Beyond Words Speech and Language Therapy

	Speech	Expressive Language	Receptive Language
Birth - 3 Months	Coos Cries	Makes sounds when happy (cooing, gooing) Cries differently for different needs Smiles when he/she sees a familiar caregiver	Responds when spoken to Startles to loud sounds Increases/Decreases sucking in response to sound Appears to recognize familiar voices
4 - 6 Months	Laughs Vocalizations Gurgles Plays with many different vowel sounds	Babbles with many different sounds Chuckles and laughs Vocalizes excitement and displeasure Makes gurgling sounds	Moves eyes towards sounds Responds to changes in tone of your voice Notices new sounds Notices music
7 Months – One Year	Combines consonant and vowel sounds (baba, mama) including p, m, b	Babbling in long and short groups (baba and mamamamama) Uses speech or vocalizations to gain attention Uses gestures (waving, pointing, clapping) Has one or two consistent words (hi, dada, mama, milk) around twelve months - sounds may not be clear	Enjoys social games (peek-a-boo, pat-a-cake) Turns head towards sounds Listens when you talk to him/her Recognizes familiar words (cup, milk, mom) Begins to follow familiar, routine directions (come here)
One - Two Years	Uses many different consonant sounds at the beginnings of words	Says new words every month Begins to combine words into phrases (go bye-bye, more cookie, no mommy)	Points to several body parts Follows simple directions (Give me the keys. Throw the ball.) Understands simple questions (Where are your shoes?) Listens to stories, songs, and nursery rhymes. Points to pictures in books when named.
Two - Three Years	Understood by familiar people most of the time Uses all vowel sounds Boys: Use p, b, m, h-, w- sounds Girls: Use p, b, d, m, h-, w-	Has a word for almost all familiar things Uses two and three word sentences Asks for and comments on objects by naming them Asks why May stutter on words or sounds	Understands opposites (big-little, up-down) Follows two-step directions (Get your shoes and put them on) Listens to and enjoys listening to stories for longer periods of time
Three - Four Years	Understood by familiar and unfamiliar people most of the time Boys: Use d, k, f-, n, t, g sounds Girls: Use k, g, n, f-, t, y, tw, kw sounds	Talks about activities outside of home (school, friend's house) Talks about what happened during the day Uses about 4 sentences at a time Answers simple "Who?", "What?", and "Where?" questions Asks when and how Says rhyming words (cat-hat) Uses pronouns (I, you, me, we, they) Uses some plurals (toys, kids, books) Uses a lot of sentences that have 4 or more words Usually doesn't repeat syllables or words	Understands words for colors (blue, green) Understands words for shapes (circle, square) Understands words for family (mom, brother, aunt)
Four - Five Years	Boys: Use y sound Girls: Use th (this), l- sounds	Responds to "What did you say?" Talks without repeating sounds or words most of the time Names numbers and letters Uses sentences that have more than 1 action word (jump, run, play) May make some grammatical mistakes (I gots two pieces of candy.) Speaks differently depending on who he/she is talking to - children, adults, friends.	Understands words for order (first, next, last) Understands words for time (today, tomorrow, yesterday) Follows multiple-step directions (Put on your shoes, get your back pack, and go to the car.) Understands most of what is said at home and school
Five - Six Years	Boys: Use -f, v, kw, tw, pl, bl, l-, kl, gl, fl sounds Girls: Use -f, v, pl, bl, fl, kl, gl, th (thumb), -l, sh, dzh (jump), ch	Tells how an object is used Answers hypothetical questions Uses prepositions (in, on, under) Uses qualitative concepts (tall, skinny)	Points to letters Points to large and small body parts (eyebrow, elbow, wrist) Understands number words (3, 4, 5)
Seven - Eight Years	Boys: Use dr, tr, br, pr, kr, gr, fr sounds Girls: Use thr, spr, str, skr	Retells stories Describes similarities and differences Continues to develop more mature grammatical structures (irregular plurals, past tense) Uses quantitative concepts (more, most, full, empty) Uses time concepts (after, next, early, before)	Understands more complex concepts (analogies, inferences, predictions, categories) Identifies grammatically incorrect sentences Understands literacy concepts (print awareness, rhymes) Understands more complex grammatical concepts (prefixes, suffixes)
Eight - Nine Years	Boys: Use thr, spr, str, skr sounds Girls: Use all speech sounds appropriately	Uses adult grammatical structures Can read and write to learn information	Understands synonyms Beginning to understand figurative language
Nine - Ten Years	Use all speech sounds appropriately	Uses language for many social purposes	Understands more complex and abstract concepts

*Developmental norms are representative of typical development and should only be used as a guide

*Adapted from:

The American Speech Language and Hearing Association (www.ASHA.org)

The Iowa-Nebraska Articulation Norms (Smit, Hand, Freilinger, Bernthal, and Bird (1990), Journal of Speech and Hearing Disorders, 55, 779-798)

Identify the Signs (www.identifythesigns.org)

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