Happy To Be An SLP Blog Hop!

Happy Monday, Friends!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend! If you haven’t yet heard, May is Better Speech & Hearing Month! I’m sooooo excited to be a part of this awesome blog hop, where many of your favorite Speech Bloggers are giving information about our field. AND….there’s great prizes and a really cool surprise at the end, so make sure to “hop” all the way through!

Anyway, as many of you know, I had my first baby, a little girl named Halle Jane, back in August. It has been so much fun watching her grow and learn and begin to talk! She’s 8 1/2 months old, and she’s got quite the vocabulary going on! This weekend I took the time to write down the words/phrases she is currently saying consistently and in context:

Dad (No, she doesn’t call him Dada, just “dad.” And I have no idea where that came from!
Mama
Uh-oh
Hey
Bye-Bye
Duck
Doggie
Kitty Cat
No-No
Whassat (What’s that?)
Thank you
What?
Baba (ball/bottle)

So now that I’m done bragging about my kid, here’s my tip:

NOT ALL KIDS DO THE SAME THINGS AT THE SAME TIME…..AND THAT’S OK!

As mothers, it is easy to constantly compare your children to others. The American Speech & Hearing Association has guidelines for normal language development, but if your kiddo isn’t meeting them exactly by a certain point, it doesn’t necessarily mean they are behind and there is something wrong. Although my little girl is talking early, she hasn’t started crawling yet, and again, that’s ok!

Try to keep in mind that the normal language development guidelines are just that….guidelines. And chances are, your little one will start talking your ear off in no time! However, if your child doesn’t progress or you become concerned about your child’s development, it is always a good
idea to ask your pediatrician. And many SLPs will offer free
screenings as well!

Following is a very brief synopsis of typical language development:

4-6 months: Begins babbling sounds and laughing
7 months- 1 year: Babbles in long and short groups of sounds; imitates speech sounds; and may have 1-2 words
1-2 years: Uses 2 word questions (Where mama?); puts two words together (Want ball)
2-3 years: Has a word for almost everything; strings together 2-3 word phrases

For additional information on typical language development, visit ASHA’s website.

Now for my letter: