YOUR CHILD'S

STAGES OF
LANGUAGE
DEVELOPMENT
By:Kenley Cribb

Birth to five months

.•Turns
head toward
sound source
•Watches face of speaker
•Makes noises in response to speech
Makes sounds to communicate
need/feeling (laugh, cry, whine, etc.)

Six to eleven months

•Understands
basic
words “no” “mama”
•Babbles: makes word like sounds
“ma-ma” “da-da”
•Attempts to communication through
body language: pointing, miming, etc.
•Tries to mimic adult speech sounds

Twelve to seventeen months

•Follows
simple directions
•Responds to simple questions
non-verbally
•May use 2 – 3 word descriptions
•Pronunciation may not be clear
•Tries to mimic simple words

Eighteen to twentythree months

.•Enjoys read-alouds
•Begins to produce common
words/sounds
•Pronunciation may still be unclear
May begin combining words “we here”

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 Two to three years

I•Knows pronouns “I” “you” “we”

•Knows descriptive words “small” “happy”
“sad”
•Speaks 2 – 3 word phrases

Three to four years

•Strangers can understand most of what is said

•Has fun with language
•Repeats sentences
•Can respond to basic questions

Four to five years

•Understands
complex questions
•Speech is understandable, but still may
mispronounce words
•Begins using past tense
•Can define words
Can answer “why” questions

FIve years

.•Understands
sequences
•Can
carry out a series of 3
directions
•Understands rhyming
•Holds conversations
•Creates imaginative stories

If you have any questions

please let me know!