“Do boys talk late?”
My son is 2 years old and he is not talking yet. Do boys talk late? Should I take him to a doctor?
3 Answers
Good morning,
I would suggest seeing your pediatrician and getting a referral to a speech language pathologist and maybe an audiologist. Children develop at their own rate. Your child might not have all skills until the end of the age range but seeing a speech language pathologist will help you to understand your child's current skills and possible needs.
The information below is from https://www.asha.org/public/speech/development/12/
What should my child be able to do?
- Hearing and Understanding
Points to a few body parts when you ask.
Follows 1-part directions, like "Roll the ball" or "Kiss the baby."
Responds to simple questions, like “Who’s that?” or “Where’s your shoe?”
Listens to simple stories, songs, and rhymes.
Points to pictures in a book when you name them.
- Talking
Uses a lot of new words.
Uses p, b, m, h, and w in words.
Starts to name pictures in books.
Asks questions, like “What's that?”, “Who’s that?”, and “Where’s kitty?”
Puts 2 words together, like "more apple," "no bed," and "mommy book."
Let me know if you have any further questions and if I can be of any help. Take care!
I would suggest seeing your pediatrician and getting a referral to a speech language pathologist and maybe an audiologist. Children develop at their own rate. Your child might not have all skills until the end of the age range but seeing a speech language pathologist will help you to understand your child's current skills and possible needs.
The information below is from https://www.asha.org/public/speech/development/12/
What should my child be able to do?
- Hearing and Understanding
Points to a few body parts when you ask.
Follows 1-part directions, like "Roll the ball" or "Kiss the baby."
Responds to simple questions, like “Who’s that?” or “Where’s your shoe?”
Listens to simple stories, songs, and rhymes.
Points to pictures in a book when you name them.
- Talking
Uses a lot of new words.
Uses p, b, m, h, and w in words.
Starts to name pictures in books.
Asks questions, like “What's that?”, “Who’s that?”, and “Where’s kitty?”
Puts 2 words together, like "more apple," "no bed," and "mommy book."
Let me know if you have any further questions and if I can be of any help. Take care!
Rachel Salem
Speech-Language Pathologist
While boys can sometimes develop language skills at a slower rate than girls for several reasons, by age 2 we would expect a child to have a vocabulary of around 50 words and start to combine those words into 2-word phrases. I always recommend that if a caregiver has a concern about their child's language skills, they should take their child to be evaluated by a speech therapist.
Boys are more likely to have speech and language delays than girls; however, developmental norms still apply. By age 2, your child should be using two-word phrases.
