2 Year Olds Developement

My son will be 3 in the end of December and I usede to be concerned for some of the same reasons. We would ask him his name, how old he is, what color is this or that and he would just laugh. I was really worried, until I picked him up at daycare one day and the teacher told me that he taught some of the kids their colors. I didn't even know that he knew his colors....everthing is blue at home. She also informed me that he can count to 30. I was shocked. He still won't do those things at home, but at least I know that he is doing ok. SOmetimes kids perform differently around parents than around other people.

Hi T.,

I think he sounds really smart and right on track. Perhaps you need to concentrate on slowing down your expectations rather than speeding up his development. Enjoy the road.

I have a neighbor/friend who's daughter is WAY beyond my 2 year old duaghter developmentally with speech. She refers to herself in the first person already and speaks in full sentances. Our kids play together all the time so I often start to compare it's hard not to do that. But the reality is every kid develops differently and it's all normal. If he weren't talking at all I'd be worried but honestly from your description he sounds smart.

One thing I noticed is you said he can say Spongebob, Nemo and Shrek. Sounds like he watches a lot of TV. My pediatrician made me stop letting my 2 year old watch any more than 20 minutes a day tops and when I did her speech skyrocketed.

Again, it will go by so fast. Enjoy the moment each moment at a time.

BTW I'm hoping I can take my own advice hahaha

From what you have stated, he sounds right on. Age is kind of an abstract thing for this age....they don't really get what 'age' means (he can't touch, see, or hear it). He is a young two and doing well with speech and responding to directives. That is mainly what you are looking for at this point. It is common for him not to state his name at this point also. He sounds great....answering 'wh' questions (who, what, where, when, etc.) are older skills in vocabulary and communication development.

It really sounds like he's doing well. I do know there is a difference in the development of "receptive" language as opposed to social or conversational language (two friend's children have been evaluated recently, so I've picked up some things...).

However, if you're concerned, it wouldn't hurt to ask the pediatrician or contact ECI. In fact, ECI sends a representative to our local library occasionally to do free screenings. It's not as in-depth as the regular home visit (we had them come out for our daughter who didn't walk until she was 18 months), but they will address specific concerns if you have them.
I will say that ECI is much more thorough and has a broader range of "normal" than what our pediatrician looked at. I believe their developmental chart is on their website.

Here is the Developmental Checklist used by the state for ECI. Early Childhood Intervention. If you feel you have concerns then call them. They will evaluate your child and work with them if they meet the critera for free and will come to you or their preschool Phone No: ###-###-####. Better safe than sorry and before they enter public school.

Developmental Checklist

At 3 months I should be able to:
Look at objects and follow them as they move
Raise my head while on my tummy
Recognize the bottle or breast

At 6 months I should be able to:
Babble and coo
Turn toward normal sounds
Roll over (both ways)
Sit with minimum support

At 12 months I should be able to:
Say "Mama" and "Dada"
Imitate gestures (wave bye-bye)
Finger feed myself
Crawl on my hands and knees
Pull myself to a standing position

At 18 months I should be able to:
Say 2 to 6 words
Drink from a cup
Stack 2 to 3 blocks
Scribble with a crayon
Walk well without help

At 24 months I should be able to:
Use two word sentences
Point to at least 5 body parts
Follow simple requests
Feed self with a spoon
Turn pages in a book one at a time
Climb stairs unassisted

We were concerned about our youngest and had her evaluated by Early Childhood Intervention ( http://www.dars.state.tx.us/ecis/index.shtml ). My pedi referred us, but I don't know if you actually have to be referred. The evaluation and assessment didn't cost and then the first 6 months is generally covered and insurance can be used as well.

They were really quick in coming out(they come to you), but within the couple of months everything took to get things going my little one took off with her talking and we decided to wait a little longer before starting the services (6 month free thing) and see how she does on her own. We had her evaluated at 16 months and I think I may ask to have her evaluated at 2 just to make see how she is progressing.

I had a HUGE relief to see how she actually scored. I am very glad I did it. It made me feel 100% better in all my worries I was having. Of course, her progressing on her own has made me feel even better, but I think if she hadn't I would have felt good knowing I was being proactive instead of denying she could have problems.

If you are worried at all, it doesn't hurt to have them visit. The first time, the lady came out and talk to me about my concerns, took a few notes, and then decided that she did feel my daughter needed to be evaluated. She interracted with her a little but mainly me. The second time, the same lady and a speech lady came out and they did various tasks with her. Had her color, asked her what different objects were, let her play with toys, and watched how she went about her activities. They asked me all sorts of questions about how she ate, bedtime, daily schedule, etc. My daughter scored above her age on a couple of the skills, right at her age on a couple, but her speech did score a couple of months younger than her age. So she qualified and then they have to get all the paperwork in order and all. That took from the end of August until the end of September. By the time we had actual days for them to come out and work with us, my daughter had added close to 25 words to her vocabulary. I am not sure what happened but she really got talkative! So I decided to wait until her words are clearer to see if she does really need speech, so that we can take advantage of the 6 months before we have to pay our insurance copay.

Hope this helps. I don't know whether to encourage you or not, but it is what I did. Good luck!

T.-

I was a bit concerned about a behavior my son was displaying and asked it here on Mammasource. I got a lot of responses and most people said they didn't think the behavoir was normal and he should be evaluated etc. I took my son to the doctor...and he is fine! I've come to realize that toddlers are all so quirky and each one does things that make us a Moms go "Hmmmm is that normal"? It can't hurt to take him to the Doctor but you will probably get told what I did. You child is being a normal toddler.

-K.

Sounds like he is on track. My son is 22months old and also shows the same signs as your son. My son just started repeating some things last month and only now say a couple of things: "Dad, mommy, I did it, Do it, and hey". But he doesn't respond when we ask him if he wants his cup only whines untill he gets it. Our pedi told us as long as they are responding and talking by the time they are 2 1/2 to 3 they are fine. He said boys are often more behind in developing than girls. So I wouldn't worry. Also my son use to watch alot of t.v. when I was a SAHM but now we only let him watch t.v. on the weekends and it seemed to really help him with talking. We bought some baby einstein cd's to let him listen to them when he plays and it seems to help. Good luck. And I really wouldn't worry untill he is close to 2 1/2.

Hi T.,

The fact that you are concerned is a good reason to call ECI (or any agency, they are the least expensive), and have him evaluated.

There are many different areas of language - expressive (what he says) and receptive (what he understands), to name two of the areas. A child could have a deficit in one area, and not the other (this is not to say that is the case with your child - just information for you).

The fact that he can follow routine oriented one-step directions, is different than his ability to answer simple questions. How great that you noticed that!

I have been practicing speech-language pathology for 15 years, and have seen that mothers have very good instincts about their children. Nevertheless, if you do have him assessed, and it is determined that all is well on the road of development -- then you might be able to relax a bit. That, in itself, might be worth the call.

There is no down side to having a speech evalulation. It is not dangerous, there are no side effects, and with ECI the cost is minimal. I am not sure of the benefit of "giving him more time," when you could get a decisive answer -- then either rest easy, or follow a plan that will help your child. Research states over and over the benefits of early intervention.

Your child is fortunate to have such a concerned parent.

Regards,
S.
www.startherapyprograms.com

Is your concern just that he doesn't know his age or name? If so, I think you have little to be worried about. My son was speech delayed (expressive) and has had a number of assessments. He's now 3 and is scoring at the 4 1/2 proficiency level. He is just NOW learning his age and name. Most of his (male) peers are pretty much in the same boat. Honestly, if it's just that he won't do those two things, I wouldn'd sweat it. He seems to know far more than his age level.