If you are wondering whether your child’s speech and language development is on track, a short list of observations can make a conversation with your child’s pediatrician or a speech-language pathologist more useful. This guide offers general information, not a diagnosis.
Before the appointment
- Write down the words, sounds, gestures, or signs your child uses now.
- Note whether your child seems to understand familiar words and simple directions.
- Record when you first noticed a change or concern and whether skills have been gained, stayed the same, or been lost.
- Ask caregivers or teachers what they notice in other settings.
- Bring information about hearing tests, frequent ear infections, languages used at home, and relevant family history.
Questions for your child’s pediatrician
- What communication skills would you generally expect around my child’s age?
- Would a hearing check be appropriate?
- Should we monitor for a defined period, or is a developmental screening or referral appropriate now?
- What changes should prompt us to contact you sooner?
- How can we support communication during everyday routines?
Questions for a speech-language pathologist
- How will you assess speech sounds, language understanding, spoken language, gestures, play, and social communication?
- How do hearing, multilingual development, and the child’s communication environment factor into the assessment?
- What are the goals, and how will progress be measured?
- Which strategies can we use naturally at home without pressuring the child to perform?
- When will we review whether the plan is helping?
Helpful details to share
Examples are often more useful than labels. You might describe how your child asks for help, responds to their name, follows everyday directions, combines words, or communicates frustration. If more than one language is used at home, describe skills across all languages; multilingual exposure does not by itself cause a speech or language disorder.
When to seek help promptly
Contact a qualified health professional if your child loses communication or other developmental skills, if you have concerns about hearing, or if you are worried about development. In the United States, families can also ask about early-intervention services without waiting for a diagnosis.
Reliable starting points
- CDC developmental milestones
- American Speech-Language-Hearing Association: communication development
- ASHA: learning more than one language
You may also find our speech milestones overview useful as a starting point for notes. It cannot replace an individual assessment.