Toddlers crave attention and connection from us. Getting down on the floor and engaging in structured, functional play is one of the best ways to bond with them while promoting their language skills. The best language development toys encourage open-ended play through pretend and imagination. We want to give our kids the most opportunities to use their amazing little brains while exploring and interacting with their toys.^1,2

According to researchers, open-ended play allows children to make choices, express their creativity, and support their language skills. We’ve made a list of top toys for open-ended play and toddler language development.³

10 Language Development Toys for Toddlers

Here are 10 excellent ideas for language development toys for your toddler.

1. Farm and Barn Toys

Farm animals and a barn are a fantastic way to target early language skills, especially for young babies and toddlers. Label animals, parts of the barn, food items, colors, and animal body parts. Practice making animal sounds with repeated sounds, such as “moo moo” and “baa baa.” Act out scenes with the animals and emphasize the action words: eat, drink, run, walk, play, sleep, and more. Use short, functional phrases like “Hi cow,” “pig is eating,” and “Oh no, fall down!” Practice following directions in play and model the location words or use gestures to reinforce. For example, you put the chicken in the nest, then instruct your toddler to do the same: “Now you do it; put the chicken in.”

2. Dollhouse and Family

You can name all the family members, furniture, and rooms with a doll house and its accessories. Practice verbs while placing the dolls in pretend play scenes, such as eating in the kitchen, washing in the bathroom, and sleeping in the bedroom. Model short phrases for your toddler to attempt to imitate about the dolls and activities around the home; “mama sit” and “Hi dada.” Target following directions by incorporating location concepts such as “put mommy in the bathtub” and “take dada out.” Take turns using each doll and play items, model requesting, and even act out the doll scenes in real life. Dollhouses and their accessories are toys appropriate for kids of all ages, stages, and genders!

3. Racetrack

Encourage your child to describe the racetrack components, such as the curves, ramps, and loops. Describe the size and emphasize your words as you say, “Wow! So BIG!” Label the cars, accessories like stop lights or bridges, colors, and car parts like wheels or windows. Use action words like “go,” “stop,” and “fast” to create excitement and engage their imagination. Practice turn-taking and following directions as you play together. Use phrases like “Your turn,” “Ready, set, go!” and “Car goes down, down, down.” After modeling the words “ready, set, go” a few times, give your child a chance to finish the phrase for you. You start “ready, set….” and point or gesture for them to finish with “go!” and then release the car to create a cause-and-effect teaching opportunity with your little one.

4. Mr. Potato Head

Encourage your child to name and describe the different parts of this language development toy, such as the eyes, nose, and mouth. Prompt them to request specific body parts by giving choices like “Should we do the eyes or the shoes next?” Model for your child how to ask without demanding. Use descriptive language as you play, saying things like, “Let’s put the big blue eyes on Mr. Potato Head” or “Can you find the round red nose?” Encourage imaginative play by creating stories or giving the toy a unique personality, which enhances storytelling skills.

5. Puzzles

Puzzles have many themes and sometimes have interactive accessories like doors or latches. They can be a fun way to expose your little one to new vocabulary. Start by naming the puzzle pieces as they play and describe their shapes, colors, or patterns. Describe the scene the puzzle creates for your child, discussing the objects or animals depicted. Use the puzzle pieces as characters in pretend play as you narrate what they are doing. As your child grows, puzzles are an excellent way to target answering questions like “What says moo?” or “What animal is the biggest?”

6. Play Kitchen and Food

With a play kitchen, the opportunities for language learning are endless. Start by labeling food items and kitchen utensils. Target verbs as you pretend to make food, like mix, cook, pour, open, and eat. Engage in conversation while playing, discussing what you are “cooking” or “preparing.” Give your child opportunities to practice receptive language skills by “placing orders” like “Mommy is hungry, can you bring me the apple?” or “Dada wants more milk, please” while holding out your cup.

Prompt your child to give instructions or ask for specific items, fostering their ability to communicate and express themselves. Encourage role-playing and imaginative storytelling as your child ages, creating scenarios where your child can act as a chef or customer and using descriptive language to describe the pretend meals.

7. Baby Dolls

There is something nostalgic about a classic baby doll toy! Label body parts, clothing, and accessories for this language development toy. Encourage your child to engage in nurturing and caregiving role-play with the baby doll, and emphasize all the action words like sleep, eat, and play. Narrate what they are doing, such as feeding, changing diapers, or putting the doll to sleep, and model short phrases for them to try and imitate. Encourage conversation by asking open-ended questions like, “What does the baby need?” or “How can we make the baby happy?” Use descriptive language to discuss the doll’s features, emotions, and needs. This type of play enhances vocabulary development, fosters empathy and social skills, and encourages toddlers to express themselves verbally as they imitate real-life caregiving situations.

8. Bubbles

This fan-favorite language development toy always catches a little one’s attention. You can label the bubbles, the size of the bubbles, and how they move up and down. Exaggerate your excitement as you say “Pop!” and “Wow!” to encourage your toddler to imitate. Have your child request more bubbles or ask for specific actions, fostering their ability to communicate their desires. Describe the sensory experience of bubbles, like how they feel when they pop on your skin. Give your child the opportunity to follow directions with their body, like “pop it on your hand” or “kick it with your foot.” Take turns with your little ones as they try to blow their bubbles, and model taking turns for them. This bubble container is a wonderful, non-spill option.

9. Vehicles and Transportation

Kids are fascinated by real-life vehicles like garbage trucks and trains. Try fostering that curiosity by playing with various cars and trucks like fire trucks, helicopters, airplanes, and school buses. Label all the types of vehicles, their colors, and parts, and describe where you find them. Additionally, talk about the people driving the vehicles, like police officers, construction workers, and pilots. Model short phrases for your toddler to imitate, like “Firetruck is big” and “plane goes up up up!” Engage in imaginative play scenarios where they can act out driving, racing, or transporting objects. Prompt them to use action words like “go,” “stop,” “drive,” or “fly” as they play with the vehicles. Encourage them to make vehicle sounds and imitate your gestures.

10. Art Supplies

Give your child the opportunity to create something through art, and you will be surprised by how their creative and magical minds work! Not only is art a creative outlet, but making something with their own little hands gives your child something to be proud of. Art supplies can be as simple as paper and some crayons or as obscure as a toilet paper roll, glue, and feathers. That’s the beauty of it: Anything can be art! Label your materials and describe the colors, shapes, and textures of everything you see.

For very little ones, model what they are making with short phrases like “I see blue circles” or “Look, you made a sun.” For older kiddos, allow them to interpret their creations and ask them to explain them. Encourage them to narrate their creative process, expressing their thoughts and ideas. Target following directions by incorporating concepts like “glue the blue one under the pink one” or “after yellow, let’s use red.”

Always take the opportunity to sit and play with your kids. Exploring and interacting with different language development toys can help them develop their language skills, and the more you talk to them, the more they will learn.

Parenting is a balancing act. You’re constantly trying to figure out how to do it all while being present for your kids and giving them the best life possible. It can feel overwhelming to think about everything on our to-do list in a single day, including incorporating learning and language development during everyday routines.

Daily routines provide a rich and natural environment for language learning, offering numerous opportunities for parents and caregivers to engage and interact with their little ones. Whether during bath time, mealtime, or even a trip to the grocery store, by incorporating simple strategies, parents can expose their babies and toddlers to a wide range of vocabulary and encourage conversation. Let’s explore some fun ways to incorporate language development during everyday routines.^1,2,3

Incorporate Language Development During Bath Time

Bath time is an excellent opportunity to promote language development in babies and toddlers. As you prepare for bath time, engage your little one in conversation, describing each step of the process. Talk about how you turn the water on and describe how “the tub fills up up up.” Use simple, repetitive words like “water,” “soap,” and “bubbles” to introduce new vocabulary. Target functional words like “on,” “in,” and “more” with bath time routines like pumping soap and dumping water from a cup. Sing songs or nursery rhymes while bathing, incorporating actions and gestures to make it interactive. Point out body parts, name them as you wash, and encourage your baby to mimic your sounds. Utilize bath toys as conversation starters, discussing their colors, shapes, and textures.

Use Mealtime for Conversation

Using mealtime as a vessel for targeting language can be fun and functional for kids of all ages. Start your conversation in the kitchen as you prepare the meal. As you sit down for a meal together, start by labeling the food and any condiments. Encourage your baby to imitate the sounds you make or attempt to say the words themselves. Use mealtime as a chance to introduce new vocabulary related to food, such as tastes (“sweet,” “sour”), textures (“crunchy,” “soft”), and colors.

Always try to incorporate functional words like “more,” “give me,” and “put here.” As your child grows, engage in back-and-forth communication by asking questions like, “How does your banana taste?” or “Mommy has chicken; what do you have on your plate?”

Describe Activity During Diaper Changes

As you attend to your baby’s diapering needs, engage them in conversation and describe what you’re doing step by step. Use simple words and phrases such as “diaper,” “clean,” and “wipe.” Sing songs or nursery rhymes to make the experience more enjoyable and interactive. While the baby is lying down, identify parts of their face, pointing and labeling back and forth with yours, “Mommy’s eyes . . . baby’s eyes.”

Be silly and teach your baby to describe words like “stinky” or “dirty,” as they may show signs that they are ready for potty training. Encourage your baby to imitate your sounds or gestures, fostering their communication skills. Making diaper time fun can create language-rich moments, help distract from a potentially non-preferred activity for your baby, and keep them entertained.

Incorporate Language Development at the Grocery Store

The grocery store can be ideal for promoting babies’ language development. As you navigate the aisles, engage your little one in conversation, pointing out different items and describing them. Introduce vocabulary by labeling all the store sights, including the food, colors, carts, and people. Encourage your baby to observe and listen to the sounds of the store, such as the rustling of bags or the hum of the shopping cart. Talk about the colors, sizes, and shapes of the products you encounter, fostering their understanding of descriptive language.

Encourage your baby to interact by pointing at or reaching for items and responding to their communication attempts. As your child grows, target following directions by allowing them to participate in the shopping routine, like taking items off the shelf and putting food in the cart. Turning the grocery store into a language-rich environment provides a valuable opportunity for your baby to absorb new words and concepts while doing a routine errand into a fun and engaging learning experience.

Narrate While Driving

The car can be a miserable place to be with a baby. One way to distract children and keep them calm while driving and promote language development is talking to them while on a trip in the car. While driving, engage your little one in conversation, narrating the journey and describing the things you see outside the window. Point out familiar objects like trees, houses, or cars. Sing nursery rhymes or play children’s songs, encouraging your baby to join in with simple sounds or gestures. As your child grows, target descriptive language about the things you see, like sizes, colors, and sounds.

Incorporating language development into everyday routines for our babies doesn’t have to be complicated. Some of the most valuable ways to promote your baby’s development can be done while simply just living life. Remember always to try and talk to your little one about what you are doing, describe what you see, and make your routines as fun and engaging as possible. Your child’s magical little brain will do the rest.

Parents and caregivers are the most important teachers during a child’s early years, especially with baby language development. The stages of language development and reaching language development milestones are crucial parts of a child’s growth. It has a significant role in a child’s ability to communicate and understand the world around them.¹⁴

You can help promote language development in babies and toddlers by following simple strategies, activities, and routines early in their lives, like keeping your wording simple, using your “mommy voice,” and using facial expressions and mouth movements. These are just a few strategies to consider when promoting language development in your baby. Let’s look at a few others and examine what language development means.^14,15

What Does Language Development Mean?

Language development is the process of developing the ability to communicate your wants and needs. Language has several components: phonology, semantics, syntax, and pragmatics. Children develop skills in each of these components as they grow; the first three years of a baby’s life is a critical period for developing speech and language skills.^1,2,3

• Phonology: Refers to the study of patterns in sounds and languages.⁸
• Semantics: How different elements in language carry meaning.⁷
• Syntax: How words are put together to form phrases.⁶
• Pragmatics: Using the appropriate communication in social situations, like greetings and taking turns when talking.⁵

What are the Stages of Baby Language Development?

There are several stages of baby language development, broken into age ranges. It’s essential to remember these ranges are approximations. Every baby develops skills at their own pace. If you worry your baby isn’t meeting appropriate milestones in language development, contact your pediatrician for advice.^3,4

Birth to 3 Months

At this language development milestone, your baby should startle at loud sounds, react when you talk, and appear to recognize your voice. They also will coo, smile at people, and have varied cries for different reasons.

4 Months to 6 Months

Between four and six months, your baby should move her eyes to where she hears sounds and respond to changes in your tone of voice. Your baby will also notice which toys make sounds, pay attention to music, babble with you or alone when playing, giggle, laugh, and begin making speech-like sounds.

7 Months to 1 Year

At this stage of language development, your baby should turn and look in the direction of sounds, look when you point, turn when you call his name, and begin to understand common words. Your baby will start to respond to simple words or phrases and listen to songs and stories. They’ll also start babbling longer strings of sounds and use sounds and gestures to get and keep attention. They may also begin imitating sounds or saying one or two words.

• Speech Milestones for Babies 6-12 months

1 Year to 2 Years

By the time your baby reaches two years, this milestone in language development will include following simple directions like “pet the dog.” Your baby will also respond to simple questions, point to pictures in a book when you name them, use many new words, and start to put two or more words together.

How to Promote Language Development in Your Baby

Here are some ways to help promote language development and the reaching of language milestones in your baby.

Start Early

Did you know a baby can distinguish its mother’s voice from others as early as 36 weeks gestation? Babies begin hearing sounds and listening to voices in the womb and are born ready to learn. Infants are born with the ability to communicate and learn languages. Therefore, starting to talk and interacting with your baby as early as possible is essential. Talk to your baby during feeding, bathing, and diaper changes. Respond to your baby’s cries, coos, and gurgles. Sing songs, read books, and play games that involve sounds and movements.^3,9

Read Books

Reading to your child is an excellent way to promote language development. Reading exposes your child to new words, sounds, and ideas. It also helps them develop their listening and comprehension skills.¹⁰

Choose books with simple, repetitive language and colorful illustrations. Also, talk about the pictures, make connections with your child’s experiences, ask simple questions, sequence the story events, and read the same book repeatedly. Make reading a regular part of your child’s routine, and let them choose the books they want to read to keep them engaged.

Play Time

Playing is a fundamental pillar of language development. Play with your child using toys that are rich in language. Use simple toys such as dolls, animals, blocks, puzzles, and cars. Like book reading, narrate what your child does while playing to help them associate words with objects and activities.¹¹

Try limiting questions or asking your kids to copy you, like “What is this?” or “Say cow.” Instead, model what you want a baby to try and say themselves. Take playing with a farm toy as an example. You can label the animals, “I see the cow,” make noises like, “the cow says moo,” narrate actions, “cow is eating, nom nom nom,” label functional words, “cow is going up up up.” Be repetitive, over-exaggerate sounds and mouth movements, and pause for your child to imitate you without pressuring them.

Use Gestures and Baby Sign Language

Gestures and baby sign language are great tools for promoting language development in babies and toddlers. They allow your child to communicate with you before they can speak. Teach your child simple signs such as “milk,” “more,” and “all done.” Pair the gestures and signs with your words as you speak to your baby to help bridge the connection that these hand movements carry meaning.¹²

It’s okay if your little one does not use the exact gesture or sign you are modeling. They may create their own gesture in a way that is easy for their tiny hands to move. For example, when teaching my son “more,” instead of using the traditional sign, he began by simply clapping his hands together before it eventually evolved into the true gesture.¹²

Sing Songs for Language Development

Singing songs is an engaging way to teach babies language because their brains are drawn to the sound of music and melody. Popular children’s songs are often repetitive, use gestures, and include robust and functional language and vocabulary for kids to use daily. Classics like “Wheels on the Bus,” “Old McDonald,” and “Five Little Ducks” are great for this. Pair your child’s favorite songs while reading books or with toys representing each song. Have your child face you while singing so they can see your mouth, gestures, and enthusiasm during all the fun!¹³

Everyday Routines and Activities

Talking about daily activities is one of the easiest yet often overlooked ways to promote language development in babies and toddlers. Describe what you are doing as you go about your daily routines. From mealtime to bath time to grocery shopping and diaper changes, our everyday life events have the richest and most functional opportunities for teaching vocabulary, concepts, social language, and more. For example, describe the ingredients and steps you are taking while cooking. While getting dressed, talk about the clothes you are putting on, body parts, and their colors. There is nothing more valuable for your baby than you simply talking to them.¹³

You are your child’s best teacher, especially regarding the stages of language development and language development milestones. They are most engaged and excited to share experiences, games, and language with you. Talk to your little one as much as possible and try out some fun ways to promote language in your home. Get on the floor, be silly, and make them laugh. Some of the most incredible memories you will create with your kids are surrounded by watching them learn to talk.

A baby’s first year is an incredible time filled with many changes. These include a rapid development in communication skills and hitting speech milestones. From cooing and babbling to responding to their name and using gestures, babies make giant leaps in their ability to communicate with the world around them, with 6-month speech milestones and 12-month speech milestones. While we explore some key speech and language milestones babies reach during this exciting time, let us first discuss what milestones are and ways to use them to measure development.

What is a Speech Milestone?

Developmental speech milestones are communication skills most children can perform when they reach a certain age. These milestones build on one another and help us know if a child’s development is on track. It’s important to remember that all children develop at their own pace, and no two children are the same. It sounds counterintuitive because milestones are quite literally rooted in comparison but try not to compare your baby to other children you know. Instead, use these speech milestones as a guide for your child’s growth in their first year.^1,2

Communication and Speech Milestones for 0-6 Months

Some key milestones are achieved by the time your baby reaches 6 months. By 4 months old, we expect a baby to smile back when you talk to them, recognize your voice, and make various cooing sounds. Babies should start being aware of themselves, their surroundings, and their caregivers.^3,5

By 6 months, we also expect babies to track their eyesight toward a sound source, pay attention to music, begin laughing and babbling, and differentiate sounds for pleasure and displeasure (crying, whining, laughing, cooing, etc.) These skills might seem minuscule, and some might even be hard to notice in a newborn, but they serve as foundational skills for the more significant speech milestones in the coming months.^4,5

Communication and Speech Milestones for 6-12 Months

There is something special and fun about the 6–12-month stage. There is so much learning, growing, and changing between 6-12 months as your baby explores their abilities, limitations, and environments. Each milestone is marked with an emerging age when the skill should begin to develop, and at a mastered age, the latest skill is expected to be learned. Remember, each baby is different, and the ages of mastery are truly a range. If your baby is a few weeks early or a few weeks behind, don’t fret. If your baby is delayed more than 3 months in mastering a speech milestone, speak to your pediatrician.

Babbling and Early Sounds

Around the 6-month speech milestone mark, babies begin babbling and experimenting with sounds. They may start to make repeated consonant-vowel sounds or reduplicated babbling, such as “ba-ba-ba” or “ma-ma-ma.” Babbling is an essential precursor to language development, as it helps babies learn how to coordinate the movements of their mouth, tongue, and vocal cords. At this age, babies start to recognize the sounds of their names and the voices of familiar people. By 8-10 months, your baby may start producing non-reduplicated babbles. More simply, they are starting to combine a variety of consonants and vowels, like “ba-da-te-go.” Talking to your baby is the best way to help them learn to start babbling. Encourage them by babbling back or speaking in a high-pitch sing-song voice.^2,5,6

Responding to Their Name

As babies approach the 9-month mark, they typically become more responsive to their names. They may turn their head or look toward the source of the sound when they hear their name called. This is a significant speech milestone in communication development, as it shows that babies are beginning to understand that words have meaning. They can use them to identify people and things. Babies may also start recognizing the names of family members at this time.

To work on this skill, start by familiarizing your baby with their name by saying it to them frequently with good eye contact and singing songs with their name. Later, you can sit out of your baby’s line of sight and call their name, hoping they turn toward you. Make sure to clap and praise them when they do!^5,6 

Using Gestures

Gestures are a vital prerequisite speech milestone skill that often emerges around 9 months for verbal language and is mastered by 12 months. They teach a baby that their actions can influence the world around them. This is a great time to introduce baby sign language to your little one. Babies can pick up on simple signs and gestures such as “more,” “eat,” and “milk” from a very early age. Using gestures sets the foundation for more complex communication skills like using words and phrases to express their needs and wants. Although your baby might not start using gestures until around 9 months, introducing them sooner can help your baby become familiar with them.^2,5

Understanding Simple Words

Between 6-12 months old, babies begin understanding simple words and phrases. Even if they can’t say these words, they can recognize their meaning and respond appropriately at this speech milestone. For example, if you say “bye-bye,” they may wave their hand or look toward the door. They can also understand words associated with daily routines, such as bath or “bedtime,” and basic commands like “no,” “come here,” and “want more?” This is an essential step toward developing receptive language skills, allowing babies to understand what is being said. As you move through your daily routines, describe and label everything to your baby. Their little brains are like sponges, and you will see the connections being made right before your eyes.^2,5,7

Imitating Sounds and Mouth Movements

Baby imitation is such a fun and exciting 12-month speech milestone of their communication development! At this time, babies may begin to imitate sounds and gestures they hear and see. For example, if you stick out your tongue or make a wide-open mouth, they should try to copy you. You might also notice your baby trying to imitate what you say. Start with silly babbling and environmental sounds, such as animal sounds or exclamations, like “whoa” and “uh oh.” Your baby may also start to take turns vocalizing with you, which mimics a conversation. After you make a silly babble sound, your baby will say one back to you, and so on.⁵

Using Simple Words and Sounds

Between 10-12 months, babies may begin to use simple words and sounds to communicate. They may say “mama” or “dada” to refer to their parents or use words like “ball” or “dog” to identify objects they see. Many parents may not be aware that their baby does not need to use a true word for it to count as a word in their baby’s language. For example, animal sounds, exclamations like “uh oh,” and word approximations like “wawa” for water all count as words. Essentially, if the vocalization carries meaning, is consistent, and represents an object, action, or person, it counts as a word. While their vocabulary is still limited, this is an exciting step toward developing expressive language skills, which allow babies to communicate their thoughts and feelings.^2,5,8

The 6–12-month age range is a critical and exciting time for communication development and speech milestones. From babbling and early sounds to using simple words and gestures, babies make significant strides in their ability to communicate with the world during this period. As parents and caregivers, it’s essential to provide opportunities for babies to practice their communication skills by talking, reading, and playing with them. By doing so, we can help support their development and set them up for success in their language and communication skills for years to come.

While the joys of parenthood are endless, raising kids comes with its fair share of concerns, especially regarding development. Speech delay and language development in the first few years of life can feel like an overwhelming topic. Questions like, “Why isn’t she clapping yet like the other babies?” or “Shouldn’t he have more words by now?” are a nonstop stream of anxiety-inducing thoughts wracking our brains to make sure our babies are on the right track.

As a speech-language pathologist (SLP) and a new mama, I am hyper-focused on my son’s communication milestones. Having a clear understanding of speech and language delays, how to identify them, and what to do when we suspect our child may have one are essential to have in your mama toolbelt.

What’s the Difference Between Speech and Language?

The domains of speech and language are often confused and misunderstood. Children can have a problem with speech, language, or both. Speech is how we say sounds and words.¹

This includes:

• Articulation: This is the pronunciation of speech sounds in words, like “it’s waining” instead of “it’s raining.
• Voice: This is how we use our vocal cords and breath to make sounds. Our voice can be characterized as raspy, breathy, nasal, etc.
• Fluency: This is the rhythm of our speech, also known as stuttering.

Language is defined as the words we use and how we use them to share ideas and comprehend information. Language skills include vocabulary, grammar, comprehension, and social skills. We separate language skills into two categories: receptive and expressive.¹

• Receptive language is how we understand the world around us.
• Expressive language is how we use words in sentences and form our thoughts.

Together, speech and language skills allow our children to interact effectively with others and understand the world around them.

What is a Speech or Language Delay?

A speech delay or language delay occurs when a child is not meeting their communication milestones compared to other children of the same age. Children are expected to make certain sounds by a specific age. If they cannot, we identify them as having a speech delay.²

For example, the “k” sound is typically pronounced correctly in words and sentences between 3 to 3 ½ years old. Speech delays are relatively common in older toddlers and elementary school-aged children.

Like speech, we expect children to meet specific language milestones throughout typical stages of development. In babies and toddlers, such milestones include clapping, using gestures like waving, or even as basic as responding to their name. As children grow, how they use words and understand spoken language changes constantly. Once they enter toddlerhood, we expect children to start using more words, answering yes-and-no questions, and following basic directions. Children who do not display such skills by the expected age of development may demonstrate a language delay.

What are the Signs of a Speech or Language Delay?

The signs of a speech or language delay could change depending on your child’s development stage. Speech delays can emerge as early as 2-3 years old. Signs of a speech delay include incorrect pronunciation of sounds, you or other adults having difficulty understanding your child, and signs of frustration, such as crying, tantrums, or biting when misunderstood.^1,2

Common speech sound errors include making the “t” for “k” (“tite” for “kite”), making “w” or “y” for “r” and “l” (“yoyi-pop” for “lollipop”), and the infamous lisp, when a child sticks their tongue out to make the “s” sound (“thmile” for “smile”).

What Causes a Speech or Language Delay?

There are a wide variety of causes for speech and language delays. Speech delays can be caused by problems with oral-motor function, which occur when the brain has difficulty coordinating the movements of the lips, tongue, and jaw to make speech sounds. Children with a history of oral restrictions, such as lip and tongue ties, are more susceptible to speech delays. Frequent ear infections and hearing problems may also lead to speech delays.²

The exact causes of language delays are a bit more challenging to define. Sometimes, language delays can be caused by a lack of exposure to adult interaction or appropriate play. Some children develop at their own pace and need extra help to catch up to their peers. Children born prematurely, have low birth weight, have hearing loss, and have poor nutrition or feeding difficulties may also be predisposed to language delays. Lastly, underlying diagnoses, including autism, Down syndrome, traumatic brain injury, and cerebral palsy, are often associated with language delays.³

I want to reiterate that there may not be one specific cause for your child’s speech or language delay – it just happens. Parents should never feel guilt or shame if their child presents signs of a communication delay. But you are now equipped with the knowledge and resources to help your kids!

How Do Doctors Diagnose a Speech or Language Delay?

If your child displays signs of a speech delay or language delay, it is vital to seek an evaluation from a speech-language pathologist (SLP) as soon as possible. Research shows that the earlier a child receives interventions to promote communication skills, the more likely those interventions are to be effective. Speak to your pediatrician about your concerns as soon as possible. If your child is under two, they may qualify for state-funded intervention services. You can also ask your pediatrician to refer you to speech and language therapy at a clinic or private practice.⁴

At your child’s evaluation, the SLP will use a combination of formal assessments, clinical observations, and your input to help diagnose them with a speech or language delay. Depending on their age and your concerns, they will likely include the following factors in their evaluation:

• Receptive language (how information is understood)
• Expressive (the words we use to form sentences)
• Speech sounds
• Oral motor exam

The SLP will examine all the data to determine the type and severity of the delay. For example, if your child demonstrates age-appropriate comprehension skills but shows a speech delay, they may be diagnosed with a “mild expressive language delay.” During your child’s evaluation, don’t be afraid to ask questions about their diagnosis. The more you understand your child’s strengths and weaknesses, the more equipped you will be to help them work on their communication skills at home.

What Can You Do If Your Child Has a Speech or Language Delay?

After your child’s diagnosis, they will begin speech or language therapy. The SLP will create therapy goals for your child based on strengths and weaknesses demonstrated in their evaluation. Additionally, their goals will align with appropriate communication milestones for children their age. Remember the importance of early intervention — the earlier you start, the better!

Speech and language therapy helps your child by directly targeting their goals with evidence-based intervention methods. SLPs have an arsenal of sophisticated techniques obtained through their education and experience, all designed to reach positive outcomes and steady progress in therapy. Their unique training incorporates these intervention strategies into play-based activities, interactive book reading, games, and more to keep your child enthusiastic and happy during treatment. The repetition and consistency of therapy are essential for your child to make continuous progress toward their communication goals.

You Have the Key

While SLPs are trained professionals, parents are the key to making therapy the most successful it can be. Research indicates that parental involvement in speech and language therapy is the key to long-term success. Collaborate with your SLP on creatively targeting your child’s goals at home. They can provide you with training and tips on using their techniques in your child’s daily routines and natural environment.⁵

Some ideas include narrating your activities at the grocery store, bath time, and meal times. Read many books and use the pictures to target sounds and label the images. Find 5-10 minutes daily to sit on the floor with your child and play with their toys, indirectly working on their goals in a way they won’t even realize!

Any developmental delay, including speech or language delays, can cause guilt and worry. I understand first-hand how mom guilt feels and how difficult it is to overcome, especially when your child is struggling. Please remember that if your child seems to have a speech or language delay, it is not because of anything you did! Trust that you are the best mom for your child and are doing everything you can to support them. Now you are more prepared to look for signs of delays and how to start intervening as early as possible.