhymes, encouraging him to make animal noises etc. But still nothing.
It is starting to upset me. He's meant to be going to a playgroup on his own come September and I'm worried how he'll cope if you can't ask for a drink and so on.


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## x Michelle x

I am the same as you thurinius, I used to think aw she'll start talking soon but it's been slow progress. We have spoken to our HV who says although she isn't too concerned, still thinks Tabitha would benefit from input from a speech therapist so we are just awaiting that appointment.
However, she is coming along....
Word now are:
Mummy
Daddy
Moo
Five minutes
Okay dokey
Sit
Seat
Teetie (sweetie)
Cake
Hide

And she is starting to string things together, like mummy seat or daddy cake so we are definitely making some progress :)


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## RachA

Thurinius said:


> I am starting to worry now about my LO. I was always quite laid back and thought 'oh he'll pick it up'. He's now 2 and a half and at toddler group the other day I noticed how the children his age are now saying sentences and having conversations with their Mummies. My LO only has three words, Mum, Dadee and car. And he rarely uses any of them.
> He understands fine, can follow complex instructions. I went to the drop in speech therapist who suggested some activities to encourage him to speak but these are all things we already do, e.g. singing nursery rhymes, encouraging him to make animal noises etc. But still nothing.
> *It is starting to upset me. He's meant to be going to a playgroup on his own come September and I'm worried how he'll cope if you can't ask for a drink and so on*.

They will find their own way to say what they need. Plenty of children start at play schools ect not being able to talk and they have no problems.


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## RachA

moggymay said:


> RachA what would I need to do? Jack is currently doing a nursery session at the same place he will go to pre-school as they accept children for specific sessions from age 2 (the sessions are when the pre-schoolers aren't there IYKWIM) Will pre-school guide me? Iam so clueless as my eldest Ionly had to worry he was young in his year - he did everything in his own time but as he was a premmie we had been warned to expect him to be a little behind, once in school though he thrived so with Jack and his speech delay I am clueless! There are two children in my eldest sons class that have a specific "helper", one has someone employed just for him all day, every day and the other has assistance in the afternoons, again from a specific and regular person - does this mean they have a statement of needs?
> 
> I am so clueless, really dont want to let him down. Going to ask pre-school when I next see them and get some advice. Any pointers from your experience would be much appreciated though Rach :flower: Looks like we both have the school bullet to bite in September 2014 :shock:

The pre-school should guide you. I would tell them of your concerns do they know what's happening. When Esther started she was already having speech therapy and had an evaluation booked at our local child development centre. 

I'd say that your first port of call at the moment should be your health visitors speak to them about your concerns and ask if they think one2one support at the pre-school would be appropriate. Once they have that support in place everything else can be worked on.


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## AP

Tori said toast this morning :happydance:


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## fi123

DS is 3 in July and has just been refrerred to speech therpy. Over the last month I cannot belive how he has come on. I really never expected anything like it, he now repeats everything we say and can count to 10. He has not had his first appointment yet, so hopeful it will not take too long for him to catch up :)


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## sequeena

Well done Tori!!

fi123 that's great news!

T is now being referred to a paediatric neurologist. Another appointment to add to the list :shrug: I hope this can give us some answers.


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## aliss

Ooh toast!!!! Fantastic!!! :) We have a hearing test (looks like the ball is finally rolling with speech therapy help, they aren't very eager to help us!!!) for July 11.

I had the same thing when I was 5. Turned out I was partially deaf and I did not have ADHD as they thought, I had a surgery to fix it. I am really hoping that this is genetic and that is the cause. Fingers crossed.


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## MikaylasMummy

Yay tori!!thats an awesome word!!
In the last couple of days koby has started saying "shoe" perfectly and counting to three.he has also started saying all the animals names before their sounds.his slt was shocked and amazed as the week before there was not much progress and now an explosion.he was also doing much better babble to her with lots more sounds and variations.i always feel better when she seems pleased cos i feel all my moments of proudness are just silly mum moments and when she acknowledges it i know he must be doing well.lol


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## PepsiChic

we have a hearing test for the end of July! it seems like we are all rolling on with this together! WTG Tori and Koby!


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## AP

It does seem like we're all making steps, even if they are little! :)


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## RachA

It's really positive to hear the little steps that our lo's are making :)

Esther is trying to copy signs which is really good-that's something she seems to of picked up in the last 2 weeks.


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## AP

Well done Esther!

Alex has a photographic memory, she can be on different planets when you try and engage with her. 

Last night as she was dropping off to sleep she was signing Mr Tumbles Goodbye song in the pitch dark, she thought i was sleeping but i was peeking :rofl: :rofl: She can remember almost a whole episode within one or two goes :dohh: its eerie


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## RachA

Esther's a bit like that with puzzles-give her a few goes and she remembers where the pieces go without looking-peg puzzles that is. 
I've just started her with ones that make up pictures and she's not getting them yet.


----------



## Barbles

Hiya

Havent been on here in an age

Jacob is 2 in two weeks time and Im concerned about his speech so wondering if anyone can give some advice?

He basically doesn't talk well, most of his words sound the same, I can understand some of what he says but most wouldn't be able to. He has a couple of words he repeats a lot and says well e.g cat, dad, ball but that's about it. He doesn't know his colours, cant count to ten, doesn't put any sentences together and has lost a couple of words he used to say (ish for finished and nose). If you say something to him such as 'love mama' he will copy the syllables but not the actual words or pronunciation so goes 'ba baba'

He understands very well and responds to requests etc its just his speech really that concerns me. He can also be quite physical with other children and his sister and im not sure if that's due to him not being able to express himself. He also dribbles a lot, like constant drips on his chin. He has all his teeth so Im not sure if its connected at all.

Ive left two messages with the HV and heard nothing back yet so Ill try again tomorrow but if anyone here has any advice it would be great.

x


----------



## PepsiChic

Barry had his appointment today to be assessed for speech delay....my concerns were warrented, his level is that of a 1 year 7 months old. he is 8% in speech and 1% in understanding...

1% and 8%...that is much much lower then i thought it would be. i mean i feel glad i finally got an anwser and now once medicaid approves it he'll start speech therapy in a few weeks....but at the same time i feel...delflated..and guilty, like its all my fault i failed him in someway. I look at him and the way he struggles and now i just want to cry because i love him and i dont want him to have struggle. *sigh*


----------



## RachA

PepsiChic said:


> Barry had his appointment today to be assessed for speech delay....my concerns were warrented, his level is that of a 1 year 7 months old. he is 8% in speech and 1% in understanding...
> 
> 1% and 8%...that is much much lower then i thought it would be. i mean i feel glad i finally got an anwser and now once medicaid approves it he'll start speech therapy in a few weeks....but at the same time i feel...delflated..and guilty, like its all my fault i failed him in someway. I look at him and the way he struggles and now i just want to cry because i love him and i dont want him to have struggle. *sigh*

:hugs:

I've been here and it hits you hard. The important thing is to look at progress and not expecting them to catch up. You haven't failed him at all-there's no point telling you not to think that because 7 months on from Esther's diagnosis I still have times when I think that. At 3yrs 1mnth we were told Esther was at the level of 1yr 6mths. 
You now have a starting point to work from. I don't know how they will work on things but with Esther they worked on concentration/understanding first. Since doing this her speech has improved too. 
It's really hard to start off with but you will start feeling better. We have never been the type of people who expected our children to be super intelligent and high flying in their jobs but we had to come to the point where we were happy with the fact that as long as they are happy it doesn't matter what job they do and it doesn't matter what grades they get at school. As I said before, I still struggle at times, I feel progress is slow but I have to remind myself that at least progress is there. 

:hugs: again.


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## sequeena

:hugs: Pepsi. I felt the same when we were told that T is the same level as a 12 month old. Please don't blame yourself x


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## AP

:hugs: pepsi I hear ya hun. Its hurtful to hear those kidn of results. At 2, Alex was said to have a speech level on par with 9 months. That devestated me. I've embraced it all now, but, god, at the time :nope:


----------



## AP

Right I know I had recommended the series 1 of Mr Tumble and I've managed to work out what ones they are on DVD

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product...&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=358548967&pf_rd_i=468294

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Something-Special-DVD-Out-about/dp/0563516437/ref=pd_bxgy_d_h__img_z

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Something-Special-DVD-Where-live/dp/0563516410/ref=pd_bxgy_d_h__img_y

(You can tell by the style of the front cover)

Probably the best introduction to Makaton ever lol :) They are slightly pricey but honestly i'd pay double knowing what i do now.


----------



## sequeena

Thanks AP. I'll hangfire for a bit because his SALT is putting him in a group with no signing but I'm bookmarking the links x


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## AP

Oh ladies... i went on the signing course, i really recommend it. i have so much better understanding now!

Not only that, but Alexs signing is coming on a treat , so i feel i can encourage more now!


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## JASMAK

Pepsi....I so know where you are coming from and I know that deep ache/worry/sick feeling of hearing results. M was assessed as a 9 month old at 2 1/2. It was a very dark time. I so wish I had the internet for support during that time. Please dont feel guilt. I know, easier said.....but you are only trying to do whats best for him and its all very confusing and hard to understand. I promise you, it does get easier and my daughter now has whole conversations (she's 8, assessed as 4 for understanding). Speech really is a miracle. My first "I love you" from my daughter was in sign language, but it was the best thing I had heard! Having this challenge makes the things people take for granted SO precious!!


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## Babeonthego

Hi,

Well cole is on a 20 week waiting list for speech therapy. Altho I'm over the moon at the fact that he has went from no words to being able to say 

Cheese (more like eese)
Sweeties (sounds like eeties) 
Pennies (again ennies)
Mama (altho not often) 
Ready (edy) 
Bike (ike) 

I find it quite strange his choice in words but I'm so relieved that he's at least made progress. I feel this has been as a result of nursery. 

I've ordered some books online at the min to see if I can play with and encourage him. He seems to really progress in the company of other children. 

Hoping the speech therapy appointment comes in soon. 20 weeks is an awful long time. .


----------



## Babeonthego

Also meant to say he's such a clever boy in many diff ways. Was potty trained in a week in June. Occasionally has a wee accident but not very often and is almost dry thru the night with lots of dry nappies. Just frustrating because I feel helpless


----------



## PepsiChic

Barbles said:


> Hiya
> 
> Havent been on here in an age
> 
> Jacob is 2 in two weeks time and Im concerned about his speech so wondering if anyone can give some advice?
> 
> He basically doesn't talk well, most of his words sound the same, I can understand some of what he says but most wouldn't be able to. He has a couple of words he repeats a lot and says well e.g cat, dad, ball but that's about it. He doesn't know his colours, cant count to ten, doesn't put any sentences together and has lost a couple of words he used to say (ish for finished and nose). If you say something to him such as 'love mama' he will copy the syllables but not the actual words or pronunciation so goes 'ba baba'
> 
> He understands very well and responds to requests etc its just his speech really that concerns me. He can also be quite physical with other children and his sister and im not sure if that's due to him not being able to express himself. He also dribbles a lot, like constant drips on his chin. He has all his teeth so Im not sure if its connected at all.
> 
> Ive left two messages with the HV and heard nothing back yet so Ill try again tomorrow but if anyone here has any advice it would be great.
> 
> x

Hey hunny, he actually doesnt sound too bad at barely 2 years old, I think the big speech lep seems to be between 2 and 2.5, his understanding beign good will be good news that means he may pick up on speech easier once he figures it out.

have you tried anything like Hooked On Phonics? or any kind of phonics or sign language? that way he can learn to communicate and might stop him being so physical.

let me know how it goes with the HV! GL


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## PepsiChic

babeonthego - he sounds like a very smart little boy!!! sorry about the long wait, try to get some flash cards, and also something the speech therapist suggested with big labels around the house, "LIGHT" "DOOR" "WINDOW" "TABLE" "CHAIR" - just household objects and stick the labels to them, nice and big so they are easy to see. 

also ive found whenever i give something to Barry i make a point of saying "xxxx Please!" and then "Thankyou" when give it to him, now he says it by himself, so its not only taught him manners but because i say it so often hes picked it up quickly

so 

"drink please" - "thankyou"
"snack please" - "thankyou"
"bath please" - "thankyou"

and so on


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## Quackquack99

I went to a drop in assessment yesterday for S as she will be turning two in a couple of weeks and can only speak about 15 words. I will be hearing from the speech therapist next week so wish us luck. I am quite apprehensive.


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## Babeonthego

Thanks Pepsi chic for the tips. Il defo be trying them out


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## AP

We're in the midst of doing something similar with labelling - using copies of pecs cards on everything and Alex can ask and take her card to the matching place and stick it up with velcro thats on the back (like drawers, toothbrushing)


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## MikaylasMummy

Quackquack,good luck!i always find it promising when someone says their two year old has at least 10 words.mine pretty much had one or two.
Atomic the labelling sounds like a great idea.bet that saves a lot of time and meltdowns.

Koby is doing fabulously and has taken the next step towards speaking. He slt said that he will start saying either the start or the end of words before he gets a full vocab, whereas a few weeks ago he would try and copy some words but if he couldn't say them they all sounded like bay, now he can pretty much copy all words at least using the first or last sound. So grandma is mama, grandpa is papa, grandad is dadad. This is exactly how my daughter used to talk when she was just starting out. So it's giving me hope he's really travelling in the right direction.
He is a real parrot now and attempts to copy every word we tell him to say, which is only a thing recent in the last month or two. He says shoe, nanna, more,what's this, love you, night night, no, no way, no more, I want bottle very clearly which are all recent words. His understanding is coming along really well and he answers questions appropriately as to what he wants/wants to do.fingers crossed the next step is fluent talking!


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## PepsiChic

thats fantastic news! WTG Koby! yey!!!


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## sequeena

Anyone find flash cards helped their child?


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## AP

If you could call the PECS we use flash cards, then yeah!!


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## Peanut78

sequeena said:


> Anyone find flash cards helped their child?

In some ways yes. For example, we had one ST who would use flashcards to prompt certain movements and sounds (including makaton and speech) - in particular animal (primary sounds - baa, moo etc.), vehicle or knocking/ banging sounds (vroom, brrr). In such young children a lot of ST has to do with encouraging imitation. 

But as AP says depending on how you use them (although PECS aren't technically speaking "flashcards" some of the principles are the same). You can use them to increase vocabulary/ recognition or in a slightly different way (which I think is what AP is getting at) use them as alternative communication tools (to aid communication until they are verbal). Using images to aid communication at home or nursery i.e. do you want a banana, apple or pear (showing a limited choice selection of images they can point to), or if a bit older than T - "my tummy", "leg", "head" hurts - images that you integrate into your day-to-day life that enable communication with you i.e. I want a banana, need the toilet, am feeling sad (in which case they can point to what they want/ need - although they need to be age/ development appropriate). 

Sorry that was a bit long and rambly...


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## Peanut78

Anyone have experience with "prompting" in SLT?


----------



## AP

Peanut78 said:


> sequeena said:
> 
> 
> Anyone find flash cards helped their child?
> 
> In some ways yes. For example, we had one ST who would use flashcards to prompt certain movements and sounds (including makaton and speech) - in particular animal (primary sounds - baa, moo etc.), vehicle or knocking/ banging sounds (vroom, brrr). In such young children a lot of ST has to do with encouraging imitation.
> 
> But as AP says depending on how you use them (although PECS aren't technically speaking "flashcards" some of the principles are the same). You can use them to increase vocabulary/ recognition or in a slightly different way (which I think is what AP is getting at) use them as alternative communication tools (to aid communication until they are verbal). Using images to aid communication at home or nursery i.e. do you want a banana, apple or pear (showing a limited choice selection of images they can point to), or if a bit older than T - "my tummy", "leg", "head" hurts - images that you integrate into your day-to-day life that enable communication with you i.e. I want a banana, need the toilet, am feeling sad (in which case they can point to what they want/ need - although they need to be age/ development appropriate).
> 
> Sorry that was a bit long and rambly...Click to expand...

Yes thank you! I was out when I wrote that but yeah, we started out using them at nursery but Alex began to use them to label things and request things. We'd repeat the words, and she would at least try to say them. (although she signs)

For some reason, Alex wont stand for flashcards, it has to be on her terms, so we have to find ways around it ;)


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## sequeena

What are PECS? Mine are from ELC :haha:

Thomas has been carrying the car card round so he's recognised the image at least. Hopefully as he grows they'll be of more use.

Thanks both xx

Thomas is desperate to say daddy. We have addy so he's just about got the full word. My OH is over the moon as mum was his first word at 18 months and he's 23 months now.


----------



## AP

I was going to link you to a website but its quite difficult to understand if you are new to it 
, so heres an image

They are little cards, often with velcro attached to the back to create visual timetables or request boards

https://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRTmYCgy7n3aA9AJtNTogKWDwCSU1sQHW2Fo8XAH_sG0e8tL291

Our board goes like this

and it can be as simple to detailed as you like - so ours will only have two, one saying what we are going to do now, and what we are going to do next. 
(this one was way too much for her)
For example, one might be a picture of a bath followed by a picture of a bed. 

This was first put in place with the nursery and they were available on the walls. Alex realised if she took them out, she could request something (the first was requested was lady gaga music :rofl:)

We'll take one or two out with us now too - she understands when i produce the swimming card that we are going swimming. 

I also find an odd one or two lying around the house, i thought sometimes it was coincidental that they lay next to the actual object the represented but it kept happening and i realised how much she actually understood even although she couldnt talk.

Whenever she requests something, we use the word and the sign. 

Its great for visual learners. 

I've made some personalised ones :rofl:


but it might be good to find out for your SALT which "type" if any, they use in your area, just to keep in line with what nurseries will use. Generally its the ones from a programme called Boardmaker. You can download a full free trial for 30 days - ive just done that, printed them off and laminated them, and stuck velcro on them. However SALT might be able to supply you with some too to get you started.


----------



## moggymay

which ones would you recommend on there? There seem to be loads so be fab if you could recommend a set :)


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## AP

On Bordmaker? They are all the same type so to speak, just choose the ones that are relevant to you and off you go :) there's lots of categories to just find the very basic ones :)

you can import Makaton ones but they are more symbolic than pictures, and it's very costly to do that too.

A laminator kit and plastic sleeves were only £15 at Argos so I bought that. The Velcro tabs r in stationary shops (or mine were in Sainsburys :) ) 

Just remember that with whatever you hopes to aid communication, always use the word to reinforce it.


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## sequeena

Oh wow that's pretty amazing. Thanks AP I'll talk to his ST when we see her next :thumbup:


----------



## DanielleM

Hi, hope I can join, Jacob is 2 year 6 months has very little speech ooes for shoes, der for there and da for dad. these are what he uses in context, he will say nah for no every now and again. 

I am hoping and praying it is nothing too serious, I know this sounds awful but after already having one child who is disabled (physically in a wheelchair) I just don't know how mentally and emotionally I am going to cope with another child with problems. I know I know that sound terrible but it is the truth. It took me such a long time to come to terms with the fact that my eldest is disabled. I just keep thinking there must be something wrong with me, that I must be doing something wrong, I can't produce "normal" children. I look around me at other children and they are all coming on leaps and bounds and then I look at my child in a wheelchair and my other one who can't talk. I am sat here in tears writing this, I have never ever said this to anyone in real life.


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## DanielleM

I am sick to the back teeth of googling reasons why he isn't talking, I just want to know, I want to know for me and for him, to get him the help he needs.


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## sequeena

Danielle :hugs: I would talk to your doctor about your worries. He/she can direct you from there. Please don't worry too much, it may be that he just doesn't want to speak not that he can't and one day he'll surprise you x


----------



## DanielleM

Thank you as you all know it is so hard and frustrating. It has all got on top of me today as it was the last day of pre-school today and they had a teddy bears picnic and did dances and actions etc and Jacob just did not join in at all.


----------



## DanielleM

Just really gets to me sometimes, I know I shouldn't compare especially when he is the youngest there but still, I over analyse him too much.


----------



## sequeena

I so get it. Only last night Thomas stacked toys for the first time when babies less than half his age can do that. It is so frustrating but I appreciate every milestone he crosses. He will get there, he may take longer but he'll do it :hugs:


----------



## MikaylasMummy

DanielleM said:


> Hi, hope I can join, Jacob is 2 year 6 months has very little speech ooes for shoes, der for there and da for dad. these are what he uses in context, he will say nah for no every now and again.
> 
> I am hoping and praying it is nothing too serious, I know this sounds awful but after already having one child who is disabled (physically in a wheelchair) I just don't know how mentally and emotionally I am going to cope with another child with problems. I know I know that sound terrible but it is the truth. It took me such a long time to come to terms with the fact that my eldest is disabled. I just keep thinking there must be something wrong with me, that I must be doing something wrong, I can't produce "normal" children. I look around me at other children and they are all coming on leaps and bounds and then I look at my child in a wheelchair and my other one who can't talk. I am sat here in tears writing this, I have never ever said this to anyone in real life.

:hugs: I'm sorry you are going through these feelings. Oh is a lot like that and analyses anything and everything we did through Koby's pregnancy and life that may have caused his delay.it really gets to me sometimes as I feel it's just one of those things and all the things that went on with him have happened to millions of others without effect. :flower:


----------



## MikaylasMummy

While I'm here I may as well update on koby.
His speech therapy has really taken full effect now and he has made some huge improvements mostly with development, understanding and behaviour. His turn taking especially has become brilliant, in speech he can also complete all activities without wandering off or wanting to change and allows his SLT to choose all activities and dictate how they go. Before it was his way or the highway.
No more tantrums (unless he's tired) for not getting what he wants, he's really growing up and instead just goes "owwww" and crosses his arms or lifts his shoulders and then droops them.its pretty cute I think and often makes me want to give in.lol.
He can copy most words now but uses some new ones on his own like finished,bike,car,stars,shoes on. Other words he can say but only does when I ask him to. Oh and he can say Mikayla (miyaya)the way she did at 18 months, but really struggles with his own name.
He also counts now. 1,2 ,3 and 4are understandable but 5 to 10 are just babble really but he is actually counting


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## sequeena

Koby is doing SO well!! He's come on so much in a short period. Well done Koby and you!


----------



## MikaylasMummy

Thanks sequeena.its nice to hear that.i don't really have much to have his progress on because his SLT always just says he's doing great but I don't know if she's just saying that cos she's really nice!


----------



## DanielleM

Had a terrible sleep last night dreaming about Jacob talking and woke up to the horrible reality. Had SALT this morning, showed her a letter about OH when he was younger from his SALT he didn't speak properly until he was quite old, the said letter he was 5 years old. He is also dyslexic and she said that S&L can be hereditary, I am hoping that that is all it is, she said that dyslexic children can often have speech and lang delays. 

I asked her about the pecs cards and she said that she doesn't think that Jacob would benefit from the rigid structure and the pecs, but by all means to use cards and flash cards to help prompt him. I feel slightly better but still have that sick sinking feeling in my stomach.


----------



## AP

Our littlest Tori went to speech therapy for the first time for her introductory getting-to-know her thing. It was with the same speech therapist Alex gets so, no meltdowns really, they are used to this! Alex spent the time washing her hands and hiding in a wardrobe :rofl:

It was decided Tori will go to the group sessions, once alex is back in nursery. Not sure how to feel about this. We tried Alex with the group session and all the kids ran about insane and the speech therapist realised she needed to pull Alex out of that and go one-to-one. Whilst Tori will be ok at these group things, what if all the other kids kick off ?

Anywho, whats the progress here? Well Tori tries to count to ten, normally gets to 6 and babbles the rest til TEN! :rofl:
She can say ma and da, doh-dohh (dummy), Baby, and "all day long" (wheels on the bus :rofl:) She's getting there, slowly! 

Alex, well, she is still very basic with her sounds. Ma, Da, and "k" (kih) and "t" ("tih") sounds. Her makaton signing is really progressing, some of it I don't even understand, so I need to work out where shes pulled it from and if its really a "real" sign :dohh:. I hear MIL has been religiously watching Something Special to learn more, thats reassuring.


----------



## veganmama

-posted in wrong thread-


although i probably belong here soon..


----------



## Mrs_Random

Looks like my boy is in the 2 & not talking club!

Had his 2 year assessment last week & he's no where near where he should be.

He has about 15 words in total and isn't really showing interest in trying any more.

Health visitor said she was happy to see how he gets on for a few months - might just start talking more but she was willing to refer him for speech therapy.

I asked her to put the referral in as there is an 8-12 weeks wait and if we left it 2 months & then referred him he could be nearly 2.5 before he gets seen.

We are really encouraging him to try all words but he just doesn't want to & shakes his head.

It's very frustrating for him & us.


----------



## PepsiChic

DanielleM said:


> Hi, hope I can join, Jacob is 2 year 6 months has very little speech ooes for shoes, der for there and da for dad. these are what he uses in context, he will say nah for no every now and again.
> 
> I am hoping and praying it is nothing too serious, I know this sounds awful but after already having one child who is disabled (physically in a wheelchair) I just don't know how mentally and emotionally I am going to cope with another child with problems. I know I know that sound terrible but it is the truth. It took me such a long time to come to terms with the fact that my eldest is disabled. I just keep thinking there must be something wrong with me, that I must be doing something wrong, I can't produce "normal" children. I look around me at other children and they are all coming on leaps and bounds and then I look at my child in a wheelchair and my other one who can't talk. I am sat here in tears writing this, I have never ever said this to anyone in real life.




DanielleM said:


> Had a terrible sleep last night dreaming about Jacob talking and woke up to the horrible reality. Had SALT this morning, showed her a letter about OH when he was younger from his SALT he didn't speak properly until he was quite old, the said letter he was 5 years old. He is also dyslexic and she said that S&L can be hereditary, I am hoping that that is all it is, she said that dyslexic children can often have speech and lang delays.
> 
> I asked her about the pecs cards and she said that she doesn't think that Jacob would benefit from the rigid structure and the pecs, but by all means to use cards and flash cards to help prompt him. I feel slightly better but still have that sick sinking feeling in my stomach.

Hi Chick glad you came on over, the ladies in this thread are so lovely and you'll be able to really relate to the things everyone posts because we are all going through the exact same issues together:hugs:

It must be very difficult for you having a disabled child and then the speech delay in your second child...but its in NO way shape or form your fault, nothing you did caused it, noting you could of done to prevent it. Some children just take longer to figure things out, and speech is one of them!

As for encouraging speech theres a lot you can do, if the SALT doesnt think that pecs card will help, then try labels instead, that way its not structured, but nice big bright labels next to everything, LIGHT, TABLE, DOOR, WINDOW, CURTAIN, BLINDS, WALL, CHAIR....nice big easy to read labels, they'll catch his eye, and he'll want you to tell him what they say, this will encourage him to try to repeat the words back. this really helped with Barry, Barrys understanding and speech was assessed at 1 year 7 months and hes now 3 years old, so he wouldnt understand PECS yet either. but the labels have had a really positive effect!

also I know people are against kids watching tv etc, but Ive found that the Leapfrog dvds are superb, we play the Leappfrog Phonics Farm, Amazing Alphabet Amusment Park, Numberland and Adventures Shapeville. I cant recommend them enough! Barry has learnt his entire alphabet and has been counting to 10 for a while now. These dvds have helped so much because he loves the songs.

The other things that some of the ladies here have suggested is sign language, so you may want to look into that!

:hugs: keep your head up, and have a read from the start of this thread, some of us have come a long way and you'll realize we all felt just as much despair as you do, sometimes we still do! but we understand!




Mrs_Random said:


> Looks like my boy is in the 2 & not talking club!
> 
> Had his 2 year assessment last week & he's no where near where he should be.
> 
> He has about 15 words in total and isn't really showing interest in trying any more.
> 
> Health visitor said she was happy to see how he gets on for a few months - might just start talking more but she was willing to refer him for speech therapy.
> 
> I asked her to put the referral in as there is an 8-12 weeks wait and if we left it 2 months & then referred him he could be nearly 2.5 before he gets seen.
> 
> We are really encouraging him to try all words but he just doesn't want to & shakes his head.
> 
> It's very frustrating for him & us.

Hi! good luck with getting the speech therapy appointments, i hope the wait isnt too long for you!

Try out some of the things I mentioned above while your waiting :)


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## angelae36

I've not been on here for a while, but it sounds like lots of progress is being made!

As for Abbie. Well. It's a case of a few steps forwards and lots backwards.
She has seen 2 SLT's a total of 5 times. The second one is a lovely lady who seems to know what she is doing.
However, other that occasionally at pre-school, we won't be seeing her again. So does this mean Abbie's speech is where it should be?
Nope, not even close.
She can talk, she has lots of words.
She is starting to put them together into 2-3 word sentences, but not very often.
I have had 2 proper conversations with her though!
She argues with me eg: 
Me: That's a baby crab.
Abbie: It's frog.
Me: A crab.
Abbie: Frog etc!!!!!
She'll then keep repeating frog until I "agree" with her!

She will say words to me and wait for me to repeat them back.
She can count to 10 and upto 6 in welsh (thanks to lingo show!)
She knows the alphabet and recognises letters.
She is trying to read - she sounds out the letters and then tries to say the word.
She knows hello in French, Spanish, Urdu (doesn't quite get that one right!)

We have learnt to not give her things straight away, she has to at least try and say what she wants and look at us when she does.
Since doing this we are getting lots more eye contact and more words coming.

But pre-school is a whole differnt kettle of fish!
She is entitled to 15 hours a week, but after her second day there I was called in as her temper is awful, she throws herself around etc. They cut her days to 2.
I was told in Spetember she would start off at 3, but they changed their minds and left it at 2. They also just let her do her own thing as she doesn't kick off then.
The speech therapist is not happy about this as she feels - like us, that she would benefit from the full 5 days as the routine and structure will help her no end.
So the SLT is going into preschool in September to see what can be done there.
We also have pre-school inclusion involved now who will be doing "intensive" sessions with her 3 times as well as giving the staff intensive techniques, then there will be another meeting to decide what next to do.

Other than that I'm just fumbling around trying to do my best to help and not get too frustrated with her and her awful sleeping habits!


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## moggymay

We have similar experience here in that we have seen one fab lady 5 times now, she has one more session with us before she hands us back to the other "not so fab but in charge" lady. Apparently the fab lady is there to teach us techniques to encourage speech progression...it is helping but feel he would benefit more from a professional doing it as I can only imitate what she does - I don't know half or even a quarter of the makaton signs she uses :(

We start pre-school in September and are set to do our 15 free hours over the 5 days, there doesn't seem to be much of a plan though other than he go in every day...presume we will find out in the first week?

His speech is progressing but I still don't think anyone else would understand him :( Even hubby can't tell what he is saying half the time. I really worry he us going to struggle as his birthday is just 3 weeks before he starts pre-school and come reception year I fear he will get left behind :cry: How do I help him more effectively so that I am not worrying so much? Have asked about help at school but they just keep saying it is a long way off yet, it is only a year away now and given how long we waited for any SLT help I have to think about it now....is lack of speech enough reason to start the Statement process....who can give advice on this? Is there a dept to call for help?

I am so proud of how his speech has improved but seeing him with my nephew yesterday who is 18 months younger I worry his speech will hold him back when he starts learning to read/phonics etc.


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## angelae36

moggymay, I would say that things might become clearer when your LO starts in September. If pre-school have anything about them, they will pick up on what they see as problems quite quickly and if they are really really good, will get the help he needs as quickly as possible.

Our preschool picked up on problems really quickly - like I said by day 2. That was in January. Pre-school only went in to see her on the last day of the summer term.
The hold up was they had to do a number of observations on her, which when I went to see what they had written about her in May, the "observations" were taken from January. I have no idea why they waited so long and I did get quite cross with them about it, but at least we are now heading in the right direction!

As for our SLT, I was basically told I was doing all that was possible hence no more home visits. Not sure if this is good or bad!


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## moggymay

He has been attending nursery sessions at the pre-school so they know him and the SEN coordinator has been working with him but they are wanting guidance from the SLT dept to ensure they are doing the correct thing and as much as the SLT home person was amazing the coordinator thus far has not filled me with confidence :(

We have had some successes though with the "what is in the bag" game as he really responds to it whether for a story or just items with the same sound. The home worker as been fab...wish "googling" had led me to find that playing blow football helps their speech muscles :wacko:

I find the waiting the hardest as to me he is top priority but to them he is a name on a list and they insist on waiting to see if it comes in time as then they may not have to act :growlmad: Ran into one of the pre-school people today and asked outright if she knew what happens and she said the likelihood is that they will give him until the first half-term to settle in and then they will make a plan as the statements are done by the LEA in January....think am going to start a list of concerns and get them answered one by one as we go along. He is progressing with the things we have been doing so guess we just keep plodding on....

I wish folk would stop telling me "you will be wishing he was quiet once he starts talking" though :nope:


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## PepsiChic

Positive Story (real life!)

I was at the park on thursday with the boys, and was pushing Connor in the baby swing, a lady came into the park with her 18 month old daughter and put her in the swing next to Connor, her 7 year old son was riding his bike around the play area, him and his mum chatted back and forth like any normal 7 year old would, "watch me mum!" "can we have mc donalds for dinner?" "can we go into the creek?" "will you help me with my maths homework later?" 

After a while me and the mother got talking, she was watching Barry quite intently while he was climbing up and down the slide with his playdate friend. She casually mentioned "he reminds me of my son Langdon" I asked how so and she mentioned that Langdon only spoke 10 words at 3 years old! he was very far behind in speech and understanding, and she was very upset and also guilty and embarrassed by it at the time.

She went on to explain she pushed to get him speech therapy and by the time he was starting Kindergarten, he was caught up completely with his speech and was actually advanced in maths. 

listening to that 7 year old having conversations with his mother, I would NEVER have guessed he had speech issues as a toddler, not in a million years!

I found this so positive

there IS a light at the end of the tunnel!


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## Peanut78

DanielleM said:


> Had a terrible sleep last night dreaming about Jacob talking and woke up to the horrible reality. Had SALT this morning, showed her a letter about OH when he was younger from his SALT he didn't speak properly until he was quite old, the said letter he was 5 years old. He is also dyslexic and she said that S&L can be hereditary, I am hoping that that is all it is, she said that dyslexic children can often have speech and lang delays.
> 
> I asked her about the pecs cards and she said that she doesn't think that Jacob would benefit from the rigid structure and the pecs, but by all means to use cards and flash cards to help prompt him. I feel slightly better but still have that sick sinking feeling in my stomach.

Hi hun, my sister also has dyslexia and was a late talker (was 3 when she started talking) - but rest assured she is fine - she a corporate tiger :haha: She is still not great with language transition (we are tri-lingual), but that is as far as her problems extend as an adult. Definitely back in the day dyslexia wasn't fully recognized or understood and that was difficult for her - but this has really changed now. 

I totally get where you are coming from worrying about having more than one (or one alone!) child with issues. Our second son is fine, or at least doesn't have the same issues as his older brother (which would be apparent by now), but I am petrified if we have another child with issues could I cope? This brings me onto my next point, and I feel bad for saying this (maybe better posted in the Special Needs Forum). 

Do any of you feel frustrated, resentful, angry when your kids just aren't able to do things? Most days I am so proud of T - his nature, his efforts, his development - but then I have moments where I feel so frustrated with him :nope:. The horrible thing is; I remember my mum doing this to my sister and "registering" at a young age that it was awful and hurtful to my sister. I feel terrible for having days where I feel like this. Most days I am pretty upbeat, but today I feel like it may never change and I don't know what to do... Didn't help that his ST said some children with speech apraxia are affected for life (still don't know what that really means)... :nope: 

Sorry for the downer :cry:


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## Babeonthego

Pepsi chic thanks so much for that reassuring story. Cole only has about 10 words also but is bright as a button. X


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## VieraSky

Babeonthego said:


> Pepsi chic thanks so much for that reassuring story. Cole only has about 10 words also but is bright as a button. X

That's how Rowan is. He says about 10-12 words, but is smart and knows what we're saying. He just doesn't want to talk.


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## hayz_baby

Small update on us, we are still awaiting our speech therapy referral date, we have chosen a group as there will b other kids like lo there with speech therapists, it sounds really good. We missed out by like a week so we are still awaiting the referral, probably won't hear till next month. I'm glad I pushed to see the hv as early as I did as we will seen by the time lo is 2 1/2 which I'm happy with. Lo also had his hearing test today. We knew it wasn't going to come back as anything serious as its obvious he can hear well. We were told he could have glue ear but that was ruled out today. So we know he can hear ok so in the meantime we are practicing words.we have had some small inprovement though. He can say spoon & ball. But they are like brrrrnnn, kinda of mumbled and they both sound really similar. Still we see that as improvement as previously he had NO interested in saying words. 
We have started potty training... (Crazy I know) he has started to understand weeing and since expecting no2 dry in the day would b pretty handy :) it does make it difficult as obviously he can't tell us so any tips would be greatly appreciated! He usually grabs his willy when he wants to go so usually it's a case of watching intently. He is good at going for a wee by himself though so we are quietly optimistic we will nail this.


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## AP

Tori's had a progressive day, and copied a few short words "pee,poo :rofl:, fan, and another Scottish thing I won't bore you with :rofl:. Caught her singing even more wheels on the bus too. 

Peanut I just read your comment I feel your pain :( the only way I've been able to build a bridge over this is concentrate on Alexs signing, and that does get better in time. It make me smile because I'm reassured she can communicate her way, and she's happy at that. 

It's so bloody easy for me to feel like I've failed sometimes. :( two kids with speech delay at the same time, you'd think I don't talk to them :dohh:


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## sequeena

AP don't be daft... your eldest already had a delay, her sister probably follows her because they're closer. Doesn't mean you've failed.

Love how these kids are progressing.

Small update - no progress, that is all.


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## AP

I know I know, it's hard to be rational about it! But sometimes I think maybe others think this is *my* fault ykwim? 

What doesnt kill you and all that. :haha:


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## _Vicky_

I wanted to jump in here if you don't mind - my twin boys are 3.5 Fynn ahead did all the usual things at the usual time. Sam noo nothing nada didn't sit till over a year, crawled at 21 (yes 21) months finally walked idependently at 2.5! Also behind accross the board from 6-12 months. (He has a schedule of growing skills every six months) apart from Physio he has never had any assistance as he was always 'borderline' (six month delay considered within average ability) so fast forward to his fifth assessment last week ....

My boy did good!! Almost 14 months progression in speech and language in just six months!! Flew up the charts in all othe areas too so he is now officially 'average' 

I just wanted to share this as sometimes they DO just catch up - sometimes all the assessments and opinions are really just that and all they need is time 

Hope you don't mid me sharing xx


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## _Vicky_

AtomicPink said:


> I know I know, it's hard to be rational about it! But sometimes I think maybe others think this is *my* fault ykwim?
> 
> What doesnt kill you and all that. :haha:

Although a bit different but I know how you feel my boys were such laste walkers - Fynn 21 months (first steps 18 months) Sam 2.5!! (First steps 24 months) so embarrassing with twins neither of whom wanted to walk!! Felt like I'd 'broken' them so big hugs xxxx


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## menageriemom

I appreciate seeing how common this is - DD is 22 months and really doesn't want to say much. She knows and can say about 1/2 the letters in the alphabet, says hi to the animals, does a few animal sounds, a couple expressions (like uh-oh), and says daddy. I decided to go ahead and have her evaluated for speech therapy but she is only 33% behind and needs to be 40% behind to qualify! She was so ahead in everything else, especially physically the 40% can't be lowered. However they are reevaluating her in 2 weeks. It's getting more frustrating for her to not be able to express herself and definitely getting old to have to explain to people she's not a talker when they try to speak to her.


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## RachA

Been a little while since I posted in here. 

As its school holidays Esther isn't in play-school for 6 weeks but the SenCo is coming round a couple of times to see her to maintain a bit of continuity. 
Esther's definitely improving although she still isn't saying loads. She has loads of words that she can say and she will try and copy but I'd say that most of the time she uses her own language!! She 'talks' loads but most is not understandable. 
She seems to be really good at picking up words when put together with a sign so recently she has learnt various colours. 

One really positive thing for us is that she has been given a Portage worker-she will be contacting us next week to arrange 6 bi-weekly sessions. We didn't think that we'd be offered the sessions as when she was first put in the waiting list we were told that they were only allowed to do 2 sessions at play-school and Esther does 3. But they have changed that now :)

We are also awaiting her next block of speech therapy sessions and come Sept/Oct we will be having to look at schools for her. 

She also had a blood test back in May to see if there us anything genetic that could be causing her delay. Last week we got a letter to say that there is something unusual on 2 of her chromosomes so OH and myself need to be tested :(


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## sequeena

Rach that's my nightmare... I hope that whatever it is, it isn't serious :hugs:

Who's kids have had the Ruth Griffith test? How did they do? Finally got T's report through (3 months later). His highest was performance on the 6th centile, a few were under 1st centile too. His GQ centile was 54 which we worked out to be 10.8 months old developmentally :( but I know he'll be ok with help.


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## Peanut78

Sorry Sequeena, not heard of that test before :hugs:

Rach - that's great news on the bi-weekly sessions :happydance:

Vicky - thanks for the positive story :thumbup:

T will be starting school in Sept and we are looking at what kind of assisted communication tool/ device would be useful for him. He is going to a mainstream school so we can't expect the teachers/ classmates to understand all his signing. I feel a bit dis-heartened by this, as I feel like it will make him stand-out more. But of course it is important he is able to express himself and continue building his language and vocab while his speech improves.

Does anyone have any experience with communication devices?


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## AP

PECS boards are cheap and commonly used.

On the other end of the scale, I'm about to try out MyChoicePad, which is a pricey ipad app but has lots of signs and symbols the child can use. Theres a free version on the app store at the mo but the full version is £79.99 (i know :shock:)


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## Peanut78

AtomicPink said:


> PECS boards are cheap and commonly used.
> 
> On the other end of the scale, I'm about to try out MyChoicePad, which is a pricey ipad app but has lots of signs and symbols the child can use. Theres a free version on the app store at the mo but the full version is £79.99 (i know :shock:)

Thanks AP!

I'll have a look at the MyChoicePad, let me know how you find it... I was thinking something on the ipad may be problematic as he has such a strong association with playing games on the ipad :wacko: But maybe he would get used to using it differently - or if it only had that programme available for him to open iykwim... :shrug:


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## xprincessx

2 years 10 months on the 8th and still nothing here

undergoing testing for autism atm, but I KNOW in my heart that he is autistic so I will be shocked if it comes back negative


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## RachA

sequeena said:


> Rach that's my nightmare... I hope that whatever it is, it isn't serious :hugs:
> 
> Who's kids have had the Ruth Griffith test? How did they do? Finally got T's report through (3 months later). His highest was performance on the 6th centile, a few were under 1st centile too. His GQ centile was 54 which we worked out to be 10.8 months old developmentally :( but I know he'll be ok with help.

What's the Ruth Griffith test? Not heard of it.


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## AP

We have had some of the Griffith test done but it's been seriously hard to do it with Alex. Had no results

We had the Baileys test (most early prems have it here) which is very similar, Alex scored as low as 9 months for speech when she was 2yrs 3months. Floored me.


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## mumandco

Zack has his first speech therapy in our house on the 16th August,not sure what will happen in it but hope it goes ok


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## x Michelle x

Well we have had 2 lots of speech therapy now, she said Tabitha is a bit behind with her speech but didn't give me a level that she is at. She was impressed with her understanding and got a really good report afterwards.
We have been told to work on her descriptive words, ie, big, small etc etc and not to focus on teaching things like numbers and colours.
But she really seems to be picking things up now, just over the last few weeks we are seeing a lot more words and more of a willingness to try new words. So i'm feeling pretty hopeful just now! She even said "sh*t" the other day lol! 
(daddy said it by accident when he was carrying her on his shoulders and slipped on some mud!)


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## PepsiChic

x Michelle x said:


> Well we have had 2 lots of speech therapy now, she said Tabitha is a bit behind with her speech but didn't give me a level that she is at. She was impressed with her understanding and got a really good report afterwards.
> We have been told to work on her descriptive words, ie, big, small etc etc and not to focus on teaching things like numbers and colours.
> But she really seems to be picking things up now, just over the last few weeks we are seeing a lot more words and more of a willingness to try new words. So i'm feeling pretty hopeful just now! She even said "sh*t" the other day lol!
> (daddy said it by accident when he was carrying her on his shoulders and slipped on some mud!)

that was one of the first words Barry said too! lol daddy almost dropped something he was carrying and said "oh s**t!" and Barry started to purposely drop things just so he could repeat it :dohh:


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## AP

If Alex said shit i would be so proud i tell ya :rofl:


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## sequeena

For those who are interested in the RG test - https://www.hogrefe.co.uk/griffiths-mental-development-scales-revised-birth-to-2-years-gmds-0-2.html

It's a long test, very detailed. Took an hour or more with T (and didn't go well :haha:). 

That app is a complete bloody rip off, why must it be so expensive! 

Thomas' birthday meal is this evening, I'm hoping he'll start speaking in sentences on his birthday and shock us all :haha:


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## AP

I've just booked Tori on a kids class session at our way that concentrates on speech and communication. Totally fell on it by accident and now its all booked for when Alex is at nursery - DH and Tori can go there!

Hope they like it! Hope it helps. Oh dear god I pray :dohh:

I also can't wait to buy MyChoicePad for Alex so she can communicate and learn more signs.


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## moggymay

It sounds similar to one we went to last term with Jack, they did some lovely games with the children using songs and drawstring bags of toys to dip in to. They also made sure the children did 15 mins without their parent - they fed them a snack and then played some more - whilst the parents got to have a chat. We found it increased Jacks confidence but unfortunately due to the high ratio of SLT/portage workers to children they have cancelled it here :( Too expensive! Wish they had given us the option to book a place and be charged as if it had been a similar cost to nursery or playgroups I reckon most of the parents would have found the money as they seemed to really benefit :/

What do the tablet apps do?

Can anyone offer advice re potty training? I did it with my eldest absolutely fine but Jack is determined that he doesnt want to do it. Pre-school have said try him and if he doesnt do it he can go in a pull-up but would really like to try again after our holiday...we have done stickers which were successful on day one only - novelty I guess - but he was not really getting he had to go merely going and sitting on the potty or loo every 15 mins because I would take him....feels like doing it for the first time again :/


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## x Michelle x

AtomicPink said:


> I've just booked Tori on a kids class session at our way that concentrates on speech and communication. Totally fell on it by accident and now its all booked for when Alex is at nursery - DH and Tori can go there!
> 
> Hope they like it! Hope it helps. Oh dear god I pray :dohh:
> 
> I also can't wait to buy MyChoicePad for Alex so she can communicate and learn more signs.

I'm sure it will help! if not, then at least it will be another fun day with daddy :thumbup: We do play therapy with Tabitha in order to get over her hysterics when we go the the hospital every 3 months, whether or not it works, we just see it as another fun thing to do :)
I downloaded the free test of that app, it actually looks really good! Do you have yours or OHs birthdays coming up? you could always ask for itunes gift vouchers?


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## AP

I've been quite lucky, Alex's iPad has been funded by charity and because i chose the mini for her, I get a £50 itunes card to supplement, so that will help pay for it! :happydance:


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## lovehearts

Hi Ladies, 

I guess I am officially here now. 

We had our 2.5 year check today and my son has been referred to SALT. Iv known it was coming since long before he turned 2 but it's still upset me a little. Does anyone else feel guilty? Like they have let their children down? 

We have to wait up to 6 months for the referral which is frustrating but I guess there's nothing that we can do. 

Tyler tries to talk but just in 1 words and his pronunciation is bad and hardly anyone can understand him, even i struggle. 

So I just wanted to pop in and say hi, and talk to other parents in my position. 

Xx


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## sequeena

The guilt is something we all should suffer but you shouldn't blame yourself :hugs:


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## KellyC75

Any good ipod apps you can recommend please?


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## AP

Peekaboo Barn is a hit here! Its like flash cards but interactive.


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## DanielleM

Spoke again to Jacob's SALT yesterday, was asking her many questions. She says watching him playing, using his imagination and pretend play and interacting with the other children she has ruled out any social disorders, autism, etc. 

She thinks that it is a specific speech and language problem, not linked to any other kind of problem. Not sure if this is a good or bad thing. 

Anybody have any ideas or advice about this? Staying away from google for once!!!


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## sequeena

T's SALT also ruled out autism at the time but I am worrying now as T is hand flapping a lot, is way too over trusting with people (I have read they can be either end, not wanting to interact at all or are OTT) and he's recently began playing by himself for long periods whereas I'm used to constantly entertaining him. I think I'll speak to his paediatrician about it when we see her next.

No idea about the speech problem though hun as they think T's may be linked to his glue ear x


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## moggymay

Danielle -my son is the same, specifically speech and language problem. 

My little one turned 3 today and in the last couple of weeks his speech has really come on, he is trying to talk and copy and sign and do all the things we hoped he would do. He is still behind but I am really hopeful he will catch up in his own time. 

We were told all children age 2 should have 50-200words and by 3 should be constructing sentences. At 2 Jack barely had any words other than no, Mama, Dad and Bam (what he calls his big brother) so the 50-200 was a long way off. Today though we tried writing down the words he has got and we have got past 50 words/signs he can do and are well on the way towards the higher end. Guess when they say most children will have 50 at 2 they forget to tell us that some will have those 50 the day before they are 3. 

I think we are finally moving forwards. Chuffed to be able to share this with you but feel a little guilty being so pleased with him as to me he was perfect without the speech but I think he will be happier now he can communicate more...does that make sense? He is still behind, I am not sure how far but am actually looking forward to hearing what the SLT assessor lady thinks when she sees him and really hope she can see the improvement we do...love him so much and today feel so proud of him. Fave moment of the day was when he went to bed, I said I love you and he said "a wuh you too muh" <3 :cry: a few minute later when he got up and came to his door, I said go to sleep you are tired and he replied "no I not" and we went through the yes you are/no I not for a minute of two because I just wanted to hear his voice. Such a little thing to many mums but I know you guys will understand how big it feels to me to hear him talk.:cloud9:


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## sequeena

Moggy I understand completely!! And happy birthday little man, so glad he's coming on :kiss:


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## PepsiChic

Barry has learnt colours, blue, yellow, black, brown, white, green, orange, red, pink and purple!

but best of all? HE SAYS A SENTENCE!

"what colour is xxx?" 

when we are out he loves to ask us about the cars "what colour is car?" "what colour is truck?" and at home "what colour is pants?" "what colour is wall?" etc

its been a long time coming but finally a sentence! its just 1, but i'll take it!!!


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## sequeena

Well done Barry!!! :dance:


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## sethsmummy

Hi ladies can I join you.

Seth is 3 years 8 months and has only just started talking in the last week... hes had 1 or 2 words since he was 1 but most of the time he was talking in his own way and the only people who could understand him was people who spent a lot of time around him. He gets very frustrated if you dont understand what hes trying to say. He is very timid around people he doesnt know or doesnt see very often and hates when people he doesnt know go to touch him or get too close. Hes had a SALT worker sice before he was 2 but shes only seen him around 3 times and shes not done anything apart from watch him play. He goes to nursery where sometimes hell play with the other children and others he just plays beside them or on his own. 

When they go bk after the summer holidays we have an education visitor coming out to see us and then shell see him in nursery.

Over the last week hes started copying worda from us and can count to 10! Im such a proud mamma!! His little voice is sooo darn cute I love it. Xx


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## PepsiChic

this story made me so sad
(a litle boy with speech delay has been made fun of by 2 of his daycare workers online)

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2395708/Daycare-workers-fired-posting-photo-boy-3-Instagram-mocks-inability-speak.html

the photo of him at the desk looks so forlorn, i want to give him such a big hug! who knows how long they have been mocking him!

it does worry me how Barry would be treated if he were in daycare.


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## sequeena

Oh God, that makes me so mad! :growlmad: why do people go into these jobs if they aren't willing to accept all children the way they are! Surely daycare doesn't pay that well!! T qualifies for some free hours at nursery now and I was going to go for them but stuff like this makes me want to say no!


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## AP

I'd slap them . No question. Lol x


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## MikaylasMummy

Moggymay that's fantastic!and way to go Barry colours and a sentence that's fantastic!i can't imagine koby knowing colours for a long time!
Koby is doing great ATM.he has had a real burst which I have been waiting and waiting for since he was 2!!he is three in November and he can say and uses on a regular bases without prompting lots of new words.hes perfected his sentence "I want ..." That his SLT has been working on from the get go.where he used to say i want bottle for everything he is now out of that habit and says i want ...the right word.he can copy pretty much any word and is starting to use "proper" fill ins for sounds that are out of his reach like k and l,although he almost has the L sound which is fantastic cos even dd took longer to grasp that.he says things like "open car",sees water or people swimming and yells "swimming",says thankyou when you give him things.and lots more that I can't list here.hes also coming out of his shell a lot at daycare.
And I also think he's just about ready to start back at swimming lessons.i stopped him as a baby once he got sick and since his personality is so strong willed and wants everything his way there was no way he was going to a teacher to do what he was told.even as a baby it was all over if an activity he liked ended.he now points to pool when mikaylas in lessons and says swimming and when I ask him if he wants to go in with the teachers he says yes.so I'm going to give him a go!


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## RachA

I'm amazed that those women could get away with doing something like that. 
At Esther's pre-school the staff aren't allowed their phones on them at all so there is no chance of them taking any pictures. The pre-school itself has a landline and mobile number that can be used and the mobile does not have a camera. 
I assumed all pre-school settings would be like this.


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## PepsiChic

Wow! WTG Koby!!!!!!!! he really sounds like hes picking up on things now, i think the ball will keep rolling with him now, fingers crossed! 

RachA - well they both got fired...and rightly so! did you see they mocked another girl for her teeth and put up a photo of her alongside Mator from Cars? how awful that those people in a trusted position act like childish teenagers! picking on toddlers of all people!


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## MikaylasMummy

Editing my koby rant now iv calmed down.lol


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## moggymay

Shocking what some so called "children's workers" will do and think normal :wacko:

Our one they have a camera but it is strictly controlled and every picture is printed and goes into their "learning story", not sure how exactly it works but the camera takes the pic, you sit it in the printer and it emerges, the camera doesn't hold photos if that makes sense? It is lovely to see the pics of them doing things you wouldn't see at home IYKWIM.

We just got back from a little break with the boys, speech has come on a little whilst we were away....he now has the phrase "I don't want to" which he uses alongside "I do want to" :) Stupidly proud of him and really hoping they see an improvement when he starts pre-school in September as a pre-schooler (over 3) rather than a little one. Wish we could hear from the SLT to get an idea if it will start coming or if we need do anything new....still doing puzzles, songs and the "what is in the bag" game/story.

It feels good to know he is moving forward although he is still behind others his age, just hope it doesn't hold him back being delayed...


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## sethsmummy

Hi ladies can I ask those whos children are pre-school or older.... did you hold your little one back a year for school? Because my son has a december birthday I can hold him back a year but im not sure I want to. We have to decide by christmas if we want to hold him bk due to the speech delay or let him go upto school next year.

looking for input on both holding back and letting them go up if any1 can help xxx

mikaylas mummy and moggy well done to your lo's for the extra words and sentences! Xxx


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## sequeena

Moggy that's fab :hugs:

Sethsmummy I'll be sending T next September. It may be that they pick speech up quicker if they're around the other children.

Thomas just said MUMMY!! I am so happy! :cloud9: :cry:


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## PepsiChic

Sethsmummy why dont you let him go, make sure you get daily updates from his teachers, and if he is struggling too much, pull him out and wait till the next year? 

I argee with Sequeena though being around the other children might encourage him to try new words and stringing words together, i would probably say go for it this year and give him a chance!

sequeena!!!! thats SO awesome!!! :hugs: :happydance:


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## sethsmummy

Sorry should have explained that better. Hes already in pre school now and does 2 and a half hours monday to friday. He starts back tomorrow kn his last year of pre school.... bt we have to decide by christmas whether to allow him upto primary school or give him another extra year in pre school. Im thinkig just now that im not going to hold him back...he manages fine at pre school apart from toileting. Hes still in nappies most of the time but wee a year to crack that so shouldnt be a problem. Were really struggling with the potty training :shrug:

xxx


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## AP

We're definatley pushing to hold Alex back a year. For me, I feel preschool is a better age to do it, as I guarantee it will happen at some point. With her ASD and speech&development delay, shes not ready to be toilet trained for a start. Thats not the be all and end all, but I just feel its the right decision.

Also Tori will be in nursery same time as her if she is kept back. Which I imagine will help


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## sequeena

Ah yes I understand, in that case I'd hold him back :hugs:

T has also said uh oh! Very proud :)


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## AP

Oh sequeena :shock: hoping for a dark :bfp: for you! :happydance:


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## moggymay

Sethsmummy....may I ask what year he would start school in if he stayed an extra year in pre-school? Would he then go straight into Y1 and miss YR (reception) or would he simply do an extra year of pre-school and then join YR?

If it means he will miss Reception class then 100% do not hold him back. We had been advised by the SLT that they "could" request to hold a child back in pre-school but then it would mean missing Reception and going straight into Y1....reception is very play based and I think they definitely benefit from the class. I am hoping despite being an August baby (youngest children here are August babies) that my little man will be ok to join as he would without the delay.

Is he delayed in any way other than the speech and toilet training? What makes you want to hold him back?


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## sethsmummy

Im in scotland so there is no reception year... technically this year would be his reception year if we were in england. If I hold him bk it means he would stay in pre school(reception) an extra year then go upto primary 1 (year 2). 

At the minute I dont want to hold him back, his speech has come on so much this last few weeks I think he will do great and he will get more support in primary than the nursery can offer him. We have an education visitor coming to see us on tuesday, we were reffered after his last SOGS review as I said SALT were rubbish as he never sees the woman. 

He has no other issues apart from the speech and the trouble potty training. Hes obviously behind with numbers etc as that falls in with the speech but I dont think it will take him long once hes got the grasp of it. Hes pretty clever with other things, especially if it involves technology. Well actually one issue I suppose is his aversion to some people, sometimes hes fine with someone and other times he is terrified of them and he doesnt cope well with strangers (most of the time). With the potty training he has good days and bad days... if I put boxers and trousers on he pees or poos in them... if hes naked hes fab or if just in boxers hes quite good but we still average 2 or 3 accidents a day when we try and weve been trying on and off since he was 2. He has open access to 3 potties around the house...the main toilet is a no go as hes scared of it as he is very small for his age xx


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## moggymay

I would say go for it! :)

Wierdly we had boxer issues but when put in pants (slips I think theyre called in some stores but basically pants with no fly etc he was fine. Still cannot get him into boxers now :wacko: Potty training second attempt here next week....


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## MikaylasMummy

Well I would say koby is probably experiencing his "explosion" right now.which is weird because it seems to have come on after a very nasty fall he had on Monday where he absoloutley smashed his forehead into concrete..sounded like a bowling ball hit the ground..and had a decent concussion (instead of crying he went pale limp and hard to keep awake).took him to ED but he eventually perked up and I couldn't handle keeping him still in the waiting room so left.lol.
He is just talking so much on his own now.he says thankyou all the time anytime anyone gives him something.says everyone's names,nanna,grandad,mikayla,laura(aunty) Lilly and Brooke (cousins) and attempts all other families names.he is often walking round yelling "mikayla,where are you?" And shouts "there she is" when he finds her.came out with "cuddle" today when he was cuddling a toy,is now saying "gentle" cos I said it to him today.and tonnes more new words in the last week or so.3 months before he turns three and I thought he'd missed the explosion boat so feeling a little better that it seems hel probably start catching up now.cant wait to tell his SLT!


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## AP

Wow, way to go Koby! Is that odd though!

Tori is off to her speech therapy type play session today. Exciting!

As for toilet training our nursery wanted Alex to come in without nappies. :saywha: I was like, er... are you having a laugh, she's not even signing toilet and has no clue about being wet! The autism support worker seems to have had a word with the nursery since, as they have mentioned they are backing off. 

Yesterday we finally got the full version of MyChoicePad on her iPad. I am stunned, it is amazing, it has the full Makaton Core vocabulary on it - each symbol opens up a video showing you how to sign that particular word. Which is a great refresher for us too after our Makaton training.

Alex is beinging to vocalise sounds with her signs. For example, she signs help and says "Ha" ("H" being the operative sound)


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## MikaylasMummy

So strange!lol.
Yay for toris first lesson!it will be great to see how she responds.that app sounds fantastic!sounds like it cost a bundle though!!
And great that Alex is using correct sounds.it sort of helps make sense of their speech when they get some sounds together with pointing


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## AP

Indeed!

Hubby just called to tell me the class was brilliant and Tori had a ball! I'm glad, cause she can be a little diva!


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## DanielleM

Thought I would as here as you ladies are likely to know best. Well Jacob is potty trained in the house naked now, but with undies and pants on he will wet himself. Also as he cannot speak or sign how the heck am I going to get him to alert me to the fact that he needs the toilet when out and about/or at preschool? Any advice would be great xx


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## AP

Danielle could you start signing toilet each time he uses it in the house? He might click when out.


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## moggymay

pecs card in his pocket? Our pre-school staff all have them on a keyring (toilet, thirsty, hungry, happy, sad etc) so the children can show what they want if they dont want to speak or can't speak, the children ALL use them whether they speak or not. Maybe your nursery could do similar for him?


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## moggymay

Meant to add ours have them on retractable beltrings where the children can access them at any time (they might not see but they can feel them tugging the cards :) )


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## DanielleM

Thanks girls will take them ideas on board x


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## MikaylasMummy

Well, a happy and a little sad day today.picking up koby from daycare his teacher said "oh my god he has been babbling all day mikayla had to translate but he was saying lots of words and constantly trying to get my attention....and biting me with a dinasour and punching my boobs all day"....:dohh: apparently he was also running around outside yelling poo and wer and taking his pants off..:wacko:
So my beautifully behaved little boy for others is turning into a little monster two year old boy as his speech comes along.oh well,better that than worrying about when he will talk.
We have decided we will keep him in speech therapy for a few more months to continue his improvement then give it a break and start it up when he's older if he happens to have any pronounciation problems.it will be good to save $75 a week for a while!
He is getting really good with things like " car goes driving" and shows for wearing" etc.thats probably his newest thing.his counting is getting pretty good as well.
Hope everyone else is coming along well


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## bananabump

Hi everyone! So happy to have found this thread :) My son Leo is 27 months old and not talking yet. He can say car, dee for daddy, tra for train, nuh for no and bahh for bye. We've been referred to a paediatrician at the hospital for a hearing test and early intervention assessment. Even though he can say those words, he rarely uses them and I can't wait for the day when he's able to talk me. He uses signs to communicate and has amazingly taught himself several including rubbing his tummy when he's hungry, pointing to his mouth and licking his lips when he wants a drink, tapping his head when he wants his hat on, pretending to sleep/making a snoring noise when he wants to go to bed etc Our first appt at the hospital is on the 9th Dec but he has seen a speech therapist twice already who thinks he may have verbal apraxia.


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## AP

I wondered where this thread had gone. Hello bananabump! Signing is wonderful and makes such a difference to communication, doesnt it. We have been using Makaton for over a year and our daughter is amazing - I think she works well with visual stuff. 

Well at the grand old age of 4 and a half Alex has started using a handful of words!! I know she can sometimes loose them but I am really holding out! Tori has improved too, its still not where it should be but she's getting there. 

Alex is beginning to recognise letters and can spell out her name. Its nothing like how the letters sound but again its the same sounds she's using so it's something. 

They want us to start using a PECS board so she can communicate in mainstream, but whilst training to use it I realised you have to ignore her even if she using the sign or word, to force her to use the book. To me thats a bit detrimental to her speech, especially for Alex as she has autism, she could potentially just end up relying on the book and loose any words ykwim.

im in a pickle. :(


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## moggymay

Could you use it alongside speech for the words she has? Maybe praise her saying it and put it on the board and move to the next bit of the board? Sorry if that isn't possible but I understand the hesitation in promoting something other than speech as we were encouraged to use makaton and get Jack to use it too. In the end after a similar dilemma to you we decided to do both and to use the words he had and makaton for those he was missing, we made sure when he said the words he had that he also used the sign so he didn't use one instead of the other more to enhance each other if that makes sense? Now he is talking a lot more but misses the ends off words even for sounds he knows....it is bizarre but is known as hard/final consonant deletion and is something we are working through now....

Do you have someone who coordinates everything that you could discuss the concern with? If you explain your issue then they may be able to give advice of examples to help you make the right decision for you and you girls :hugs:


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## AP

I am suspect that it is down to sheer laziness, in mainstream, they probably wont have anyone who understands the signing but PECS is universal so they will understand ykwim? But to train alex up on this we have to ignore her words and signs. Thats just, well, crazy, Id rather use the words with it.

As I type that I realise I am going to just ignore their plans :rofl: I need to take control again!


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## moggymay

:thumbup: You have to do what is right for her as you are her champion! I think you are making a good choice!


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## xprincessx

3 years old here now, 4 words :D "mumum", "dada", "ninin" and "bob bob" 

translated are "mummy", "daddy", "nanny" and "spongebob" 

<3


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## aliss

xprincessx said:


> 3 years old here now, 4 words :D "mumum", "dada", "ninin" and "bob bob"
> 
> translated are "mummy", "daddy", "nanny" and "spongebob"
> 
> <3


Priorities :rofl: SpongeBob!

We had mommy about a month ago, it was lovely!!! :cloud9:


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## Wilsey

My son can only say dada/daddy, kitty (embarrassingly pronounced titty), hiya, ta, shoes, car, no, uh oh and nana. He says pla for please. He also says something that sounds like "oh dear" but we're not sure. 

Reading this thread I think I'll stop worrying, sounds like lots of boys talk later! ;) plus his comprehension is excellent, so that's a good sign I think.


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## Quackquack99

Summer is 28 months old and can say probably around 20 words, she has become been seeing a speech therapist since July but she has improved slightly. I'm concerned that she is significantly delayed but speech therapist thinks she is fine. I hate healthcare professionals that doesn't listen.


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## RachA

Atomic Pink-I would recommend using the PECs. 

Esther is using it a bit and within days went from giving me the stripe with the picture in and not saying anything to giving me the strip and saying 'I Songs' 'I Milk' etc. 
They pick up using the book quickly. We started off with words that Esther actually knew in order to encourage her to pick up and use the book. Once she was consistent we added in new pictures. 
It won't encourage her to get the book and not talk because when she brings the sentence strip to you you have to say what the sentence is and get her to repeat if you can. 

I really wish we'd been able to introduce pecs earlier. 
The trouble with signing is that children aren't all learning the same signs-Esther's been learning Makaton but now she is having to be taught Sign-A-Long because that's what's now used. You'll also find that if she is using signs at school her school friends won't necessarily understand her but they will if she shows them the pecs.


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## sequeena

Oh hello nice to see this being used again :D


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## MikaylasMummy

Hey everyone!i posted on here a little while ago but thought everyone had forgotten about the thread.koby has just suddenly started talking which is a huge relief.he talks in full sentences even using the little words like and,the,I etc.we stopped speech therapy for now because there is no point when he's speeding along at such a rate and we will just go back later on if his sounds need a little work.but even the sounds are improving every day and he can already say the k sound which is much earlier than mikayla could.


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## AP

Thank you Rach it's good to hear someone's experiences. You make a great point, and they think they would help sentences. 
The Makaton / signalong thing drives me mad as signalong has less resources whereas Makaton is more mainstream. We chose Makaton over signalong and after an initial argument over it we resolved that they are both the same really. I've been on a Makaton 4 module course and decided to try a signalong one to compare, and tbh , I only learnt one or two signs that differed, the rest were the same.

Your post has made a difference to my thinking, so thank you, you might have just done an amazing thing for me ;)


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## sequeena

Quackquack99 said:


> Summer is 28 months old and can say probably around 20 words, she has become been seeing a speech therapist since July but she has improved slightly. I'm concerned that she is significantly delayed but speech therapist thinks she is fine. I hate healthcare professionals that doesn't listen.

20 words for a 28 month old sounds fine to me. My son is 27 months and says less than half that. What else makes you think she is delayed? A few of us here have delayed/globally delayed children.


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## Reid

hi all glad I've came across this thread. my sons 2.8 and doesn't talk much he can say some words and can put them together like there you go all done that kinda thing. he dose alot of jibirish talk and sometimes will not use a word a knows for weeks. he had a 30 month check a while back and the hv did point out he should be talking more she also brought up speech therapy so she's going to call us back in a few month to see if there's any improvement so far I dont see one. im finding it hard to potty train dont no if the lack of speach has anything to do wiyh xx


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## AP

I find lack of speech plays a large part of potty training. You need some kind of communication and we haven't got quite enough even with our youngest(who talks more)


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## sequeena

Yes I agree speech plays a big part... well with everything really!


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## Quackquack99

sequeena said:


> Quackquack99 said:
> 
> 
> Summer is 28 months old and can say probably around 20 words, she has become been seeing a speech therapist since July but she has improved slightly. I'm concerned that she is significantly delayed but speech therapist thinks she is fine. I hate healthcare professionals that doesn't listen.
> 
> 20 words for a 28 month old sounds fine to me. My son is 27 months and says less than half that. What else makes you think she is delayed? A few of us here have delayed/globally delayed children.Click to expand...

She is delayed because according to her speech therapist she should be speaking more but then she has issues with a short attention span and we think she may have sensory issues so there is a possibility she may have an underlying issue. It broke my heart to hear the speech therapist say she is delayed by half a year :(


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## sequeena

If that's the case you need to be referred by a paediatrician to do a ruth griffiths test. It will show truly how far behind she is. Your HV can refer you :hugs: Thomas had his first at 20 months and was developmentally 10 months. He's just had another Ruth Griffiths test which I don't know the result of yet but we're hoping he's in the 12-18 months range now. He's 27 months so is delayed by quite a bit.

He also has sensory issues which we've been referred to an OT for. The paediatrician referred him to that.


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## AP

Quack- If it's any consolation, our Tori had less words at that age, but with time got better. She got some speech therapy and things have improved. It's not as good as some her age but still making progress. 

Half a year sounds a lot but in terms of speech it's not too much, and can certainly be caught up on. I hope this gives a bit of hope Hun!

I don't know what Tori was scored at but Alex was scored at 9 months at this very age :/


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## sequeena

As for the attention span thing that has been noted by everyone including his paediatrician. I don't necessarily think it's a bad thing though 2 year olds don't normally focus on one thing for long periods anyway so don't worry about that. Thomas is forever flitting between toys, losing interest in activities etc.


----------



## RachA

AtomicPink said:


> Thank you Rach it's good to hear someone's experiences. You make a great point, and they think they would help sentences.
> The Makaton / signalong thing drives me mad as signalong has less resources whereas Makaton is more mainstream. We chose Makaton over signalong and after an initial argument over it we resolved that they are both the same really. I've been on a Makaton 4 module course and decided to try a signalong one to compare, and tbh , I only learnt one or two signs that differed, the rest were the same.
> 
> Your post has made a difference to my thinking, so thank you, you might have just done an amazing thing for me ;)

Glad I could help :)

Esther's SENco said that sign-a-long isn't as available as Makaton as they want people to buy their resources. So frustrating as I don't feel we need to learn a huge amount of signing as Esther will eventually talk properly so I don't want to have to buy the resources.


----------



## RachA

sequeena said:


> As for the attention span thing that has been noted by everyone including his paediatrician. I don't necessarily think it's a bad thing though 2 year olds don't normally focus on one thing for long periods anyway so don't worry about that. Thomas is forever flitting between toys, losing interest in activities etc.

I agree. Most children at that age don't have much in the way if an attention span. And 6 months behind isn't a huge amount at the moment. 
Esther is currently 18 months behind in her speech and 12 behind in her social and motor skills.


----------



## xprincessx

aliss said:


> xprincessx said:
> 
> 
> 3 years old here now, 4 words :D "mumum", "dada", "ninin" and "bob bob"
> 
> translated are "mummy", "daddy", "nanny" and "spongebob"
> 
> <3
> 
> 
> Priorities :rofl: SpongeBob!
> 
> We had mommy about a month ago, it was lovely!!! :cloud9:Click to expand...

:rofl: he loves spongebob!! aww when callum first said mummy i cried! :cloud9:


----------



## bananabump

Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(


----------



## RachA

bananabump said:


> Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(

At this point try not to be too dispondant with regards to how far behind his speech is. The more important thing is how much he progresses in the next 6, 12, 18 months etc. Esther wasn't assessed until she was 3 years and at that point she was 18 months behind with her speech, social and motor skills. At each review (6 monthly) her social and motor skills have increased slightly more than 6 months so they are now around 12-15 months behind. Her speech however is still 18 months behind. As long as they are not falling further behind it's not an issue. You may find that he suddenly gains a lot of words. Esther has done but because she has been 18 months behind for so long she still isn't talking anywhere near as much as she should be. 

My advice is to really take on board what the speech therapist is teaching him. Ask what you should be doing with him at home and implimenting it. One thing we learnt which may or may not be appropriate to you, is to move the majority or all of his toys out of reach so he has to start asking for the toys he wants to play with. Same with DVDs. Then if he points at something get the item down along with 1 other and ask which one he wants, naming both of them.


----------



## sequeena

bananabump said:


> Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(

Thomas is similar :hugs: Speech therapy will help a lot :) It's scary when they put them in an age bracket but it really isn't so bad once you get used to it. Leo will catch up soon enough xx


----------



## AP

I spoke to the ASD team today and they agrees I could potentially be causing more issues introducing PECS in the way they originally intended. She's going to have a rethink as we do think it will help visual sentence structure (long way off but still) it could well be Alex will drop the newfound vocalisations and Makaton and rely on little pictures. She worked well with PECS introduction at nursery so we may consider continuing that- Alex is a different girl in nursery. It makes life difficult and sometimes it looks like we don't put enough effort in when in fact we do over and above :dohh: joys of autism.


----------



## PepsiChic

A little update on Barry,

He knows over 100 words now...but pronouncing them is not clear, its like only we understand most of them and everyone else says "what did he say?" 

He still can only string 3 or 4 words together and its not proper sentences yet "blue car all gone?" he is however very polite! "mummy cake please?" "thankyou so much" "your welcome" "excooz me" and he knows when to use these words in context which is fantastic.

we finally got the referral for his autism assessment and got the intake pack, we have filled in our part, have to drop the other part off for the Dr to fill in on Thursday at the Dr's office and then get it sent back, they said its a 4-6 months wait once they get it back. i know he will be diagnosed with it, the older hes getting the more apparent some of the "quirks" he has are.


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## sun

bananabump said:


> Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(

My son was similar at your LOs age. He started saying some words at about 2.5yrs and was 16-20 months behind. Here they tend to give a range since the range of "normal" is so large. But though 18mo seems like loads, my son has improved so much since then and I doubt he would be that far behind at this point. My guess is he's closer to 9mo back and still improving at 4yo. I just wanted to give you a positive story since hearing that can be a blow. How is the rest of his speech comprehension and communication? My son had very poor ability to make/copy sounds (still not great) and no words, but had a good understanding as well as an understanding of communicating with us.


----------



## bananabump

RachA said:


> bananabump said:
> 
> 
> Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(
> 
> At this point try not to be too dispondant with regards to how far behind his speech is. The more important thing is how much he progresses in the next 6, 12, 18 months etc. Esther wasn't assessed until she was 3 years and at that point she was 18 months behind with her speech, social and motor skills. At each review (6 monthly) her social and motor skills have increased slightly more than 6 months so they are now around 12-15 months behind. Her speech however is still 18 months behind. As long as they are not falling further behind it's not an issue. You may find that he suddenly gains a lot of words. Esther has done but because she has been 18 months behind for so long she still isn't talking anywhere near as much as she should be.
> 
> My advice is to really take on board what the speech therapist is teaching him. Ask what you should be doing with him at home and implimenting it. One thing we learnt which may or may not be appropriate to you, is to move the majority or all of his toys out of reach so he has to start asking for the toys he wants to play with. Same with DVDs. Then if he points at something get the item down along with 1 other and ask which one he wants, naming both of them.Click to expand...

Thank you! We've tried lots of the techniques from speech therapy but he's not really interested! I will definitely try the toy thing you've suggested though. What's worrying is that he'll learn a word and say it for a while and then completely stop using it! He's been obsessed with Thonas the tank engine since last Christmas and around June started saying 'tran' then it reduced to 'tra' and literally in the last week he's stopped saying anything!


----------



## bananabump

sequeena said:


> bananabump said:
> 
> 
> Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(
> 
> Thomas is similar :hugs: Speech therapy will help a lot :) It's scary when they put them in an age bracket but it really isn't so bad once you get used to it. Leo will catch up soon enough xxClick to expand...

Thanks hub. I hope so! If he's got this verbal apraxia though it won't be as straight forward. Looking forward to our appointment with the paed team next week to find out more! Xxx


----------



## bananabump

sun said:


> bananabump said:
> 
> 
> Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(
> 
> My son was similar at your LOs age. He started saying some words at about 2.5yrs and was 16-20 months behind. Here they tend to give a range since the range of "normal" is so large. But though 18mo seems like loads, my son has improved so much since then and I doubt he would be that far behind at this point. My guess is he's closer to 9mo back and still improving at 4yo. I just wanted to give you a positive story since hearing that can be a blow. How is the rest of his speech comprehension and communication? My son had very poor ability to make/copy sounds (still not great) and no words, but had a good understanding as well as an understanding of communicating with us.Click to expand...

That definitely gives me some hope.. thank you! His understanding is amazing and he always finds a way to communicate with us using gestures etc which is why I find it even more frustrating that he can't talk because he's such a clever little thing really! He can say Car, dee for Daddy, bahh for Bye and nuh for No. He hates if we ask him to copy words/sounds but he can do some animal noises like lion, monkey, cow and sheep but the rest of the time he's pretty silent. He babbles now and then but only when he's excited about something. We've been through a lot with him in his short life and I was really hoping this wouldn't be another problem to add to the list! :(


----------



## MikaylasMummy

PepsiChic said:


> A little update on Barry,
> 
> He knows over 100 words now...but pronouncing them is not clear, its like only we understand most of them and everyone else says "what did he say?"
> 
> He still can only string 3 or 4 words together and its not proper sentences yet "blue car all gone?" he is however very polite! "mummy cake please?" "thankyou so much" "your welcome" "excooz me" and he knows when to use these words in context which is fantastic.
> 
> we finally got the referral for his autism assessment and got the intake pack, we have filled in our part, have to drop the other part off for the Dr to fill in on Thursday at the Dr's office and then get it sent back, they said its a 4-6 months wait once they get it back. i know he will be diagnosed with it, the older hes getting the more apparent some of the "quirks" he has are.

 Go Barry!!he sounds so much like koby with his politeness!!youd think a kids who was that far behind would learn manners last but koby starts everything with excuse me mum,thankyou and please etc!its adorable.i can't believe you have to wait 4-6 months that's like a lifetime!!


----------



## Reid

bumping for little nic xx


----------



## sethsmummy

been a while since iv been in here but so happy to hear all the progress everyone's children are making! 

Seth has just turned 4 and in the last 3 to 4 weeks he is FINALLY starting to speak! Its so nice.. a lot of what he says is still unrecognizable but he can say quite a few words now and even string together a very basic sentence of two to three words like "birdies up there" although its not always clear. hes working around age 2ish.. hes just behind my nephew who has just turned 2. But its so fantastic finally hearing him speak!

we are finally finished with the first assessments for CDAT (child development assessment team) who are looking at an autism spectrum disorder and have a multi agency meeting on tuesday to get all the reports and see what extra help is going to be put in place for seth and im also seeing a nice lady from the princess trust for carers on tuesday and wednesday who is helping us fill in a disability living allowance form. 

Seth is still hyperactive (its 9:30pm and hes hyper as ever) and still struggles with some situations.... for example we took him to see santa last weekend.. ooooo my lord... wish id never gone. we waited in a que for 40 minutes but as soon as i stepped foot into the tent with him.. he had a MAJOR breakdown.. he was petrified of santa!! :( sucks that he cant enjoy a simple thing that most kids take for granted :( 

hope everyone is looking forward to christmas :D I know i am this is the first year that seth understands what a present is :D :happydance: very excited!


----------



## Casey3

bananabump said:


> Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(

15 months is so early! reading the 'how many words should your kid know by 18 months' list, my guy was super behind too.. he knew like 8-10 words at 18 months and they were all like mama dada nana dog. I booked a speech appt just in case since the waiting list was so long and we got an appt last week, a few weeks before his 2nd birthday. Welllllll, it seems like he knew he had an appt and decided to pick up every word under the sun.. they're not all perfectly clear yet and he's still dropping some of the endings of words, and he really only has a few 2 word sentences, everything else is just one word but the difference from 21-22 months was INCREDIBLE and improving every day.. so I wouldn't worry at 15 months, they all figure things out in their own time and in our case the speech therapist was stunned he didn't have any words at 18 months because he was a chatter box for her :haha:


----------



## PepsiChic

Casey3 said:


> bananabump said:
> 
> 
> Found out today that Leo is 15 months behind with his speech :(
> 
> 15 months is so early! reading the 'how many words should your kid know by 18 months' list, my guy was super behind too.. he knew like 8-10 words at 18 months and they were all like mama dada nana dog. I booked a speech appt just in case since the waiting list was so long and we got an appt last week, a few weeks before his 2nd birthday. Welllllll, it seems like he knew he had an appt and decided to pick up every word under the sun.. they're not all perfectly clear yet and he's still dropping some of the endings of words, and he really only has a few 2 word sentences, everything else is just one word but the difference from 21-22 months was INCREDIBLE and improving every day.. so I wouldn't worry at 15 months, they all figure things out in their own time and in our case the speech therapist was stunned he didn't have any words at 18 months because he was a chatter box for her :haha:Click to expand...


Shes not saying her child IS 15 months old...but 15 months BEHIND in speech for his age.


Barry at 2 years 11months old was put at 1 year 7 months for speech and understanding so he was 16 months behind.


----------



## hayz_baby

It's funny this popped up today as lo had his first session with speech therapy today altho oh went as I can't get anymore time off :( 
They mentioned he has a short attention span. My oh was saying that they were singing row row row your boat and lo would only sit for a couple of mins before going off. He has never been that interested on doing that sort of group stuff and we have never pushed it.. Maybe we should of encouraged it more... It's like with reading books he doesn't have much of an interest in them and sometimes we are lucky just to read to him at night.. It's always offered but he is just not interested and we never overly force it iykwim...
Since waitin for st we have picked up some more words but not a great deal more and they are still sounds as such. His delay is starting to get more and more apparent. Especially when children over a year younger then him are talking better then him :( 
Most of the time these new words are sounds, some are better then others. He knows hat and says hat but it always sounds forced.. He can say glove (the newest) but it's more glub as well as hiya bye. He has started to change words tho.. We used to be da (dad) and hay (mum) now we are dayo and hayo (he calls me hay, it's the shorten version of my name which is hayley but he doesn't know me a hayley only as mum.. Eg if u asked him to pass this to hayley he doesn't know but pass to mummy he knows. Oh calls me hay and 90% of the time calls my mummy when lo is about, no ones perfect but I think he calls me hay as he has picked it up and it's easier then mum) most of our sounds are eeee sounds and a lot finish in o. A lot of our sounds also have multiple meanings.. Eg eeooo is wee wee, one of his friends, woody his toy, and can b general pointing, he also sounds eeee at general pointing. Da is also his lightening McQueen toy. What was Brrrl (which is bowl ball spoon) is now boo ray.. He seems to change and I'm not sure if this is good bad or indifferent.
I can see what st means by the attention tho. Maybe we have been to relaxed about it. "Oh if he doesn't to do that anymore we will leave it" sort of attitude. They have spoken to us a lot about eye contact and making sure we are on his level. We are trying to be really consistent with that now, sometimes u just don't think or forget so have been trying to make a real conscious effort to do this. It's can b difficult as sometimes he doesn't look/listen to you or he tries to pull away etc so I try to stop him and to make sure I finish what I'm saying to him no matter what, whilst he is looking at me instead of just leaving it be...
I dunno maybe it is all our fault.. It seems quite difficult tbh.. Any kind words or wisdom or advice will b greatly appreciated, or some insight into his speech..


----------



## Kellyx

My son said very few words until he was around 2.5 

I was worried as other kids his age were talking a lot more. 

Some kids just take longer than others.

Cant get my son to shut up now LOL

Give it time!


----------



## mumandco

Haven't posted in here in such a long time.i understand the nhs is stretched etc etc but we saw the speech therapist for the first time 8months ago and apart from 4group sessions which weren't very good we haven't seen the speech therapist since then.

Zack starts school in January for 2hours a day,I have to go to the school on Friday for a parent welcome meeting. I know I will have to mention about zacks speech delay but I just feel in the dark about it iykwim. I've tried to contact his speech therapist with no such luck apart from he's due a review in January. I was hoping I could get some info off her on what I need to tell the school and how far behind zack actually is. I'm really nervous about him starting school more than just normal first day nerves


----------



## RachA

hayz_baby said:


> It's funny this popped up today as lo had his first session with speech therapy today altho oh went as I can't get anymore time off :(
> They mentioned he has a short attention span. My oh was saying that they were singing row row row your boat and lo would only sit for a couple of mins before going off. He has never been that interested on doing that sort of group stuff and we have never pushed it.. Maybe we should of encouraged it more... It's like with reading books he doesn't have much of an interest in them and sometimes we are lucky just to read to him at night.. It's always offered but he is just not interested and we never overly force it iykwim...
> Since waitin for st we have picked up some more words but not a great deal more and they are still sounds as such. His delay is starting to get more and more apparent. Especially when children over a year younger then him are talking better then him :(
> Most of the time these new words are sounds, some are better then others. He knows hat and says hat but it always sounds forced.. He can say glove (the newest) but it's more glub as well as hiya bye. He has started to change words tho.. We used to be da (dad) and hay (mum) now we are dayo and hayo (he calls me hay, it's the shorten version of my name which is hayley but he doesn't know me a hayley only as mum.. Eg if u asked him to pass this to hayley he doesn't know but pass to mummy he knows. Oh calls me hay and 90% of the time calls my mummy when lo is about, no ones perfect but I think he calls me hay as he has picked it up and it's easier then mum) most of our sounds are eeee sounds and a lot finish in o. A lot of our sounds also have multiple meanings.. Eg eeooo is wee wee, one of his friends, woody his toy, and can b general pointing, he also sounds eeee at general pointing. Da is also his lightening McQueen toy. What was Brrrl (which is bowl ball spoon) is now boo ray.. He seems to change and I'm not sure if this is good bad or indifferent.
> I can see what st means by the attention tho. Maybe we have been to relaxed about it. "Oh if he doesn't to do that anymore we will leave it" sort of attitude. They have spoken to us a lot about eye contact and making sure we are on his level. We are trying to be really consistent with that now, sometimes u just don't think or forget so have been trying to make a real conscious effort to do this. It's can b difficult as sometimes he doesn't look/listen to you or he tries to pull away etc so I try to stop him and to make sure I finish what I'm saying to him no matter what, whilst he is looking at me instead of just leaving it be...
> I dunno maybe it is all our fault.. It seems quite difficult tbh.. Any kind words or wisdom or advice will b greatly appreciated, or some insight into his speech..

attention span is something the speech therapists usually pick up on. Generally speaking it is normal for children to lack in the attention department, however for some children its actually a major issue. For example - my son had very little attention span but he was talking properly by 2years. But my daughter had little attention and at 4 years is still way way way behind. So for children who just aren't picking up speech teaching them how to focus is a very helpful thing. By the way, don't beat yourself up about it - you've behaved in a way every other parent will and in most instances it isn't an issue. I would suggest that you try doing some of the things the speech therapist does with him but don't make him do it for too long. We do things like a 4 piece jigsaw and then Esther can play for a couple of minutes. Then another 4 piece jigsaw, and another session of play. Children tend to respond well to the 'work' if they can they play afterwords. Then you can increase the amount of time for the 'work' But the emphasis is on completing the task and not making him focus on something for endless amounts of time. As his concentration grows the length of time will too.

Iro the forming of the words - don't worry about it. It will all come clear. The only thing you need to do is to repeat the correct word back to him. My in laws have a way of doing this that makes it into a negative thing - so Esther will say 'look at the shower' and she means 'flower' my mil will say something like 'no you mean 'flower'' whereas i will say 'yes look at the 'flower'' and put emphasis on the 'flower' bit. 


I really feel your pain with hearing other children talking - as i said Esther is 4 and they have put her speech at the age of a 2 1/2 year old although tbh i would say that she at the level of a 2 1/2 year old that isn't talking much but is still within the 'normal' range. I have friends who have children who are over 2 years younger than Esther and they are talking loads more than Esther is - it makes me really sad and actually makes me back off from seeing them as i find it too painful.


----------



## RachA

mumandco said:


> Haven't posted in here in such a long time.i understand the nhs is stretched etc etc but we saw the speech therapist for the first time 8months ago and apart from 4group sessions which weren't very good we haven't seen the speech therapist since then.
> 
> Zack starts school in January for 2hours a day,I have to go to the school on Friday for a parent welcome meeting. I know I will have to mention about zacks speech delay but I just feel in the dark about it iykwim. I've tried to contact his speech therapist with no such luck apart from he's due a review in January. I was hoping I could get some info off her on what I need to tell the school and how far behind zack actually is. I'm really nervous about him starting school more than just normal first day nerves

The playschool should be fine about the speech delay - they will of seen children much further behind than your lo. How old is your son exactly and what type of speech does he have?

I would wait for the review meeting and ask the therapist every question you can think of between now and then! It's only been at the end of Esther's 4th block of sessions that i've actually found out that they have such a large gap between sessions because we are supposed to work on what we have learnt at the sessions.


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## sequeena

Yes, Thomas' lack of attention is something his speech therapists, Portage worker and Paediatrician picked up on. They're using sign language to help him learn to wait.


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## AP

Waiting was one of the first signs we used and we thought she's never learn, but it clicked! (Took a while, granted, but clearly she's never been one to wait since she escaped my womb :rofl:)


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## sequeena

Ahhhh I can't wait for 'wait' to click, I think he's confusing it with the wheels on the bus :rofl: I'm getting 'more' quite a bit now :) he was watching something on youtube earlier and signed 'more' for me. I said 'more what' and he wiggled because he wanted the song back on :dance:


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## AP

:happydance: it's magic. I got a new sign from her today - "christmas!!!"


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## sequeena

AtomicPink said:


> :happydance: it's magic. I got a new sign from her today - "christmas!!!"

Oh yay :cloud9: oh that's fab!! Is this her first year of understanding Christmas? T is excited by the lights but really doesn't have a clue beyond that.


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## AP

Nope she hasn't the foggiest I'm afraid, although she knows who the dude is in the red suit but he could be just as much Mickey Mouse for all she knows. She doesn't know anything about christmas. It must be quite puzzling. I couldn't explain it to her either, it would just be Japanese to her. She doesn't understand unless it's familiar/routine.

Tori seems to be ever so slightly understanding, she has seen Santa in many forms this month but again no idea if she understands. She might though, she seems to know more than she lets on.

I sometimes feel sad because I thought at Alex's age she would be getting all excited for Santa coming but she simply has no idea.

The christmas jingles are falling flat due to the hyperacusis too, she's hating the chimes in songs right now


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## mumandco

RachA said:


> mumandco said:
> 
> 
> Haven't posted in here in such a long time.i understand the nhs is stretched etc etc but we saw the speech therapist for the first time 8months ago and apart from 4group sessions which weren't very good we haven't seen the speech therapist since then.
> 
> Zack starts school in January for 2hours a day,I have to go to the school on Friday for a parent welcome meeting. I know I will have to mention about zacks speech delay but I just feel in the dark about it iykwim. I've tried to contact his speech therapist with no such luck apart from he's due a review in January. I was hoping I could get some info off her on what I need to tell the school and how far behind zack actually is. I'm really nervous about him starting school more than just normal first day nerves
> 
> The playschool should be fine about the speech delay - they will of seen children much further behind than your lo. How old is your son exactly and what type of speech does he have?
> 
> I would wait for the review meeting and ask the therapist every question you can think of between now and then! It's only been at the end of Esther's 4th block of sessions that i've actually found out that they have such a large gap between sessions because we are supposed to work on what we have learnt at the sessions.Click to expand...

It's real school he's going to,he will be going part time so 2 hours a day in the nursery class,he is 3and 3 months.
His speech is hard to explain,he talks a lot in fact he never shuts up haha but not much of what he says is understandable to those who don't know him. 
We practice what we we learnt in the block sessions daily,wether it's sitting down and doing it or on the go in the car etc. I was just panicking as to me he's come on so much in the last 8 months. 8 months ago he could only say around 5 words all together but now he's "talking" in sentences,but what seems really good to me may seem like really behind to the school. I'm worried hel start this school only to have to be moved to a new school where they have a language and assessment unit.


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## AP

I don't know how different it is down your way but if it's the same as here, with that level of speech at his age there would be no reason for a language unit. 

Saying that, I would do anything to have a language unit here but they won't allow them now until after 6! (Ridiculous!)


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## sequeena

:( it makes me so angry that our LOs have to face all these challenges... yet they don't care because they know no different :(


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## AP

The idea of her going to school in 8 months horrifies me. I have been asked to check out the special schools and see what we think but after a long chat with the educational psychologist, I feel I might let her hit mainstream and "see what happens" Least I can say we tried and back track if need be.

A surprise today that Alex is taking to PECS well at nursery. :wacko: I am very wary about this impacting her speech as she might rely on pecs


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## RachA

I know what you mean Sequeena but these challenges are what will make our children even more amazing :)


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## PepsiChic

Barry is another with no concept of Christmas or Santa or anything related to it all. He loves the "kissmas trees" and the "yites" (lights) but he doesnt understand it.

He is fascinated with trains, LOVES trains he makes me put random train videos on youtube and will sit and watch them for hours i I let them. when the go off the scream and he sees them coming back on from the side he gets SO excited, its cute.

On friday we have booked the Santa Express, its a 2 hour drive south of us but its a real steam train, a 2 hour trip on the train, hot chocolate and cookies, get to meet santa, carol singers and then santa reads the polar express....I know he wont understand ANY of it...aside from the fact hes on a train, but I think he'll enjoy the lights and singing and the train. Not sure how he'll react to Santa, he can be very social with people....in our house. Outside of that he doesnt really go up to people. I guess we'll find out.


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## RachA

Wow Pepsi that sounds amazing. 

Esther doesn't really get Christmas either. She enjoys the tree and lights and understands the idea of presents but that's about it. 
Tbh though this is the first year my son has been really into Christmas in the while counting down the days, writing a Christmas list etc way. So I don't necessarily think that our lo's not understanding us wholly to do with the speech/language understanding (my do isn't delayed in any way).


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## Midnight_Fairy

Matthew has only recently started to understand xx p.s he went to a language unit and it done him world of good!


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## AP

I am really looking forward to the language unit actually!


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## moggymay

My eldest has no speech issues at all and he is only just understanding all the festivities etc this year...he is 6 (Y2 at school). Magic moment for me today was watching Pickle "singing" and playing his xylophone and drum to "Jingle Bells"...every time he got to "hey" he bangs the drum and bashes the xylophone in between singing, he sings better than he speaks :dohh: Takes all sorts!


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## smileyfaces

Oscar is 28 months and doesnt talk except to say "BaMa" (bye bye), "Dody" (what we call his dummy), "Algoo" (all gone) and bizarely he can count to ten although it is more like waa-oo-ee-fo-fi-thiii-thebeh-eight-naa-tehh :haha: Oscar should be getting a diagnosis for ASD in february so his speech is extremely limited.

He has nearly zero understanding of everyday words and so it is extremely difficult to communicate.

He has been having speech and language therapy for nearly a year and he has been attending social communication groups at the hospital once a week since september.


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## emyandpotato

Hi!

I have a two year old with no words, though he is beginning to babble 'dada' sounds which is a big step for us! I am just wondering really, what are his options for school and nursery if his speech doesn't improve much before then? He should be starting nursery in September so I'm starting to think about applying to various places but I'm not sure whether nurseries will accept a non-speaking child? Anyone's LOs still silent and in nursery or schools?


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## AP

Nursery very much have to deal with non verbal children, they can't reject them for that. They might add on extra support if things haven't improved but in most cases the speech will improve by then. Our Tori was the same when she turned two and although she's still delayed she is progressing faster than our oldest. Alex started nursery last September non verbal and they have been using visuals and signing with her. She's 4.5 and started to attempt "parroting" in the last few weeks with a great deal of help from nursery.

All in all, they won't reject your child, but help even more so


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## emyandpotato

Thank you! I'm so glad of that. People have mentioned him going to a special needs school but I wasn't so sure about what that would mean for him.


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## Eternal

Hi ladies, I have a non verbal just turned 2 year old. He is a twin which may be part of the issue, what's funny is he can understand and follow instruction extremely well, he makes some sounds, but only has about 6 words which don't sound quite like they should, but he also signs things, like he nods and shakes his head for yes and no, he has a sign for pencil, he points to things and or will drag you to them. So overall his communication skills are great, except he doesn't speak.

Ive had a few professionals and others ask if I think he is autistic as my eldest is going through diagnosis presently, but he is nothing like him, and Daniel (my non- speaker) is empathetic, kind, sweet, cuddly, very communicative in other ways, he plays well, he likes people, lol, the complete opposite of my eldest. 

I do wonder of his hearing is an issue, he clearly can hear and follow instructions. But we have a strong family history of deafness, myself included and I wonder if he lacks some sounds which make it harder for him.


----------



## Eternal

emyandpotato said:


> Hi!
> 
> I have a two year old with no words, though he is beginning to babble 'dada' sounds which is a big step for us! I am just wondering really, what are his options for school and nursery if his speech doesn't improve much before then? He should be starting nursery in September so I'm starting to think about applying to various places but I'm not sure whether nurseries will accept a non-speaking child? Anyone's LOs still silent and in nursery or schools?

Are there any other issues other than his speech? 

As for school then there is no reason he cannot attend, they cannot refuse him and it's not uncommon for 2 year olds to be no verbal. If there are no other issues I doubt a special nursery would take him anyway. I think the normal nursery environment could even help. :hugs:

You may well find he just starts speaking overnight.


----------



## emyandpotato

Eternal said:


> emyandpotato said:
> 
> 
> Hi!
> 
> I have a two year old with no words, though he is beginning to babble 'dada' sounds which is a big step for us! I am just wondering really, what are his options for school and nursery if his speech doesn't improve much before then? He should be starting nursery in September so I'm starting to think about applying to various places but I'm not sure whether nurseries will accept a non-speaking child? Anyone's LOs still silent and in nursery or schools?
> 
> Are there any other issues other than his speech?
> 
> As for school then there is no reason he cannot attend, they cannot refuse him and it's not uncommon for 2 year olds to be no verbal. If there are no other issues I doubt a special nursery would take him anyway. I think the normal nursery environment could even help. :hugs:
> 
> You may well find he just starts speaking overnight.Click to expand...

Yeah he goes to a pre-school a few hours a week now and he adores it. It was a special place just to help with his speech. He hasn't but he loves it there anyway! 

I'm not really sure about other issues, they're doing a big health visitor switch up in the area we moved to 6 months ago and so he hasn't really been assessed in a while. There were questions around autism and cerebral palsy but I'm about 90% certain now that he doesn't have either. He's been a bit slow in every physical area of development but nothing worrying I don't think!


----------



## emyandpotato

Eternal said:


> Hi ladies, I have a non verbal just turned 2 year old. He is a twin which may be part of the issue, what's funny is he can understand and follow instruction extremely well, he makes some sounds, but only has about 6 words which don't sound quite like they should, but he also signs things, like he nods and shakes his head for yes and no, he has a sign for pencil, he points to things and or will drag you to them. So overall his communication skills are great, except he doesn't speak.
> 
> Ive had a few professionals and others ask if I think he is autistic as my eldest is going through diagnosis presently, but he is nothing like him, and Daniel (my non- speaker) is empathetic, kind, sweet, cuddly, very communicative in other ways, he plays well, he likes people, lol, the complete opposite of my eldest.
> 
> I do wonder of his hearing is an issue, he clearly can hear and follow instructions. But we have a strong family history of deafness, myself included and I wonder if he lacks some sounds which make it harder for him.

You should request a hearing test from your HV! They're quite common and it's a very quick and easy test which will let you know either way.


----------



## Eternal

emyandpotato said:


> Eternal said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> emyandpotato said:
> 
> 
> Hi!
> 
> I have a two year old with no words, though he is beginning to babble 'dada' sounds which is a big step for us! I am just wondering really, what are his options for school and nursery if his speech doesn't improve much before then? He should be starting nursery in September so I'm starting to think about applying to various places but I'm not sure whether nurseries will accept a non-speaking child? Anyone's LOs still silent and in nursery or schools?
> 
> Are there any other issues other than his speech?
> 
> As for school then there is no reason he cannot attend, they cannot refuse him and it's not uncommon for 2 year olds to be no verbal. If there are no other issues I doubt a special nursery would take him anyway. I think the normal nursery environment could even help. :hugs:
> 
> You may well find he just starts speaking overnight.Click to expand...
> 
> Yeah he goes to a pre-school a few hours a week now and he adores it. It was a special place just to help with his speech. He hasn't but he loves it there anyway!
> 
> I'm not really sure about other issues, they're doing a big health visitor switch up in the area we moved to 6 months ago and so he hasn't really been assessed in a while. There were questions around autism and cerebral palsy but I'm about 90% certain now that he doesn't have either. He's been a bit slow in every physical area of development but nothing worrying I don't think!Click to expand...

Does he get speech therapy? Or been referred? Call up HV if not and ask for assessment and review. People have mentioned autism about Daniel (my non verbal) but I can't see it myself, and having one going through diagnosis I am up in the symptoms and signs. I think mine is probably lazy, with big beautiful blue eyes that say, do things for me mummy :haha: and mummy looks into those eyes and does :blush:


----------



## Eternal

emyandpotato said:


> Eternal said:
> 
> 
> 
> Hi ladies, I have a non verbal just turned 2 year old. He is a twin which may be part of the issue, what's funny is he can understand and follow instruction extremely well, he makes some sounds, but only has about 6 words which don't sound quite like they should, but he also signs things, like he nods and shakes his head for yes and no, he has a sign for pencil, he points to things and or will drag you to them. So overall his communication skills are great, except he doesn't speak.
> 
> Ive had a few professionals and others ask if I think he is autistic as my eldest is going through diagnosis presently, but he is nothing like him, and Daniel (my non- speaker) is empathetic, kind, sweet, cuddly, very communicative in other ways, he plays well, he likes people, lol, the complete opposite of my eldest.
> 
> I do wonder of his hearing is an issue, he clearly can hear and follow instructions. But we have a strong family history of deafness, myself included and I wonder if he lacks some sounds which make it harder for him.
> 
> You should request a hearing test from your HV! They're quite common and it's a very quick and easy test which will let you know either way.Click to expand...

She has referred him, it apparently takes up to 11 months to hear back!!! Although my eldest got seen in a matter of weeks but the referral came from the community doctor instead. 

I think he is just lazy, although as I say his limited speech into clear and he signs, so who knows?


----------



## emyandpotato

Wow... Rory had a hearing test within weeks when we lived in Manchester, but up here there is very little support. I guess I can't complain cos I know the NHS has bigger problems, but I do get a bit worried and jealous when friends in other areas have children with much more words who have been having speech therapy! He hasn't had it yet just because of the health visitor changes and so they probably have way too much to do right now! 

With your LO being a twin, do you think that maybe he doesn't need to talk because not only does he have you but also cos he has his brother to communicate with without really needing words?


----------



## Eternal

emyandpotato said:


> Wow... Rory had a hearing test within weeks when we lived in Manchester, but up here there is very little support. I guess I can't complain cos I know the NHS has bigger problems, but I do get a bit worried and jealous when friends in other areas have children with much more words who have been having speech therapy! He hasn't had it yet just because of the health visitor changes and so they probably have way too much to do right now!
> 
> With your LO being a twin, do you think that maybe he doesn't need to talk because not only does he have you but also cos he has his brother to communicate with without really needing words?

Yes, a few twins mums have mentioned the same to me, so really there are lost of reasons why, and he has his older brother, as well as his twin, and me and everyone else, who looks at his big sad eyes and gets what he wants :haha:

But the signing is odd. 

He is referred for speech therapy too, again takes for ever, my oldest with autism is also down and been waiting 3 months already, again the wait is nearly a year, so HV referred him now when she isn't too concerned because later down the line if he still isn't speaking we don't want to start the wait then. 

Rubbish for you, it's annoying how much of a post code lottery everything is, you really see it while going though the process for autism and ADHD diagnosis, one area can be significantly different from another.


----------



## smileyfaces

emyandpotato said:


> Wow... Rory had a hearing test within weeks when we lived in Manchester, but up here there is very little support. I guess I can't complain cos I know the NHS has bigger problems, but I do get a bit worried and jealous when friends in other areas have children with much more words who have been having speech therapy! He hasn't had it yet just because of the health visitor changes and so they probably have way too much to do right now!
> 
> With your LO being a twin, do you think that maybe he doesn't need to talk because not only does he have you but also cos he has his brother to communicate with without really needing words?

Where do you live now? Im in Cheshire and Oscars speech therapist came out to vist about 3 months after we were referred.x


----------



## AP

Our speech therapy is hit or miss. We go for months with out it, and sometimes they go into the nursery rather than to our home.


----------



## Midnight_Fairy

AtomicPink said:


> I am really looking forward to the language unit actually!

They are very good in my experience. Matthew started off at a mainstream preschool but attended a language unit preschool before he started reception at 4. Then he has been mainstream since. He is now in year 5 and his chosen secondary has a ASD unit and also a language unit. I am really excited. He can talk as 'normal' now but he repeats himself and his actual comprehension and understanding is about that of a 5yro (he will be 10). 



emyandpotato said:


> Hi!
> 
> I have a two year old with no words, though he is beginning to babble 'dada' sounds which is a big step for us! I am just wondering really, what are his options for school and nursery if his speech doesn't improve much before then? He should be starting nursery in September so I'm starting to think about applying to various places but I'm not sure whether nurseries will accept a non-speaking child? Anyone's LOs still silent and in nursery or schools?

They will still have to deal with it :) You can ask about preschools that do speech therapy though? But they cant reject him because of it. We had portage who came and and offered the preschool advice on things that can help. He ended up having 1:1 funding and also the use of signs. 

x


----------



## Quackquack99

I had a long phone call of the speech therapist today as I wasn't happy that they were looking to discharge summer from their care. I just feel so deflated at times like its my fault somehow :(


----------



## emyandpotato

smileyfaces said:


> emyandpotato said:
> 
> 
> Wow... Rory had a hearing test within weeks when we lived in Manchester, but up here there is very little support. I guess I can't complain cos I know the NHS has bigger problems, but I do get a bit worried and jealous when friends in other areas have children with much more words who have been having speech therapy! He hasn't had it yet just because of the health visitor changes and so they probably have way too much to do right now!
> 
> With your LO being a twin, do you think that maybe he doesn't need to talk because not only does he have you but also cos he has his brother to communicate with without really needing words?
> 
> Where do you live now? Im in Cheshire and Oscars speech therapist came out to vist about 3 months after we were referred.xClick to expand...

Cumbria at the moment!


----------



## sequeena

We're just about to finish 6 weeks of group speech therapy. With his GDD they want him referred back to one on one speech therapy. I think that will be better for him too.

Audiology tomorrow fingers crossed we get good news :)


----------



## RachA

moggymay said:


> My eldest has no speech issues at all and he is only just understanding all the festivities etc this year...he is 6 (Y2 at school). Magic moment for me today was watching Pickle "singing" and playing his xylophone and drum to "Jingle Bells"...every time he got to "hey" he bangs the drum and bashes the xylophone in between singing, he sings better than he speaks :dohh: Takes all sorts!

Moggy - i think that's a fairly common thing - Esther is the same, she can sing along to any song that she has heard just a couple of time (obviously not word perfect lol) but she can't put that many words together in a normal talking sentence. I've decided that she would be able to talk if we conducted life in song!


----------



## AP

sequeena said:


> Audiology tomorrow fingers crossed we get good news :)

Good luck hun! Never a fun one is it? xxx :hugs:


----------



## sequeena

AtomicPink said:


> sequeena said:
> 
> 
> Audiology tomorrow fingers crossed we get good news :)
> 
> Good luck hun! Never a fun one is it? xxx :hugs:Click to expand...

No :( and he doesn't like the bloody stuff they put on his head either so that's always fun :dohh: he's not well but I can't cancel as it's taken so long to get the follow up appointment.


----------



## RachA

sequeena said:


> AtomicPink said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> sequeena said:
> 
> 
> Audiology tomorrow fingers crossed we get good news :)
> 
> Good luck hun! Never a fun one is it? xxx :hugs:Click to expand...
> 
> No :( and he doesn't like the bloody stuff they put on his head either so that's always fun :dohh: he's not well but I can't cancel as it's taken so long to get the follow up appointment.Click to expand...

Hope it goes well. 

Esther ended up going about 4 times as she just wouldn't do what they were asking her to do. It was partly because her understanding was limited and partly because she just likes to be awkward lol.


----------



## Quackquack99

Thought id bump this up but has anyone else found themselves just getting upset about their child's speech delay? I keep thinking what have I done wrong, I do everything Im supposed to but it hasn't helped. Summer will be 2 and a half next month and she says about 20 words and not clearly. I think the breaking point for me was seeing my friends child a year young speaking alot more than summer. I went to the gp last week and had an argument with her, she didn't listen to any of my concerns and reluctantly referred summer for a paediatric visit. I have put in a complaint against the gp, she made me cry :(


----------



## bananabump

Quackquack99 said:


> Thought id bump this up but has anyone else found themselves just getting upset about their child's speech delay? I keep thinking what have I done wrong, I do everything Im supposed to but it hasn't helped. Summer will be 2 and a half next month and she says about 20 words and not clearly. I think the breaking point for me was seeing my friends child a year young speaking alot more than summer. I went to the gp last week and had an argument with her, she didn't listen to any of my concerns and reluctantly referred summer for a paediatric visit. I have put in a complaint against the gp, she made me cry :(

I know exactly how you're feeling. My son is 2 and a half next month aswell! He was born with his fingers on his right hand deformed and I'm only just starting to accept that it wasn't my fault and could of happened to anyone.. and now I'm faced with the guilt of why isn't my son talking like all the other toddlers I know. 

I felt like I missed out on being able to show him off as a newborn because it took me a while to come to terms with his hand, which wasn't picked up on any of my 4 ultrasounds) and now I feel like I'm missing out on the cute toddler stage where they say funny things and you can have lovely mini conversations with them. I hate to see how upset my son gets when he just can't say anything to describe what he means. He can say about 18 words now but only uses 'Dee' for Daddy, Car and Choo choo on a regular basis. He can't even say Mummy :( 

We had our paediatrician appt last month and I've already put in a complaint against her. It was an absolute waste of time but at least she managed to refer us for a hearing test next week. That's our first port of call and he's also started nursery this week so hopefully that might help. He's had a few sessions of group speech therapy but it really isn't helping. He hasn't got the attention span to sit down and join in with everyone and hasn't got the patience to copy or learn. It's really upsetting me at the moment so big hugs to you aswell xxx


----------



## AP

I think I really beat myself up over Alexs (and Tori's ) speech at 2. Now Alex is at 4.5yrs, I know that I have done all I can and more and continue to do so. Shes coming out with some words and sounds now. That's not of any help of SALT though, they are mince here. Thats the help of nursery and us, going on workshops, and signing courses, checking out local communication kids groups. Its made a huge difference to both our girls. 

Quackquack99 you ARE making a difference, and you are pushing people to get referrals. People will shoot your worries down, just keep going and you know you've done your best!


----------



## Quackquack99

Thank you both for your comments. I guess its hard not to blame yourself and just wonder why.
The gp said to me that I was focussing on the things she couldn't do as opposed to what she can do which was a lie. The facts remain that Summer hasn't had that word explosion and along with her sensory issues, I am left wondering what if there is an underlying problem. All I can say to anyone is to fight and trust their instincts!


----------



## RachA

I know how hard it is. But your Los lack if speech isn't necessarily anything to worry about at the moment. The fact she has words, even if they aren't clear, is good. It is a lot more common than people think to have a post 2 year old that isn't talking yet. 
If you don't agree with the dr you saw than request to see another one and see what they say. 

I have a 4 year old who can say loads of words but doesn't put them together. I know how it feels to hear other children chattering away when my child doesn't. I now have friends whose 2 year olds say way way more than Esther and to by quite honest it makes me cry at times. However what your dr said us true-you need to focus on the things she can do. Not all children have word explosions. Some are slow and steady-they will gain words bit by bit and then one day you realise how much they can say. 

Have you made a note on a daily basis if what she's saying or are you just guessing it's about 20? I found it really helpful to do a word diary over 1 month. I wrote down everything Esther said each day, words and animal sounds etc. I marked new words and I included words that didn't sound right but that it was obvious what she was trying to say due to the context. I was surprised by the change over a month even though she didn't seem to be saying more she actually was.


----------



## Quackquack99

RachA said:


> I know how hard it is. But your Los lack if speech isn't necessarily anything to worry about at the moment. The fact she has words, even if they aren't clear, is good. It is a lot more common than people think to have a post 2 year old that isn't talking yet.
> If you don't agree with the dr you saw than request to see another one and see what they say.
> 
> I have a 4 year old who can say loads of words but doesn't put them together. I know how it feels to hear other children chattering away when my child doesn't. I now have friends whose 2 year olds say way way more than Esther and to by quite honest it makes me cry at times. However what your dr said us true-you need to focus on the things she can do. Not all children have word explosions. Some are slow and steady-they will gain words bit by bit and then one day you realise how much they can say.
> 
> Have you made a note on a daily basis if what she's saying or are you just guessing it's about 20? I found it really helpful to do a word diary over 1 month. I wrote down everything Esther said each day, words and animal sounds etc. I marked new words and I included words that didn't sound right but that it was obvious what she was trying to say due to the context. I was surprised by the change over a month even though she didn't seem to be saying more she actually was.

It was more the other things she said like describing summer being at the bottom of the scale but that it was fine. I found it upsetting to hear her being described like that. I went to see her about three months ago and took one look at her and said she was completely fine after a minutes observation. She made out I haven't been patient enough yet I knew there was an issue with her speech a year ago. Ive waited and waited to no avail.

:hugs: it really is hard watching other children thrive with their speech. Ive had some people describe summer as 'slow' and that broke my heart completely.


----------



## hayz_baby

I agree it is soo difficult.. Especially when younger children are so much more advanced in speech then me lo.i feel like no kne realises how clever he can be. It hurts when he doesn't call me mum either. He calls me hayo which is a short version of my name. The looks I get because my child doesn't call me mum is horrible at time. They are these judgemental looks of ur child doesn't call you mum what are you doing wrong. He doesn't know me as hayley, he knows me as mum. Me and oh call each other mum and dad all the time. As much as anyone else does, he has heard my oh call me hay and has picked that up coz it's easier then mum. Simple as.i don't need people looking down their nose at me because my child isn't fully talking. 
His soeech is starting to improve, he has learned new words but they are still basic words not fully pronounced properly and still lots of sounds for various objects and the same sounds for different things
Sorry for hi jack I understand an hope u feel ok soon xx


----------



## sequeena

I refuse to think too much about Thomas' problems as it really upsets me. I also find it hard to go to playgroup, be around family and friends who have children his age and younger because they can do so much more. I try to focus on his achievements, not what others can do but it is hard.

Thought I'd update, Thomas' audiology appointment has been rescheduled for 21st along with his physiotherapy app. It'll be a busy day actually. His audiology is at 10:45am and his physio is at 2:15pm but my partner also has a follow up appointment for his endoscopies at 2:15pm.

No new words here, no new noises even. Just the usual babbling.


----------



## RachA

Quackquack99 said:


> RachA said:
> 
> 
> I know how hard it is. But your Los lack if speech isn't necessarily anything to worry about at the moment. The fact she has words, even if they aren't clear, is good. It is a lot more common than people think to have a post 2 year old that isn't talking yet.
> If you don't agree with the dr you saw than request to see another one and see what they say.
> 
> I have a 4 year old who can say loads of words but doesn't put them together. I know how it feels to hear other children chattering away when my child doesn't. I now have friends whose 2 year olds say way way more than Esther and to by quite honest it makes me cry at times. However what your dr said us true-you need to focus on the things she can do. Not all children have word explosions. Some are slow and steady-they will gain words bit by bit and then one day you realise how much they can say.
> 
> Have you made a note on a daily basis if what she's saying or are you just guessing it's about 20? I found it really helpful to do a word diary over 1 month. I wrote down everything Esther said each day, words and animal sounds etc. I marked new words and I included words that didn't sound right but that it was obvious what she was trying to say due to the context. I was surprised by the change over a month even though she didn't seem to be saying more she actually was.
> 
> It was more the other things she said like describing summer being at the bottom of the scale but that it was fine. I found it upsetting to hear her being described like that. I went to see her about three months ago and took one look at her and said she was completely fine after a minutes observation. She made out I haven't been patient enough yet I knew there was an issue with her speech a year ago. Ive waited and waited to no avail.
> 
> :hugs: it really is hard watching other children thrive with their speech. Ive had some people describe summer as 'slow' and that broke my heart completely.Click to expand...

Don't be upset about them saying she's at the bottom end of the scale. That doesn't mean there is anything wrong - that means that she is in the normal range which is why she said it is fine.


----------



## Quackquack99

RachA said:


> Quackquack99 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> RachA said:
> 
> 
> I know how hard it is. But your Los lack if speech isn't necessarily anything to worry about at the moment. The fact she has words, even if they aren't clear, is good. It is a lot more common than people think to have a post 2 year old that isn't talking yet.
> If you don't agree with the dr you saw than request to see another one and see what they say.
> 
> I have a 4 year old who can say loads of words but doesn't put them together. I know how it feels to hear other children chattering away when my child doesn't. I now have friends whose 2 year olds say way way more than Esther and to by quite honest it makes me cry at times. However what your dr said us true-you need to focus on the things she can do. Not all children have word explosions. Some are slow and steady-they will gain words bit by bit and then one day you realise how much they can say.
> 
> Have you made a note on a daily basis if what she's saying or are you just guessing it's about 20? I found it really helpful to do a word diary over 1 month. I wrote down everything Esther said each day, words and animal sounds etc. I marked new words and I included words that didn't sound right but that it was obvious what she was trying to say due to the context. I was surprised by the change over a month even though she didn't seem to be saying more she actually was.
> 
> It was more the other things she said like describing summer being at the bottom of the scale but that it was fine. I found it upsetting to hear her being described like that. I went to see her about three months ago and took one look at her and said she was completely fine after a minutes observation. She made out I haven't been patient enough yet I knew there was an issue with her speech a year ago. Ive waited and waited to no avail.
> 
> :hugs: it really is hard watching other children thrive with their speech. Ive had some people describe summer as 'slow' and that broke my heart completely.Click to expand...
> 
> Don't be upset about them saying she's at the bottom end of the scale. That doesn't mean there is anything wrong - that means that she is in the normal range which is why she said it is fine.Click to expand...

It was the way she said it, her tone and then rolled her eyes. It was just rude. I already know she is at the bottom of the scale but she gave no reassurance on how to improve her 'position' on the scale, just that I should wait until she is past three for intervention. 

Summer is due for a review this month by the speech therapist, does anyone know what happens here?


----------



## JASMAK

Quackquack99 said:


> RachA said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Quackquack99 said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> RachA said:
> 
> 
> I know how hard it is. But your Los lack if speech isn't necessarily anything to worry about at the moment. The fact she has words, even if they aren't clear, is good. It is a lot more common than people think to have a post 2 year old that isn't talking yet.
> If you don't agree with the dr you saw than request to see another one and see what they say.
> 
> I have a 4 year old who can say loads of words but doesn't put them together. I know how it feels to hear other children chattering away when my child doesn't. I now have friends whose 2 year olds say way way more than Esther and to by quite honest it makes me cry at times. However what your dr said us true-you need to focus on the things she can do. Not all children have word explosions. Some are slow and steady-they will gain words bit by bit and then one day you realise how much they can say.
> 
> Have you made a note on a daily basis if what she's saying or are you just guessing it's about 20? I found it really helpful to do a word diary over 1 month. I wrote down everything Esther said each day, words and animal sounds etc. I marked new words and I included words that didn't sound right but that it was obvious what she was trying to say due to the context. I was surprised by the change over a month even though she didn't seem to be saying more she actually was.
> 
> It was more the other things she said like describing summer being at the bottom of the scale but that it was fine. I found it upsetting to hear her being described like that. I went to see her about three months ago and took one look at her and said she was completely fine after a minutes observation. She made out I haven't been patient enough yet I knew there was an issue with her speech a year ago. Ive waited and waited to no avail.
> 
> :hugs: it really is hard watching other children thrive with their speech. Ive had some people describe summer as 'slow' and that broke my heart completely.Click to expand...
> 
> Don't be upset about them saying she's at the bottom end of the scale. That doesn't mean there is anything wrong - that means that she is in the normal range which is why she said it is fine.Click to expand...
> 
> It was the way she said it, her tone and then rolled her eyes. It was just rude. I already know she is at the bottom of the scale but she gave no reassurance on how to improve her 'position' on the scale, just that I should wait until she is past three for intervention.
> 
> Summer is due for a review this month by the speech therapist, does anyone know what happens here?Click to expand...

Awe...she shouldn't have rolled her eyes. It is SO hard to hear about our child's struggles. I cry every time as soon as I am alone. Its like a knife to the heart.

The speech assessment should be fun....games and questions for parents. I always enjoyed speech for my daughter....and ask them to give you things to work on!


----------



## StranjeGirl

Hi Ladies!

Can I join? LO turned 2 yesterday and is definitely not talking. She had her hearing checked at 17 months and that was fine. She now has a new pediatrician because we moved. Neither seemed overly concerned, but the first mentioned getting her assessed at 19 months if no progress- but he said from what he could see it was just a speech thing and nothing more. Our new one did not mention getting her assessed for other issues as she seemed fine in every other area, but said that he would probably recommend speech therapy at 2 to give her a push. He said he himself did not talk til 2.5 and typically if other areas look ok things are fine. I've seen her progress as she was late in all forms of communicating with us- late to point and gesture etc. Now she points all the time, babbles to us with inflection, points to things she wants us to label, and learned a handful of signs that she uses. She also just staring pointing to our pictures saying mama and dada. I read that these are all precursors to speech. Any input? Should I get her in speech therapy asap, or do you think it's ok to wait another few months to see how things develop? I really do believe in letting kids develop at their own pace, but obviously if there is a true problem I'm sure the earlier the intervention the better. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks!


----------



## hayz_baby

StranjeGirl said:


> Hi Ladies!
> 
> Can I join? LO turned 2 yesterday and is definitely not talking. She had her hearing checked at 17 months and that was fine. She now has a new pediatrician because we moved. Neither seemed overly concerned, but the first mentioned getting her assessed at 19 months if no progress- but he said from what he could see it was just a speech thing and nothing more. Our new one did not mention getting her assessed for other issues as she seemed fine in every other area, but said that he would probably recommend speech therapy at 2 to give her a push. He said he himself did not talk til 2.5 and typically if other areas look ok things are fine. I've seen her progress as she was late in all forms of communicating with us- late to point and gesture etc. Now she points all the time, babbles to us with inflection, points to things she wants us to label, and learned a handful of signs that she uses. She also just staring pointing to our pictures saying mama and dada. I read that these are all precursors to speech. Any input? Should I get her in speech therapy asap, or do you think it's ok to wait another few months to see how things develop? I really do believe in letting kids develop at their own pace, but obviously if there is a true problem I'm sure the earlier the intervention the better. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Thanks!

Personally children will develop at their own rates but there is no harm in getting that additional help. It sounds like your lo is like mine were there is no scary reason as to why his speech is delayed it just is.


----------



## StranjeGirl

thanks hayz_baby. I guess I should add that dd was a late talker as were his 3 brothers. One had fluid in his ears and is the only one who needed speech therapy, the others were just late bloomers. Anyone else have it run in the family. I don't know when I talked. My mom said they didn't worry about these things when I was born and when we talked we talked. I'd kinda like to go back to that lol!


----------



## sequeena

If there are no other problems and your lo is hitting all the other milestones then I personally wouldn't be too worried :) The problems come when several or all milestones are delayed as children should be focusing on developing a skill.


----------



## RachA

sequeena said:


> If there are no other problems and your lo is hitting all the other milestones then I personally wouldn't be too worried :) The problems come when several or all milestones are delayed as children should be focusing on developing a skill.

Wss ^^^

Esther was showings signs of other delays which is why they were worried. But from what you've said it's just speech so I wouldn't be concerned. It wouldn't hurt to start the process for speech therapy though.


----------



## JASMAK

sequeena said:


> If there are no other problems and your lo is hitting all the other milestones then I personally wouldn't be too worried :) The problems come when several or all milestones are delayed as children should be focusing on developing a skill.

I agree with this, but go for the speech! Its funa nd it will help your child....and *if* therew as anything more....your speech path will be able to pick up on it.


----------



## Peanut78

JASMAK said:


> sequeena said:
> 
> 
> If there are no other problems and your lo is hitting all the other milestones then I personally wouldn't be too worried :) The problems come when several or all milestones are delayed as children should be focusing on developing a skill.
> 
> I agree with this, but go for the speech! Its funa nd it will help your child....and *if* therew as anything more....your speech path will be able to pick up on it.Click to expand...

WSS :hugs:


----------



## sun

Peanut78 said:


> JASMAK said:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> sequeena said:
> 
> 
> If there are no other problems and your lo is hitting all the other milestones then I personally wouldn't be too worried :) The problems come when several or all milestones are delayed as children should be focusing on developing a skill.
> 
> I agree with this, but go for the speech! Its funa nd it will help your child....and *if* therew as anything more....your speech path will be able to pick up on it.Click to expand...
> 
> WSS :hugs:Click to expand...

Agree with both these. Speech was just one of several delays my son was flagged for - he had already been diagnosed with global delay before speech became an obvious issue. But it definitely doesn't hurt to get assessed in speech. xo


----------



## StranjeGirl

Thanks for all the replies ladies! She will probably have an appt with ped at the end of the month, so I will take the referral for speech therapy. I won't hurt. She just started saying a couple more words this week- nothing extravagant (boo for peekaboo, and shoes) but it is a start! She is also attempting many more animal sounds that she didn't attempt before, so I am hoping this is the start. Thanks for all the input!


----------



## sequeena

Well this made my day (not) :( Thomas is now 14 months behind in speech (under 1st centile) and is under 1st centile developmentally. I am so upset and frustrated its not his fault he does his best I just wish we had a definite reason for why he's so delayed :cry:


----------



## RachA

I so get where you are coming from. Sending big hugs your way. 

I didn't know they did centiles for development. I've no idea where Esther comes, I just know that she is 18months behind in her speech and 12 months behind in social and motor skills. 

It's so frustrating not knowing what's causing it-there is no real reason for Esther as she doesn't have any other issues.


----------



## sequeena

The RG test does all 5 areas of development then gives an overall score. 3 areas he was unde r 1st the other 2 he was 3rd x


----------



## RachA

Oh ok-she's never had an rg test. 
The positive to take from this is that you know where he is and you have a mark to go on. It sucks that Esther is 18 months behind in speech but at each review we can see that she is developing-just consistently at 18months behind.


----------



## sequeena

Yes you're right, it's just so frustrating never seeing him getting any better, he's always so far behind. I know it's a long term thing I just wish we were seeing more improvement.


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## RachA

It will come :) Thomas is still so little. There are children out there who have no development issues and they aren't talking either. 
And don't worry about schooling yet-it's still a long way off really. I assume you'll be applying for a statement for him?


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## sequeena

Yes it's likely we'll be applying for a statement x that sounds like it will be so much fun :)


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## RachA

We are just starting the process and I'm not looking forward to it. I've been told it can be a very harrowing experience which will leave us in tears-what joy!


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## JASMAK

sequeena said:


> Well this made my day (not) :( Thomas is now 14 months behind in speech (under 1st centile) and is under 1st centile developmentally. I am so upset and frustrated its not his fault he does his best I just wish we had a definite reason for why he's so delayed :cry:

Hugs:hugs:


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## Peanut78

Massive hugs Sequeena :hugs::hugs::hugs:


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## sequeena

Thank you girls, I feel better after sleeping but still quite upset. I need to get hold of someone to explain it to me.


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## RachA

It's worth doing that. At the time when you are given info you just can't take it all in 
Big hug for you!


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## princessttc

Hey Hun,
I went through issues like this with my son!
With perseverance etc they can catch up :)
Just hang in their I remember the feeling and sickness in 
my stomach I used to experience in his assessments!


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## Reid

hi all been a while since anyone posted and I've not been on for a few weeks.
a few weeks back I called the health visitor about my sons speech so she came out to our house. she was really good and answered alot of my concerns.
she asked if he'd ever had an ear infection hes had 2 so she asked if id be happy to take him for a hearing test its weird its like he has selective hearing when hes getting into trouble or asked to do something he doesn't listen but if I play the jungle book song on my phone he comes running over anyway hes been referred for a hearing test and hes now on the waiting list for speech therapy I was told this could take up to 18 weeks. the good thing is my son misses the cut off date for school so he'll do 2 years at nursery which he should start in august so hv said he has time to catch up without being rushed ;) x


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## sequeena

Good luck with the hearing test, I'm glad HV is taking your concerns seriously x SALT took a while for us too but I think he had a letter within 6 weeks so hopefully won't take too long.


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## Reid

sequeena said:


> Good luck with the hearing test, I'm glad HV is taking your concerns seriously x SALT took a while for us too but I think he had a letter within 6 weeks so hopefully won't take too long.

yeah she was really good she would stop talking to me and listen to junior every time he was doing his talking which is kind of jibirish. x


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## AP

Well an update from me
Alex is doing really well :shock: it's surprising! When she was diagnosed with autism the SALT said she had no idea how her communication could turn out. And here we are. It was almost an overnight thing to be honest. Nothing's perfect, no conversation, most probably wouldn't understand what word she's said. Just repeating what she's heard a toy say or mr tumble and she doesn't even understand what it means or context... But it's a very good start. Defo some echolalia in there but we have something to work with!

Tori is doing much better and she will reply to some very basic questions, like what she wants, with a yes or a no. She's younger but better at this speech lark than Alex. Her singing is hilarious and we get the most words from her songs.

The pair of them are indeed still delayed. Alex is 5 in June, Tori is almost 3. SALT are reluctant to let Tori go but don't intervene too much, as they know we're already on the ball and know strategies.


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## sequeena

:dance: well done Alex!


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## hayz_baby

We finished our group therapy sessions and they re referred us for one on one sessions. I don't know how this wil go.he seems a little more interested in learning new words but the techniques they taught us we struggle with as he is so stubborn and not interested. This was one thing they picked up along with his attention. I worry what this does mean for him tbh. So many children I know are doing so well. I know my little boy is clever but in his own way. He picks things up differently and Hos thought processes are different. He's been through a lot in his little life too what with his talipes and hip dysphasia.. He had a small op at 14 weeks and still wears boots and bars to bed. I'm afraid people are going to start labelling him. 
Need to wait for the referal which may not b till may/June time...


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## Peanut78

Brilliant - way to go Alex :happydance::happydance::happydance:

Hayz_baby, I worry about labels and bullying too :nope: I work in child protection and was reading an article recently about building resilience in children - it was intended for something completely different, but it really struck a chord with me, how we can all build better resilience in our children (regardless of what we fear for them i.e. bullying). Resilience goes a long way in building confidence and a sense of security. I'll see if I can find the link and share. Sorry, totally went off on a tangent there... :dohh:


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## AP

I'm actually OK about labels. I'll kick asses otherwise :rofl:


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## hayz_baby

Peanut78 said:


> Brilliant - way to go Alex :happydance::happydance::happydance:
> 
> Hayz_baby, I worry about labels and bullying too :nope: I work in child protection and was reading an article recently about building resilience in children - it was intended for something completely different, but it really struck a chord with me, how we can all build better resilience in our children (regardless of what we fear for them i.e. bullying). Resilience goes a long way in building confidence and a sense of security. I'll see if I can find the link and share. Sorry, totally went off on a tangent there... :dohh:

Ido get what u mean.. A few years ago I read a story about a girl who's alopecia (sp?) was so bad he was bald from pre school age. Her parents lovingly called her names like baldy and egghead etc. so when she starte school as someone called her baldy she answered and accepted it as normal and grew up with no one bullying her because the names were "normal" for her iykwim.
There's a few instances where I can see people thinking he's going to be the naughty child when really he got frustrated. He gets frustrated so easily and that turns into a tantrum etc. one scenario where he was playing with a friend and they started argueing over a toy.i watched his friend take it. My boy take it back. But that's all people saw was the 2nd half.. Not that first half. It's silly things like that. "Ethan took his toy" well he took his toy first he just ant vocalise like his friend can. It was handled with explaining to both that snatching is naughty but I could see the look on certain peoples faces. I don't want him to e labelled as the naughty child. He isn't. He's so good. He's so clever! He amazes me what he does know. I dunno I'm a little hormonal still from giving birth I think and the way the speech therapist put a couple of things made me worry a little. Sorry ladies had a lil but of a teary moment! 
I shouldn't get too ahead of myself.
AP I have been following u with the girls and I'm soo glad that the girls are showing progress! I should stay thinking like you! :haha:


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## AP

> AP I have been following u with the girls and I'm soo glad that the girls are showing progress! I should stay thinking like you!

Oh hun, it's been hard in the past but I found acceptance and now, I am just cool, I do what I can do for them , but most of it has been time. Alex really was an overnight thing. Something "clicked".


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## Midnight_Fairy

RachA said:


> We are just starting the process and I'm not looking forward to it. I've been told it can be a very harrowing experience which will leave us in tears-what joy!

my son is statemented and it honestly took over 7mths of my life. not looking forward to renewal lol x


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## bananabump

Just a little update from me.. We had our second paed appointment today which was joint with the speech pathologist and they are both pretty certain Leo has Verbal Dyspraxia. I feel really sad but at the same time I'm glad we've got an answer and now they know the best therapy to help him. He's having some tests done next week to confirm the diagnosis and then we're starting one to one speech therapy three times a week. All good progress I suppose!


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## Reid

had a wee tear in my eye today my mum was at my house (she lives off the mainland so we dont see her much) and she was getting ready to leave standing at the top of the stairs and I was holding junior as he was waving to her she said see you later and he bloody well said it right back to her lol as clear as day she said it again to him to make sure we were hearing right and sure enough he said it over and over I couldn't believe it was so proud of him.
we got a letter saying that was us on the waiting list for him to see a salt. still not had anything about the hearing test I thought that would have come through fast. xx


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## Thurinius

My 3 year old has no speech. We are going to be referred for speech therapy. I just wanted to hear from anyone in the same position, did therapy help? How soon did they start talking?


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## Peanut78

Lynne, that's lovely - you must be so proud!!!!

Thurinius, I definitely think ST helps :thumbup: It's hard to say how quickly they will start talking as I guess it really depends on the individual child and what the reasons for speech delay are. In our case we have been in ST for nearly 3 years and my son's progress on the speech front is still very slow, but he has a neurological condition which makes speech very difficult for him - so we know it is going to be a long and staged process. For other children ST can be that springboard that they need to get them going. :thumbup:

You may find it useful to use some basics signs with your son to aid communication until the speech really gets going.


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## MikaylasMummy

Just thought id pop back in as I havnt been in this thread for a while.its so great to see everyone is progressing and moving forward.
I think it was here I posted a question about speech delays and toilet training?we decided to wait until koby was ready since his speech had only taking off a few months before 3 and I wasn't sure how good his understanding was due to a previous lack of speech (which apparently was outstanding because he started talking straight into counting and colour naming).i got sick of waiting so mid January I insisted koby use the toilet and it took a few days but now he's completely trained during the day.such a relief.he was far easier than dd since he was older and he's already having dry nights,although I'm not game enough to take away the night nappy just incase!
One thing my mil has noticed though is that koby seems to have a bit of a lisp.i honestly think its just because his speech came on so quickly he hasn't had time to perfect it yet but he may need to go back to st before school if its still apparent.other than his s sounds he is doing quite well,he has mastered his k sounds which my advanced dd didn't say this early.


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## hayz_baby

We have had our referal for st on a one 2 one basis which is in a couple of weeks time. Luckily whilst I'm still on mat leave as I can't leave ds2 right now due to bf and oh is a sahd so he will b doing st again. It's the other side if town now so it's going to cost a lot of money getting there every week as we have to go by bus. A lil annoying but hey! That and the many hosp appts we have it all adds up! My dad has a week off and can do lifts for one st appt and hosp appt that week which helps loads!
He is learning a lot more recently and his memory and understanding has dramatically improved as well. His eye contact is a little better too. He has the odd new word but he still does a lot of the same tricks. I'm nervous as to what will come from this session and wondering weather he will b able to do nursery in sept and school next yr now x


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## AP

Tori has her speech assessment today, I'll see how far shes getting. Shes certainly improved and better than Alex. We shall see. Weirdly her singing is way better than her speech in general, but I dont think Get Lucky quite cuts it :dohh:


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## AP

Well it went rubbish. In fact it didnt even happen, just screaming. :( It must have been the straw that broke the camels back as DH is now finally admitting he has concerns about autism. I had for a wee while but he wouldnt believe me. I'm not convinced but I have a niggling feeling. He's going to chat with the speech therapist this afternoon by phone.


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## hayz_baby

AtomicPink said:


> Well it went rubbish. In fact it didnt even happen, just screaming. :( It must have been the straw that broke the camels back as DH is now finally admitting he has concerns about autism. I had for a wee while but he wouldnt believe me. I'm not convinced but I have a niggling feeling. He's going to chat with the speech therapist this afternoon by phone.

I didn't know I had concerns with tori too. How come the assessment didn't go ahead? It's so frustrating when it goes like tht! X


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## AP

I always thought everything would be ok, i thought it was ok, there were little things but i palmed them off because i thought, na surely not. Because she's a girl it is harder to point out. And i can't compare to alex because she has other issues besides autism. 

:( Sigh. We will see what the speech therapist says today. I wonder what she thinks.


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## Midnight_Fairy

:hugs:


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## hayz_baby

AtomicPink said:


> I always thought everything would be ok, i thought it was ok, there were little things but i palmed them off because i thought, na surely not. Because she's a girl it is harder to point out. And i can't compare to alex because she has other issues besides autism.
> 
> :( Sigh. We will see what the speech therapist says today. I wonder what she thinks.

I hope u hear what u want. I wonder what our st thinks of lo too tho.


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## AP

The speech therapist can see why we are concerned and is doing a referral. Oh well. i'm sure we will find out in time huh?


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## Reid

well we got the letter through today for los hearing test its in 2 weeka time. we actually got another new sentence the other night as well I was telling him not to touch and he then told me back dont touch ha.
xx


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## LeeLouClare

my son is 2 and 3 months and stopped talking so he's being referred to speech therapy


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## Reid

atomic pink where is it you take your girls for salt? im just outside Paisley. did you ever have to take any of the girls for a hearing test xx


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## AP

We're in Edinburgh, Alex has hearing tests regular and has done since she was born. They can't get her to complete the final part of the tests as she always melts down. She has hyperacusis though, which is an over sensitivity to sound

I think Tori may be referred dependant on her pre assessment


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## Reid

ah your a bit away though you might have been in Glasgow. im not sure how junior will do with this hearing test :/ xx


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## Reid

wee up date 
junior had his hearing test I Tuesday there. it showed no issues with his hearing at all. still waiting on word from salt xx


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## lovehearts

Just popping in to ask a question as you are all in my shoes. Tyler is 3 now and still can't be understood. When we are out people talk to him and expect him to be able to talk back. How do you handle this? Do you jump in and tell them why? Or just leave them? A lot of the time I find myself repeating what he has said so they understand, translating if you like, but I don't like talking for him. Should I say he has speech delay? It's getting awkward as he gets older as a lot of people, children included, assume he can talk 

Still waiting on therapy appointment. We had the assessment start if feb. It's been since august since we got referred. :(


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## hayz_baby

lovehearts said:


> Just popping in to ask a question as you are all in my shoes. Tyler is 3 now and still can't be understood. When we are out people talk to him and expect him to be able to talk back. How do you handle this? Do you jump in and tell them why? Or just leave them? A lot of the time I find myself repeating what he has said so they understand, translating if you like, but I don't like talking for him. Should I say he has speech delay? It's getting awkward as he gets older as a lot of people, children included, assume he can talk
> 
> Still waiting on therapy appointment. We had the assessment start if feb. It's been since august since we got referred. :(

I tend to answer for him as its easier. They are usually basic questions anyway. If its someone who will there a little more then I just say he's a little behind in his speech. I don't really do anything for children though 

Update from us is his St sessions finish soon.. We are defo starting to see an improvement in a willingness to want to learn new words but its still in his own language. I started to get a little worried so I asked her opinion on weather we should b looking further.. She said that she doesn't think its anything more other then a lapse in development but he does show signs for being dyslexic but obviously they won't hear until school year. This doesn't surprise us tbh as oh is dyslexic as is his dad and grandad. This is obviously something I'm goingto start pushing for come school.
After this session she is looking at refering us to someone a little more specialised though.. Which is a shame as I like her and think she is good. Last session on wed so will know then.

Its weird I first wrote in this thread when he was roughly 18 months saying I think this will b us.. Here we are lo turns three in about 3 weeks time...


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## JASMAK

lovehearts said:


> Just popping in to ask a question as you are all in my shoes. Tyler is 3 now and still can't be understood. When we are out people talk to him and expect him to be able to talk back. How do you handle this? Do you jump in and tell them why? Or just leave them? A lot of the time I find myself repeating what he has said so they understand, translating if you like, but I don't like talking for him. Should I say he has speech delay? It's getting awkward as he gets older as a lot of people, children included, assume he can talk
> 
> Still waiting on therapy appointment. We had the assessment start if feb. It's been since august since we got referred. :(

I used to tell people as my daughter was non verbal for so long and really couldn't answer a proper question for years longer. U would just say 'Oh, she doesn't talk yet; she is delayed', although that can open a can of worms such as questions and advice. Now that my daughter is nine, I don't say anything but I do stress about people 'judging' her. My 3 year old talks way better which kind of gives you an idea of how behind she is. Most people know her in our circles but for instance, at the hair dressesI always wonder what the hair dresser is saying and what Makena is saying. I have come out and told people as more of as scolding. One time a lady was getting mad at her for not being able to tell time. Well firstly, she was only 5, but she is so tall she looks way older, but this lady was confusing and upsetting Makena that I went and told her off. I rarely do that, but I will of I feel it is warranted.


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## lovehearts

Thank you ladies, I hate it when people start with the 'advice'. One of my friends keeps telling me to use flash cards, like we don't do then all the time :dohh: and like a few flash cards are going to change it. I normally get the 'well he's a boy' comment a lot!!!


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