A child at 2.5 years old isn't speaking

Does she understand everything? If you ask her to do something – show mom/grandma – will she show?

My friend's little girl is 1 year and 10 months old – she also doesn't speak, and if you ask "where's grandma?" there's no reaction. If it were my child, I'd be worried.

My little one babbled for a long time, and they diagnosed her with speech delay. At 2 years and 8 months, she suddenly had a breakthrough and said everything at once. You really don't need to worry until they're 3. The main thing is that the child understands everything and responds appropriately.

You're being kind ;) Though honestly, I was reading by that age too. Times were different, you know! Children didn't sit in front of the TV all day, and mothers weren't on the internet, so they started speaking and reading early.

My neurologist said it's normal for a 4-year-old! Nevertheless, I would also panic, show the child to a specialist!

Mum, my first child said 'mama' at 7 months... and calls out in stressful situations too... by one year, she was already babbling something, by two we couldn't shut her up, she chattered terribly... BUT all children are different.

And by 10, you finished school and became a department head by 15? No? Found something to boast about!

Don't worry. It's definitely fine up to three.

For bilinguals, it takes even longer.

All children are different. I know a boy who didn't speak until he was three. At three, he started uttering individual syllables. He began to string words together more or less by the age of five. Until he was twelve, he was a low achiever (it took him an hour and a half to learn four lines of a poem), but then he suddenly made a leap. He graduated from school with a medal, got into university for architecture, and is now a deputy at a research institute. If a child understands but doesn't speak, there's no particular need to worry. It means they're developing in other areas, which you might not be noticing. Moreover, all children can be divided into three types. Children of the "acoustic" type start speaking and reading early. Perhaps your child is a visual learner. They will catch up in due time.

The first one spoke early, the second is silent, he's almost two. Only three words - am, bang, aiyaiyai, and well, mama when he's really desperate. Yet he loves being read to, knows shapes, colours, points everyone out, and I'm not worried, some earlier, some later, so what's the difference? To be honest, I even prefer children who are quiet over those who squeak something incomprehensible.

I nearly threw up from the words "child's" and "situations".

Sorry, nothing personal, honest word)

My nephew didn't speak until he was four, but now you can't stop his babbling!

My two-and-a-half-year-old was reciting "The little bull goes swaying" – of course, it was only half understandable. And my little one, not even a year old, still has to speak their first words.

A friend's child also didn't speak for a long time. Later, they had him examined and discovered he had minor hearing issues (he couldn't hear well). A minor operation was performed, and when the child heard something clearly for the first time, he was very surprised. Well, that's because he could hear clearly. After that, he started talking. So they're right to say you should get checked. By the way, the child's mother started worrying early and visited many doctors until they found the cause.

It's normal up to 3 years (give or take)! If he understands everything and explains with gestures, and there are no hearing or neurological issues.

But you can enroll him in a speech development kindergarten.

So you read at 3.5, so what? Are you any different now from those who only learned to read in school? Or are those who spoke at one year old better off in adult life than those who spoke at three? Let's also brag that your teeth didn't come in at 6 months, but at 2))

Reading at 3.5 years old is a pointless activity.

:)) That's the plan, actually... nothing personal, but I'm tired of expressing myself normally, it's boring...

Well, I wouldn't say that)) Mum's on the internet, the child is reading, lovely))

You know, such people are very different in terms of intellectual development. If you don't notice it, that doesn't mean it's not there)))))

And you don't necessarily have to earn a fortune or become world-famous to show everyone how smart you are. But thank goodness there's an opportunity to choose intelligent friends and acquaintances, there is a choice!! Thanks to the fact that some children read at 3, and some struggle at 12.

He has a strange reaction to questions - I ask him "where's mom," and he doesn't gesture or even try to look, same with other relatives... He's "in his own world," basically... When I visit them (the child isn't mine, it's too early for me ^_^), he's always sitting on his parents' desk, in front of the computer, watching cartoons almost around the clock... If you try to take him off the desk, he'll ruin his eyes, he starts screaming and crying wildly, and immediately runs into his mom's arms... Could it be because of excessive "interaction" with the computer that he doesn't want to talk? Because as long as I've been visiting them, they don't want to engage with the child or encourage him to speak... He points at a toy, grunts, and they give it to him...

Author, mine is the same. He only started saying something more or less when he went to kindergarten, i.e., at 2 years and 7 months. I'm fussing, enrolling him in a speech therapy kindergarten, but the teacher at the kindergarten and the speech therapist at the clinic said not to worry, half the group in the kindergarten speaks just like him, and, of course, it's a delay, but for modern children, it's not critical. They said to wait until he's fully 3 years old. So, your acquaintance's boy, if he goes to kindergarten, will start talking sooner or later anyway, but if he's on home "education," then of course, it's a shame the parents aren't working with him.

Yes, you are absolutely right. These children differ precisely in their level of intelligence, and thankfully, their circle of acquaintances and friends also consists of people with normal intelligence.

It's unfortunate that he doesn't speak such simple words. This is a speech delay disorder. You need to work with the child. Not just take him to specialists, but develop fine motor skills—the results will come later, not immediately. Read to him and so on.

little one, baby... nasty words

They are no different at all.

Because reading at 3 is not normal, and not reading at 12 is also not normal.

Just like children who started walking at 9 months are no better than those who started at 1.2 years. This is not a guarantee of any future achievements. The same goes for reading. The same goes for speaking. There are those who babble from one year old, and there are those who remain silent until 3 and then suddenly speak in sentences, sometimes better than those who spoke from one year old.

It's the same with reading; I don't think I read and think worse than you, who learned to read at 3, or that my intelligence is lower. After all, intelligence is an innate and hereditary thing.

What kind of neurologist is that??? Our neurologist prescribes brain-stimulating medication if a child has FEW WORDS at 1.5 years old. (Moscow region).

Speech therapist's opinion: The norm for one year is 12 words and sound imitations (mama, give, beep-beep, kitty, etc.). The norm for the age of 2.5 years is about 500 words, with phrasal speech - in sentences. I advise: neurologist, orthodontist dentist, ENT. If they don't find anything serious, then you can simply work on speech development independently. Talk a lot, explain, listen to the child, read fairy tales and poems, look at pictures, finger games, sand and water play, massage, songs. And also offer solid food more often. It's better to see a specialist speech therapist no later than 3 years old. It will be easier and quicker to correct. Good luck!

My daughter speaks very well for her age, using words like organism, system, and reboot—basically a normal vocabulary set. She knows her letters, but we're just starting to learn syllables. Meanwhile, our friend's child, who barely speaks, is under a doctor's care and attends speech therapy three times a week for speech stimulation.

My son started saying "papa, mama" at 7 months old.

We apparently overreacted with joy or scared him,

so he fell silent and only started speaking again after turning one and a half.

How awful

What stimulants

Children develop at different rates

I agree that 4 is late

But at 1.5, you can't really tell yet

Mine only started after 1.5, and then there was no stopping him

Our doctor said that by nursery age, meaning by three, a child should be able to say what they want and know how to play with other children (regarding vocabulary)

Author, many children under the age of 4 do not speak. However, if a child at that age hardly responds to anything and does not understand any requests (because usually, like dogs, they understand but cannot speak), then it is a cause for concern.

My mother-in-law is a speech therapist. Our little one is 2.8 years old, but we're just staying quiet about it. My mother-in-law says there's a current trend among young children: they remember everything, sometimes even things we adults wouldn't suspect. And then it's like something clicks, and they start chattering non-stop. Don't listen to anyone; times were different before—children were different. Now everything is different; just pay attention. For example, a child plays with a toy, puts it somewhere, gets distracted, and even after 3–4 hours, they remember where it is. Or, all the actions we perform, the child studies carefully and later reproduces them precisely, while even adding something new.

Yeah, well, my child learned the alphabet on their own at 4 years old. Although they started speaking at 3 years old and poorly at that. We took them to a speech therapist for 2 years.

Have they been diagnosed with a speech delay? If the child doesn't start speaking by age three, urgently see a speech therapist—don't waste time. By three, there shouldn't be babbling words; the child should be speaking in sentences. Go for a consultation with a speech therapist.

My son is 2 years old. He only says "dada," "poo," "grandma," and "mama" when he feels like it. When he was 1 year and 9 months old, we started taking him to nursery for a couple of hours. The teacher, who also taught me (with over 30 years of experience), calmly said, "He'll start talking by the New Year." That will be when he's 2 years and 7 months old. We'll have been going to nursery for half a year by then!)))

A consultation with a speech therapist certainly won't do any harm. Although, it's most likely just that you have a "late bloomer," what can you do?)

My son is now 2 years and 3 months old and also speaks very little, no matter how hard I try to get him to talk. His motor skills are very well developed; he builds with construction sets, does lacing activities, and we sort small objects together. His cleverness is fine too—if he wants something, he'll manage it. I blame it all on the fact that he's only with me all day. His grandmothers are all far away, and my husband works late, so he probably doesn't talk because there's no incentive, as I understand him anyway. I really should give him a shock therapy and stop understanding what he wants, but I'm afraid I'll break and won't be able to handle the tantrums))) So, it's just a matter of waiting until he starts nursery.

My little one will also turn two this summer, and he only says 'mum' and 'dad' and nothing more. Boys are essentially quite lazy and start doing everything very late. As it is, he points to everything with gestures but refuses to repeat anything. I know of a case among relatives where a boy didn't speak at all until first grade. And now, you can't shut him up, but he's already grown up. So don't worry too much; he will talk.

My goddaughter is 2 years and 3 months old. She can distinguish all colours, knows all the letters and numbers, and has memorised "The Tapping Fly," "Moidodyr," "Fyodor's Woes," and many different poems (she doesn't speak clearly, of course, but it's very understandable). Well, she didn't learn it all by herself; her mother reads the poems to her 20 times so she remembers them. When they go for walks, they count trees and cars, and play "what letter does the word start with?" No one sits with her forcing her; it's all done in a playful way. My daughter is 3.5 and doesn't know as much.

My daughter is studying to become a psychologist, and her child psychology professor also confirmed that a non-speaking child up to 4 years old is normal.

What nonsense is this about what norm are you talking about? If a child doesn't speak by the age of 4, that's a speech development delay. A specialist consultation is necessary.

Be sure to visit a neurologist and tell them about this situation—not a speech therapist, but specifically a neurologist. They will explain everything to you in detail. Children who speak poorly or not at all, and only make sounds, indicate that something in their brain is not developing properly. They may recommend an ultrasound.

Girls, I'm sorry, but I really need to get this off my chest—I can't keep it inside anymore.
I'm 24 years old, with two kids: a boy aged 7 and a girl aged 2.

The problem is with my eldest—he has a speech delay. We only started to worry when he was 3, because doctors insisted it was normal if a child doesn't speak until that age. We began treatment when he was 3–4 years old, seeing a local neurologist and working with a speech therapist, but progress was minimal. We decided to consult specialists at the regional level, who prescribed a bunch of tests and examinations. All the results showed he was healthy, with no deviations or disorders detected. In the end, they prescribed a lot of medication. From ages 4 to 5, he attended a regular kindergarten and also had private sessions with a speech therapist, as he wasn't accepted into the speech therapy group (they only took children from age 4, and he was just 3 years and 11 months old, plus there were too many applicants). With the medication, there were improvements. At age 5, he was finally enrolled in the speech therapy group. Now he's 7 (we have one year left in this group, and he'll start school at 8), and everything has generally settled down.

But I've changed a lot. It was mentally very tough. My mother-in-law blamed me for the child being born this way—apparently, it was all my fault. She said things like it was bad genetics and wondered where they got someone like me. She scared me by saying my child was mentally disabled and would end up in a school for underdeveloped children. I admit, I even had thoughts of harming myself—it was that bad. And worst of all, my husband stayed silent. Somehow, I managed to cope; my little boy gave me strength, and because of him, I didn't do anything irreversible.

Now, I have my 2-year-old daughter, and it's all repeating itself—she's also not speaking! We recently started seeing a neurologist. I'm so afraid that history is repeating itself, and I'm really worried. Could it really be my fault that my children have such serious issues? I didn't drink or smoke during pregnancy, and I followed all the doctor's recommendations!

I'm very scared for my children, scared for my own mental health. I often take sedatives, and I just don't know how to go through all this again.

Sorry if I chose the wrong topic to vent, but writing this now has made me feel a little better.

Indeed, reading the words "situyovina" and "rebyonkin" I pictured a mother with a cigarette in the corner of her mouth...

[quote="Guest"]Girls, sorry, but I really need to vent, I can't keep it in anymore.

Yes, of course, you've been doing everything right and continue to do so, your husband needs to stop being such a loser and support you in everything, and your mother-in-law needs to be put in her place.

Your neurologist needs treatment themselves. Preferably with electroshock therapy. On topic: my good acquaintance only started speaking at 4 years old, now she manages a large psychiatric clinic, her daughter also began speaking at the same age, now attends school and excels academically. Stop labelling children and applying norms and rules invented by who knows whom to them.

37. I have the same problem.