Hi Mommies! I am having a problem with my 15 month old...I guess it isn't really a problem but more of an issue. She will not talk. The only thing she says is dad & that is it. She doesn't even attempt to say anything else. This is strange for us b/c our oldest was talking at 1. I understand that every kid is different but isn't this a little late to not be talking? She knows how to sign for "more" when she is hungry & "drink". How do I encourage her to try to talk?
Tiffany when my son was 2 years old I was asking the same question. He said only 3 words, at 2 and a half I was really worried but I was told to be patient with him. One day I picked him up and he said a complete sentence. I want down. He never stopped talking after that, nonstop. I think for him it was just a matter of not having a need to do it. His life was prety good. It was only when he wanted something and had to ask for it that he said the sentence. Now, that is really late for a child to talk.
15 months is really not that late. Every child is different. If she is signing and getting what she wants, that means she does not have to verbalize it either. You know her better than anyone, if you can get her to ask for something by saying the word before you give it to her, that would be great. If it frustrates her, just be patient. Some day you will write a message wanting to know how to make her be quiet.
Do more signs. I watch a set of 20 month olds (twins) who barely talk. They say mama and dada and by-by. The more I work signs with them, the more they are talking. In a few weeks after starting the signing they now say shoe, more, ball, dog etc.... Signing does not delay talking it is simply a added way to encourage communication. I would suggest these video's called Signing Time. They are great. But, you have time 15 mo. is still young. Does she jibber jabber at all?
My daughter is 22 months old and still says maybe 4 words. She does speech therapy and we are now doing Parents as Teachers with her. I'm going to take her to an ent to check her ears cause the research I've done has leaned towards ear issues. No she hasn't had any ear infections but they don't have to they can have allergies and still have fluid build up back there to where everything sounds like they are underwater. Good Luck I know what you are going through.Sandi
Tiffany, I would just try talking to her more. We talk to our son all the time. He's two and he talks quite a bit. We started talking to him when he was a baby. We would ask him questions that we knew he couldn't answer and talk to him about things we knew he didn't understand, hoping that we were teaching him how to talk. Kids learn by watching so the more they watch you talk to them, then usually they will try to say things. Also, she is only 15 months, so I wouldn't worry too much about this. Good luck!!
Hi Tiffany,
This may sound like and old lady thing (OK, I am 46 and my babies are 14 and 18). . .but even before that I remember my mom telling the story how my little brother didn't talk for a long time. Of course that was befoe the days of signing but she said that he and I had this communication thing worked out even at that young age and I did everything for him and he didn't have to talk.
I also wish the baby sign language would have been in vogue when my kids were young. But I wonder, and this is pure speculation, is that why talk and learn words when you have a sign for it? I know you say the words with the signs, but it's much easier to sign and get a response than learn the phonics. Just a thought.
Good Luck,
Lori K
I agree..in my 28 years of taking care of children and having three of my own children..they all learn and talk on their own time..please be patient and I think you will be amazed at how one day she will start talking and never be quiet....also a good idea to have her tested with a ENT if things do not change in a few months..
Good Morning Tiffany, I have a question. Does your older child tell you what your little one wants or says? Our youngest son (32) refused to talk also. He was 2 before he finally did talk. His older brother always talked for him. I had to tell him he couldn't help like that anymore. Travis had to talk for himself. Travis would point and grunt or squeal and Drew would tell me what he wanted.
I love sign language and i taught our grand children several signs when they are little. Our 3 1/2 yo gr son is very good at sign. Baby Einstein "Talking Hands" is great teach tool also. Says the words and signs them.
But if your oldest child helps your little one, talk to them and just let them know they are a great helper doing a great job, but baby needs to learn to ask and say words on their own now.
God Bless you
Karen Nana of 5
Good morning, Tiffany. I agree with the other posters, I don't think you need to be too concerned just yet. My first son (now 15yrs) and my 4th son (18 months) were late bloomers compared to the two in the middle, but I think that the2 middle ones learned from their older sibling(s) and wanted to be "big kids" right away. My last little one though hasn't made much effort to speak or do as much for himself because he is truly the "baby" of the family. He gets by with "uh-huh" and "un-huh" most of the time because everyone else speaks for him or plays 20 questions until we get the "uh-huh" from him. lol We try to be patient and encourage him to talk, but with 4 kids, we're usually in a hurry and choose to guess what he wants. At 15 months, he was only saying mama, dada, gaga (grandma), and a version of the dog's name, but in the past 2 months, his vocab has really jumped. He's saying his brothers' and sister's names, juice, ball, move, please and some other random words. We used baby sign too and he still uses that if we're not understanding him. We praise him when he tries to talk and I will ask him to talk when he wants something instead of just grunting and pointing. Sometimes it comes out like complete jibber jabber but other times he surprises himself and can actually say what he wants. When you take your daughter for her 18 month checkup, your dr should give you a checklist of milestones that will include about how many words they should have in their vocabulary and how many words they should understand. As long as you think she is understanding what you're telling her, then I wouldn't worry too much about the speaking part yet. It will come when she's ready.
Have you had her hearing tested? What does your pediatrician say about her lack of speech? My oldest daughter wasn't saying much at 15 months old, but now she won't be quiet! She's almost 20 years old now. I thought it wasn't too much of a concern until about age 2, but I don't know what the current way of thinking is.
Good morning! It looks like you are getting alot of good advice! My son didn't really talk until he was about 3 1/2 years old. My daughter (3 years older) would let everyone know what he wanted (and I knew what all of the little grunts meant too).:) The thing that helped him start talking was I had to go to work for a little bit at a daycare and he was able to go for free while I worked, so he had to talk then. Since then, we have not been able to keep him quiet! :) Just be patient with your little one and she will start talking in her timing. God Bless!
Hi Tiffany
I'm kind of in the same boat as you, I have a 24 month old that only says Mama and Dada so I have gotten him signed up through First Steps to get Speech Therapy. If you have Parents as Teachers come into your house they should be able to help you get connected with First Steps, if not you can find them online and contact them yourself, they send a person out to test them and see if they will qualify for their services. If this doesn't work out for you, my best advice is just to keep talking and reading to her and start with the basics like animal sounds. Hope this helps and good luck!
First of all does the 3 year old talk for her? This is pretty commen in 2nd children, they don't talk because they don't have to. Either the older sib talks for them or when the older one ask "mom can I have a cookie" and you say yes and give him/her a cookie you give the younder one a cookie to, and they never had to. First of all have her checked out to rule out problems and then if there are no problems just sit back and wait for her to decide to talk. I've known several people with this same problem and their kids started really talking after 2 years and a couple when they were almost 3, but when they started talking it was in full sentences. My own 2nd child was like that. My first started talking at 6 months and was always way ahead of the other kids in talking (and still talks a lot and all the time) and my younger one did hardly talk at all until she was almost 2. Yours will get there too. Good luck!
My youngest was like that too. Her big sister who is 14 months older did all her talking for her. Eventually she found her voice. I wouldn't worry to much. A lot of times when an older sibling who isn't much older than the next one in line, will talk for them. It will come. Good luck and God Bless.
First, have you had her hearing tested? It is a good sign that she says Dad though. In order for her to be motivated to talk she needs to understand that she will not get what she wants til she says it. Encourage her in a positive way when she signs more for hungry say "say more"or "say hungry". Wait until she tries. Praise her when she tries. Be persistent, say "when you say more I will give it to you". It may be hard at first, but if you give her things when she only signs it, you're reinforcing her behavior of encouraging her not to talk. Do you have Parents as Teachers in your area? I know they are in Missouri but not sure about Kansas. It may be called another name. You can find out by calling your local school board or elementary school. They are an excellent resource for every parent. They begin visiting your home at 2 months old to give parents on ideas to encourage proper development & also to do developmental testing. It is meant for all children & is such a wonderful program to prepare children for kindgergarten readiness. They also will have many ideas on encouragement & also resources for speech therapy if they determine your child needs it. Good luck
15 months is not late, maybe not even delayed at this point. Usually the benchmark is age two. What does Parents as First Teacher say/has she been screened?
That said, I agree with the other Moms, older children tend to do the talking for the younger ones. I also believe that in some cases, signing can actually delay speech. Controversial words, I know. Which is "why" I phrased this as "in some cases"........I truly do believe that signing is beneficial to most children.
Sooo, my recommendation would be to encourage her to speak at every turn..."cup, cup of milk" "diaper, time for diaper" etc. By actively naming each item/activity... time & time again, most children begin parroting your own words. "Please" & "thank you" fall in this category, too! Good Luck.
My son (second child) was 2 1/2 before he started talking. He's 5 1/2 now, and hasn't stopped since!!! :)
I hear that this is common in second children. My son still doesn't have very many words and he's 21 months, but the few he does have he's already forming into 3 and 4 word sentences. Some kids just don't have a lot of words and then all of a sudden start using sentences like my son. If you are really worried, consult with your pediatrician or see if they have developmental testing in your area (it's usually free). Good luck and try not to worry too much... every child develops and his or her own speed.
Don't panic. My son wasn't talking at all at that age, either. Really, not even saying mommy or daddy. Now, at 26 months, he is using pretty much full sentences. He knows all of his colors and shapes and body parts. He knows when to use subject ("I" or "she") vs. object ("me" or "her") pronouns. He even understands subtleties in language such as "great" means "more than good." It can just start coming all at once. Good luck.
Our parents as teachers educator told me that they encourage teaching sign when children aren't communicating. Sounds like you've already taught her a little bit. She said that once they learn the value of communication they begin to use their words and sign the things they can't yet say. I used the Signing Times videos, which are available at the library. There are several of them and my daughter loves them. Even though she is speaking quite a bit now she still loves to watch them and sign. Hope that helps.