Speech and Language Delays,
Speech Retardation
See also: Developmental Language Disorder
All children develop in their own time, and at their own pace. Some reach certain milestones sooner than others, but may lag behind their peers in other areas. However, there is what is called a ‘normal range’, within which most children are expected to reach each milestone. If a child is significantly behind that range on any milestone, this may warrant some additional support.
A speech or language delay is when a child lags behind their peers in understanding or using spoken language. This page explains more about what we mean by both speech and language delays, and how you can help a child who has delayed speech or language.
Understanding Speech and Language Delays
What do we mean by speech and language delays?
This is when a child lags behind their peers—and particularly, behind what is expected of them at that age—in understanding and using spoken language.
But what exactly does this mean? First, it is worth exploring the distinction between speech and language (see box).
Speech vs. Language
Language is defined as the way that we use words to communicate with others. This communication may be written, spoken or signed.
Speech is one way in which we communicate, and is defined as how we produce words and sounds.
A child whose speech is delayed and does not speak (or does not speak as much or as coherently as their peers) may therefore be experiencing either speech or language problems.
They may not understand what they hear or read, or they might struggle to put together a suitable sentence (language problems) and therefore not speak. On the other hand, they might be experiencing problems producing the sounds that make up speech (speech problems).
Children who have speech or language delays may also get very frustrated at not being able to express their needs or feelings, which can lead to challenging behaviour. Language delays in particular are often masked by behavioural problems.
These issues are surprisingly common.
Studies suggest that around one in ten children experiences some kind of speech, language or communication problems, usually before they reach school age. In other words, the difficulty usually shows fairly early on.
What counts as ‘late’?
How do we actually define a delay in speech or language? It really depends on the stage of development. However, as a rough rule of thumb, you should expect that:
- Children up to 12 months old should respond to sounds like clapping and talking. They will be able to make a range of basic sounds, including both vowels and consonants. By the age of 12 months, they may be able to say one or two ‘real’ words.
- Between 12 and 18 months, children start to use a few words, and will also show an understanding of simple instructions. By about 18 months, most children have a vocabulary of at least 20 words.
- Between 18 months and 2 years old, children develop language very quickly. By 2 years old, they should have a vocabulary of around 50 words, and use simple two-word phrases.
- Between 2 and 3 years, children’s vocabularies expand significantly, and they start to use whole sentences. They should also understand concepts like colours by the time they are 3 years old.
If your child does not reach these milestones, it may be worth asking for help from your GP or a health visitor to get a referral to a speech and language therapist.
However, it is important to stress that you should talk to a professional if you are at all concerned about your child’s speech, as parents clearly know their children best.
Types of Speech and Language Problems and Delays
There are several different types of speech and language problems, all of which can cause a delay in speaking or the development of language. These include:
Problems with understanding, or making sense of what is said
Children who have trouble understanding may seem not to listen to what is being said to them. They may find it hard to learn or remember new words, or understand complicated sentences or grammar like different word endings. It is also likely that they might struggle with ‘hidden’ meanings.
Problems with talking, or using words, phrases and sentences
This is known as expressive language, and includes sign language and writing, as well as speaking. Children who have problems with expressive language may find it hard to learn and use new words correctly, or put words together into coherent sentences.
Problems with speech, or the actual production of words and sounds
Children with speech problems find it hard to make the sounds required to form words and phrases. However, they often have good language skills, and can communicate their needs clearly in sign language.
Stammering and Cluttering
Technically, stammering and cluttering are also speech and language problems. However, they do not necessarily cause a delay in development.
There is more about these issues in our pages on Stammering and Cluttering.
Causes of Speech and Language Delays
There are several reasons why a child may have a delay in their speech or language development. These include:
Problems with their hearing may cause them to struggle to make the sounds in speech, because they are unable to hear these sounds properly to reproduce them;
A physical problem like a cleft palate can make it harder to make the correct sounds in speech because the sounds come out ‘wrong’;
Oral–motor problems mean that the areas of the brain responsible for speech do not communicate effectively with the muscles required to speak, making it hard to make the correct sounds;
Conditions like cerebral palsy or Down Syndrome can affect the development of muscles required for speech, and therefore delay speech;
Speech may be directly affected by a problem understanding language. In other words, a language problem can lead to a speech delay, so the two may co-occur.
Supporting a Child with Speech Delays
What can you do to help and support a child whose speech is delayed?
The main thing to do is keep talking to them.
Experts suggest you should try to talk more to your child. Get down to their level, and make eye contact with them. Pick up on any sounds that they make, especially if some of them are understandable words. Repeat their words back to them so that they know that you have heard, and also so that they can hear the words pronounced correctly. Other ideas include:
Point at things and name them as you go about your day with your child. Give your child a chance to try to repeat the word back to you. If they do, respond positively and reinforce the word again.
Read books with them. More, don’t just read the book, but look at the pictures together, and talk about what is happening in the picture. Get as much interaction as you can.
If your child is really struggling to communicate their needs, encourage them to point at things to show you.
There are some simple sign languages that you could try using with your child. If their issue is a speech delay, and their language understanding is quite good, this may be helpful.
You could offer your child some picture cards to use when they want to communicate a need.
Concentrate really hard on understanding their body language, as this is a form of non-verbal communication.
In Conclusion
There are many different causes of speech and language delays. If you are at all worried about your child’s speech or language development, it is always worth talking to your GP or health visitor about getting a referral to a speech and language therapist.
Some children’s speech delays resolve without help, but others benefit from help, and early intervention is often better.