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1. 

   Comment by amtul on 21 September 2010:

   hi,
   my 3yrs old daughter just speaks 10words.we got her ears checked.hearing is good.i need some techniques for speech therapy.
2. 

   Comment by jamella on 12 November 2010:

   hi, my name is jamella and i have a 3 and 1/2 yr old daughter that is not at the speech level that she needs to be at the age of 3 and 1/2. my niece is the same age as her but u can understand everything she says clearly..but my daughter on the othr hand is lackin with alot of her grammar and speech. is there anythng u can recommend me do?? i am tryin to get her prepard for whn she turns 4 in a few months.
3. 

   Comment by myson on 6 May 2011:

   I posted this under the wrong topic earlier (I think)

   I am concerned about my 3.5 year old son. He loves to play with other children, but his speech is not always clear. For words that he doesn’t know, he will make up words. He may say, “Mommy, ba dada bi da watch?” Instead of “Mommy, where is my watch?” He knows his colors, can recognize and name ABCs and numbers. He can say around 200+ words. He does use some sentences/phrases like…”I don’t want it”, “stop it”, Daddy at work, mommy upstairs…etc..

   He does not attend daycare, but goes to a mommy’s morning out group twice a week. We participate in a local mom’s group for other interaction and go to the park. We read together and attend storytime at our local library. I’m wondering if he is doing okay for a “stay at home child” or if he is “behind”. He is an only child.

   At the doctor’s office, his pediatrician asked him the color of something and he was able to tell her and she understood (he said it clearly). Then she asked him what was his favorite thing to eat, but he said Buzz(character from the movie Toy Story). I’m thinking he didn’t understand what she wanted to know. She then asked his name, and he was able to tell her. If he wants to know the name of a child, he usually says, “What name?” Sometimes, kids understand him and some don’t.

   Maybe he just has limited vocabulary. I’m not sure. I’d love any advice.

   Thanks!
4. 

   Comment by Aida D. on 14 May 2011:

   Hi Laura,

   My 4 year-old.son has been diagnosed with severe expressive and receptive language delay. To make matters worse, he is not in school yet and doesn’t speak English (he was born here in the US). Both my husband and I are native French speakers and it is the only language we use at home.
   While I am aware, that he has a problem and that’s why I had him evaluated. The evaluators were not native speakers and although their language were overall good, we had to correct them a few times (an example the Speech therapist wanted him to show his shoes, but was using a term that is seldom used in France, so my son had no idea what she was talking about; another example is that she didn’t understands baby talk, so she didn’t understand one of my son reply).
   Anyway, my son has a good vocabulary, although his pronunciation is not always correct. however, he doesn’t seem to get more complex question such as “why” In this case, he becomes echolalic. He does understands 2 parts commands (although he might get lost in his thought in a middle of it).
   We are looking to have him in a center-based preschool as it was recommended that he undergoes speech and occupational therapy, but the issue of the language worries me. What do you think ???
   A confused mom…
5. 

   Comment by Kelly Ripplinger on 16 June 2011:

   New to this all. 18 month old who speaks no words and it is appearing he will be diagnosed with Receptive and Speech delays,,We are heart broken for him. There is also some thing with his ears,,,with negative pressure but not alot,,,However it bothers him…hearing we believe is ok as they have not said different after both tests.

   Thank you for this website as we begin this process….
6. 

   Comment by Julie M on 20 August 2011:

   Hello Laura,

   My little grandson is 19 mo. and says, no and eye once in a while but he does not say anything else. He first said these words around 12 mos, but has not increased how often he says them nor has he added any more words. At 8 mos he became very ill and several types of antibiotics did not work, which resulted in a 4 mo. long illness with a 4 mo. ear infection and fevers. Since being sick, along with his lack of speaking he has terrible night terrors and his weight and height are less than 5% on growth chart. I know this is more a medical question, but I wondered if you know of any speech problem that goes along with these other issues? I’m trying to gather all the info I can. Thanks
7. 

   Comment by Kathy on 15 October 2011:

   Can’t seem to find any credentials for Laura listed on the site,
8. 

   Comment by Laura on 15 October 2011:

   That somehow disappeared in the website upgrade! Check out “About” in the contacts section. Laura
9. 

   Comment by Tiffany on 2 December 2011:

   My son is 2 yrs and 7 months. At 1 year 7 months we had his hearing tested due to endless ear infections, and we were told he had not been hearing for 6-9 months. In Jan. 2011 we had tubes put in and he started speech therapy. He has about 20 signs that he can do, he babbles again now (which has been a huge milestone) and he says go, wawa(water), and some individual sounds such as k, ch, st, and the occasional m sound that comes and goes. I know he is very frusterated, and so am I. Do you have any suggestions? I know he is very delayed but I feel like we are doing everything we can…do I need to stop pushing so hard and just let him develop, or do I just need to keep pushing full speed? Thanks!
10. 

    Comment by Laura on 3 December 2011:

    Tiffany - PUSH FULL SPEED! Keep up your therapy, otherwise, he’ll be at risk to keep falling further and further behind, and you really want him to be as ready for schoola s he can be. He has a long way to go, so being laid back about it will likely not help him at all. Not hearing for so long certainly is a big deal, so it will take some time. How is he understanding language? Is he following directions now? I’d pay special attention to his comprehension. If that is coming along and near an age-appropriate level but his expressive skills aren’t, then you may have to look at another diagnosis/area of concern in addition to the problem with his ear infections. If his receptive skills are not near an age-appropriate level, then this is the reason he’s not talking yet. Push to help him understand more words and then he’ll say more words. What does his SLP think? Does she talk to you about concerns with receptive skills, or is she purely targeting expressive language? You’ll need to ask her about this so you’re both on the same page. You may also want to taek a look at my DVDs to be sure you’re using play-based activities to target language at home so that you’re doing all you can in a developmentally appropriate way which will be more motivating for him. Good luck to you all! Laura
11. 

    Comment by Caroline on 18 December 2011:

    Hi, My son is almost two and says a few words sometimes but not consistently and has dropped some. The one is says is “mom” but that’s it. Can you advise? He isn’t great with his food either.

    Any advice at all will be appreciated

    Regards and thanks
    Caroline
12. 

    Comment by poorna on 14 May 2012:

    hi i have a 6 years old son , he had gone thru speech therapy for 4 years but no gain… he still says only 3 4 words]wht to do
13. 

    Comment by Laura on 14 May 2012:

    Poorna - I’m so sorry to hear that. You must have a reason and diagnosis for him now since he’s 6 and surely has seen several speech language pathologists and medical specialists. What do they say about him? Laura

14. Comment by Lisa on 28 May 2012:

    Hi Laura, my son is 2 years and 5 months he only knows six words, mummy, daddy, juice, move, bye and hi… And he also doesn’t know how to answer questions for example I’ll ask him what’s ur name? He will reply umm umm umm and then I’ll give him the answer Jacob then I’ll ask him again then he will reply back ummm umm.. Also he doesn’t know his colors and only counts to 3…. And I’ve also noticed when he gets excited or frustrated he bites his hands it’s that bad his hand is bruised, and when I try to stop him he goes crazy… At CHILDCARE his teacher is worried cause he doesn’t interact with other kids his always in the corner playing on his own…. I don’t know if he has autism or his just abit delayed, where do I start to help him?
15. 

    Comment by Heather on 28 May 2012:

    Hi Laura. Your website has been just what I’ve been looking for. My son is 30 months old, and he has some speech delay. His language skills seem to be fine, he understands what we say to him, he can follow 2 and 3 step directions without us pointing for him, and he can point to almost any picture in a book. He is struggling with his speech. He has all of his vowel sounds, and most of his consonants. He cannot say l,h, or f. He almost always uses the first consonant in a word (unless its l,h, or f) but rarely uses the final consonant. I know from reading your site that the final sounds should come later, and I’m not as concerned about that. He cannot say words that start with vowel sounds. So “apple” becomes “papple” and “up” is “puh”. He is also not putting words together very much. He’ll say “my cup” etc. but not much beyond that. We had him screened for our state’s early intervention program, but they said that his communication skills were too high for him to be referred to the SLP. But, most people beyond my husband and myself cannot understand what he is saying. We live in a college town with a wonderful speech clinic on campus, but our insurance doesn’t cover it. So my long winded, rambling question is… do you think we should have him evaluated (a little bit of an expense for us) or wait until he’s closer to 3?

    Again, thank you so much for your site. Its exactly what I’ve been looking for.
16. 

    Comment by Laura on 28 May 2012:

    Hi Heather - I’m so glad you’re finding help through the site. You’re exactly the kind of mom I write for! If artic were his only issue, I’d tell you that you could get by with waiting until the school system could see him at 3, but he does have a mild to moderate expressive language delay too if he’s 30 months and only occasionally combining words into phrases. At 2 1/2 he should be speaking exclusively in phrases and short sentences. However, only children who exhibit significant delays qualify for many state early intervention programs and children with milder delays are not eligible and I hate that because in my opinion, these are the kids we can help the most.

    I’d really step up what you’re doing with him at home to address his language delays. Follow the tips for helping him combine words into phrases listed here on the site or on my DVD Teach Me To Talk. For his articulation clearly model words he’s mispronounced, but I’d also get him in speech when you can to address both speech and language.

    Many clinics are willing to negotiate their fees if they know you’re going to pay out of pocket. You can also have him seen less often and save $$ that way, but I do think it’s important to address his issues as quickly as you can, even if that means you’re doing the bulk of the work at home yourself with occasional guidance. Ideally he would be seen weekly or every couple of weeks, but in this kind of situation I have successfully seen kids for a few weeks in a row to get them going and then less often to adjust what mom is doing at home based on how he’s responding. Find an SLP who will teach you how to work with him.

    Good luck to you Heather! Let me know if you have other questions! I’d love to help! Laura
17. 

    Comment by Laura on 28 May 2012:

    Hi Lisa. A child who has only 6 words at 29 months is significantly delayed in expressive language. He likely exhibits receptive delays as well, so I’d highly recommend you pursue a speech-language eval for him. Begin with your state early intervention program since he likely will qualify for therapy. It is vital that you address these kinds of delays early, particularly since he’s obviously frustrated and under pressure, evidenced by how he’s biting himself. You should also step up how you’re working with him at home to help him learn what words mean and how to imitate new words. My DVD Teach Me To Talk will teach you how to address language in play. If he’s not following directions consistently, you’ll also need to check out Teach Me To Listen and Obey 2. He has to learn to link meanings to words and understand them BEFORE he uses them to talk. If he’s not imitating new words regularly, my book Building Verbal Imitation in Toddlers will teach you step by step how to work on that at home. HOWEVER, I do think he needs to be seen by a speech-language pathologist because you don’t want him to keep falling behind and to keep hurting himself, so please get that going ASAP. He is not developing like his little friends are at school according to his teacher’s concerns, and again, you know he’s internalizing this on some level. He very likely needs an occupational therapy assessment to address his sensory issues. If you need any other advice, please let me know. Laura
18. 

    Comment by Ripsi on 9 June 2012:

    Hi Laura,My son is 30 months old and still he can speak only 8-10 words.But those are not clear and he is always dropping the last letter of the word. ex: for bus he says baa,duck -duth.I have stared to take him for speech therapy sessions and speech therapist said he doesn’t has autism.He can understand everything that we are asking him to do and he is very attentive.Can identify colors,shapes animals and pictures which we show to him.he has his own style to communicate with us.vocalizing.He only using the B sound..I think its very easy for him to use that.the other thing that i want to say is we are using two languages at home.My mom and others talking to him in one language and me and my husband is talking to him in english.In his preschool they also speak in english.
    just before one month he has started to go to the preschool (nursery).But still I am staying with him there because he doesn’t like to stay without me.crying and not doing anything.Teachers cannot understand what he is telling because he cannot express his feeling in words, so they asked me to stay there until he is settled.My sp.therapist gave some ideas how to play with him.so i am doing them these days.It will be great if you can comment on my sons situation.I am very much interested & impressed about your web site and the techniques.I wish if i live in US to work with u for my son. ,I am very much worried when i see him struggling to express his idea.
19. 

    Comment by Laura on 10 June 2012:

    Ripsi - He has some nice strengths to work with, and I wish you were here too so I could see you! I am glad he’s in speech therapy and that’s exactly what I would recommend for you. Have you taken a look at my DVDs and therapy manuals? We ship those around the world every day! I would recommend that you begin with Teach Me To Talk the DVD and perhaps the Building Verbal Imitation in Toddlers book so that you can be sure you’re doing everything you can to help him at home. Good luck to you! Laura
20. 

    Comment by tovah on 18 June 2012:

    Hi, I’m an EI therapist and I love your site!

    One suggestion though: is it possible to say “parent” or “caregiver” instead of “mom”? I cringe when I see writing, especially by professionals, that contributes to the invisibility of fathers (or grandparents, foster parents, two-dad or two-mom families, etc.) Thanks!
21. 

    Comment by Laura on 18 June 2012:

    Hi Tovah - I’d never set out to purposefully offend anyone, but speaking from my own personal experience over the last 20 years, the majority of “caregivers” present for therapy are moms. By far the majority of readers, “consumers,” or customers here on the website are moms juding from comments, emails, and the names on the orders we ship all over the world every day! It may be politically incorrect to point that out, but it’s the truth based on my own experience.

    I also think it sounds artificial and too generic to repeatedly write parent/caregiver. I purposefully try to write in “real life” tone, so I’ve opted for mom, but I understand your point. I don’t believe that by saying “Mom” that it discounts the role that “significant others” play. I’ve worked with many great dads, grandparents, and nannies, and I’d never want to alientate anyone who cares enough about a kid to participate in a session or to dig around the internet for more information.

    So….. if you’re a dad, or a grandparent, or an aunt or uncle, or brother or sister, or male or female sitter or teacher reading this…….PLEASE know that I sincerely applaud your efforts to help a child you love!

    Tovah… sorry I made you cringe, but I hope you’re broadminded enough to offer a little tolerance to me Laura
22. 

    Comment by Jeannie on 19 June 2012:

    Hi laura,
    Love ur site and also purchased ur new book. What great suggestions to use with my 3 yr old boy. I was wondering what I can do for 2 issues i’m having. He constantly says “me” do it or get “me” car instead of I or my. I constantly model the correct way to say the phrases but he still uses them incorrectly. Also any play ideas to help with the “L” sound? my son uses the “w” sound instead of the “l” sound…..thanks jeannie
23. 

    Comment by Jessica on 22 June 2012:

    Hey Laura! First, I love your website! Second, I have a 10 month old daughter who has 7 teeth (4 top and 3 bottom). She got her top ones about 2 months ago. She says “mama” and “baba” with her bottom lip on her teeth rather than as a bilablial. She drinks from a straw sippy cup, clears her spoon with her lips, raspberries, and closes her lips when eating. I know she is still pretty young, but is this something I should worry about?

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