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Yes, you should have him evaluated by a professional. If even you don't understand what he is saying, his speech is impaired. The sooner you get it dealt with the better off you all will be.

I can only answer based on my own experience, but here goes: when my little guy was 2 and was chattering away but in his own language (he was trying, just no one but his big brother could understand him), his pediatrician recommended us to a Children's Hospital where they checked his hearing first, then speech, also some tests on manual dexterity. It turned out he was hearing as if he was "under the ocean" (doc's words) and needed tubes in his ears. Once he got the tubes put in, he started talking more clearly.
Just a thought to consider.

Definitely get an evaluation. Federal law, the basis of the No Child Left Behind program, requires that school districts provide free evaluation and treatment if needed. There is an early education program that apparently receives more funding. To be eligible for this program the child has to be less than 3. At 3 there is a different program.

My grandson's pediatrician said that my grandson's speech was most likely normal and my daughter delayed getting an evaluation until he was 2 !/2. He has apraxia of speech as well as sensory processing disorders. An earlier evaluation and treatment might have helped him. It is better later than never but do get an evaluation right away. Don't depend on your pediatrician to tell you to get one.

It wouldn't hurt. You can go through your school district. If TN is like IL, if you qualify, your son can get speech therapy through the district for free (well, paid w/ your tax dollars). I took my son for an eval. at 3 1/2. He just started speech therapy (had to wait for the new school year to start). He is extremely smart, started speaking super early, but still has trouble saying back of the throat sounds (l, s, y, k) plus some combos. I think it's best to start therapy early if you notice a problem. It is normal for kids to not perfect some sounds / letters 'til older ages...some at 4, 5, or 6. However, only a trained professional will know if he is on target for his age (he is still so young) or if he is not. I personally would take him for an eval. & if the therapist thinks he needs it, you got a jump start on correcting it. Your district may suggest you wait until he's 3, and if that's what they recommend, I would go with it (some of it may correct itself within the year). Good luck!

Sounds as if he is very bright.
Testing him will only put your mind at ease. I have many friends who gave their children speech therapy, and it really paid off. Make sure you deal with a professional. Good luck.

Immediately.

My son was the same age and sounds like he had the same issue. He qualified for two hours of speech and two hours of OT a week and was dianosed with Apraxia which is a speech disorder.

The earlier you get him therapy the better the results. Therapy is free if you go to your regional center and get him evaluated. You can go to the local school district and ask for them to direct you to their preschool program. The preschool program will have the regional center number and from there they will schedule an evaluation.

Please private message me if you need more ideas to receive therapy. By the way, my son is 7 and you can now understand him. He still receives therapy but its to clean up some individual sounds that are still not said correctly.

I would suggest go ahead & get the evaluation at least you'll know if there is a problem & can catch it early rather than later. If it's nothing then you can put your mind at ease. ;) keep us updated.

I would have him evaluated. He may be normal. I thought my 34 month old son was having speech issues. He is my only child. I can understand most of what he says but there are times when I can't even understand what he is talking about. We contacted our Early Childhood Intervention center and they sent out some people to evaluate him. Turns out he is doing well. They were impressed with how well he does speak. To put your mind at ease, have him checked out.

Yes. Uninteligibilty, to the point where your son cannot participate in an exchange of converstaion with anyone other than you is going to effect his language development and how he feels about himself too. Go to a private speech and lagngue therapist as soon as you can get in. Also, you could contact ECI in your state, he may qualify for state services too, however, you should not depend on them to make him anything more than functional, and you will probably be seen sooner by a private therapist, and you should never depend on state services to be everything your child needs to maximize thier potential, which is what you want for him. When he turns three, he may qualify for speech through your local school district too, but again, do not depend on this for all his care, always know more about your son and his condition than any state agency, and make sure that he is getting everything he needs to be more than "functional" in the classroom (all schools are required to do!)

M.

It wouldn't hurt. You might start with your doctor. My younger son was slow at speech development (clarity); turned out he needed tubes in his ears. We saw - well, heard - a difference within hours after the surgery. He was going on the basis of what he was hearing, but he just wasn't hearing well.

That's a place to start, anyhow; your doctor will direct you in the next step if there needs to be one.

I would give it at least a few more months before having him evaluated. He obviously understands language and is quite bright. Most 27-month-olds I've encountered aren't able to make most of their speech understood by most people.

It wouldn't hurt. I had my 27 month old, now 28 month old tested by a speech therapist, for food therapy, she has had therapy for 10 weeks now, and is eating much more and her speech has improved cause the therapists works speech into the therapy as well. I also have a 4.5 year old now that i had tested at 3.5 for speech that was just like your child, and he didn't meet the speech or language requirements for getting therapy. They said it was just a normal thing at his age. And sure enough about 6 months later, everyone understands just about everything he says. ;)

Updated

It wouldn't hurt. I had my 27 month old, now 28 month old tested by a speech therapist, for food therapy, she has had therapy for 10 weeks now, and is eating much more and her speech has improved cause the therapists works speech into the therapy as well. I also have a 4.5 year old now that i had tested at 3.5 for speech that was just like your child, and he didn't meet the speech or language requirements for getting therapy. They said it was just a normal thing at his age. And sure enough about 6 months later, everyone understands just about everything he says. ;)

I would definitely get him evaluated for both speech and hearing. My son was the same way and we had him evaluated about 3 yrs. old. We were recommended to go to a speech eval center at a university near where we lived at the time. We found out he was fine hearing wise but was delayed in speech development. It is very normal for the mom to understand the child.....My problem was that I didn't allow him to tell ME what he wanted. When he would grunt and point or whatever, I would respond. Make him express himself, but not to the point of frustration. If he has a problem finding a word, you can say it but repeat it so he hears it as well. My son ended up (years down the road ) having an auditory processing issue, but yours sounds like he can take multiple directions so that may not be an issue for him. Children are developing speech for years--even into elementary school. There are just letters they are unable to pronounced well into 7 yrs. of age. Don't panic. My MIL was the same....she was very judgmental. I am sure yours means well. The repetition after "no" sounds like another issue. Are you enforcing what you do when you say no? Examine the follow-thru. He seems to know that if he continues to pursue the "no", he will get what he wants. Definitely have his speech evaluated, but also look at the patterns of discipline. Good luck!

I would definitely have him referred for a speech therapy evaluation, if only to put your mind at ease. He is very young, so they may say that he is on track - lots of kids that age can only be 'clearly' understood by their parents. But, they are professionals and they will know if he is on track or a bit delayed. And don't worry if he's a bit delayed. Lots of children have trouble with certain sounds and a little speech therapy corrects these problems very quickly, particularly if caught early. BUT, he may be right on track - don't stress either way.
Regarding the last part of your post - I think that Ann T., below, misunderstood - I don't think you weren't saying that he badgers you after saying 'no' until you give in... I think you were saying that he will say 'no' if you haven't understood him and repeat his sentence until you do understand him. That, to me, says that he is very well aware of what he is communicating. Again, a speech professional may say that he is too young at this age for an eval, but go ahead and call your pediatrician and find out how you would go about getting a referral so that you can at least put your mind at ease. Good luck!!!!

Sometimes, that can be normal for his age. Other times, it can be that he is mimicking what is heard, but what he hears sounds like Charlie Brown's teacher "waa/wah/waa/wah/waaaaa" If his ears are fine, and his eyes are fine, another option is to assess the interaction BETWEEN his eyes and ears. The Mind-Eye Connection in Northbrook does that. They use eyeglasses to alter hearing, by stimulating some eye/ear connection in the brain.

He's young.... but my son LOVED his Speech Therapy! It was so useful for him and I.
It was free... from our local Early Intervention organization or Zero-to-Three Program. Each state seems to have one. Ask your Pediatrician.
But yes, ask your Pediatrician too, about his articulation.
There are speech delays and/or articulation concerns. Its really not a big deal... but very helpful... to get early help.
But if he is age appropriate in his speaking, then at least you will know.
They typically do an overall assessment of the child, then recommend any speech help, if needed.

My son had a speech delay. But per his overall assessment... per his age, he was advanced in many areas. Just his talking, was delayed.

There is nothing to lose, by at least inquiring about speech therapy.

At each age, speech and articulation, develops on an age based time line. Boys, usually develop later. Than girls.
But early help is always beneficial.

all the best,
Susan

yesh he needs speech

most kids dont start talking well enough for other people to understand until they are around 3 tell her to back off, your baby is just fine!

It wouldn't hurt to work with him on enunciation of words. I used to look at my daughter, make she looked at my mouth - then as I pointed to my chin I would pronounce a word and have her repeat it to me. It helped tremendously. If that doesn't seem to help much it certainly wouldn't hurt to consult w/ at least his pediatrician about the possibility of speech therapy. At least that way it is documented. So if the situation doesn't seem to change, there would be a larger likelihood that he'd easily be referred.

Your child should be anywhere from 65% to 70% in speech intelligibility to you. If he falls in that range but you and other caregivers are having difficulty, it may be helpful to introduce a few signs to reduce his frustration in the meantime. Most institutions will screen a child for free or for a minimal cost to see if he needs a full evaluation. This can be done at universities, clinics, hospitals, child development centers, home health agencies...etc. I have found that if a parent has concerns about their child, those concerns are usually right. I have written a book, "My BAby Compass, Birth to Two" that can be purchased...or looked at on Amazon.com that can help you to decide if your child is within normal limits for his development. The sounds that your child should be producing are the m, n, p, b, h, 90% if vowel sounds, and begining the k, g, t, d, and ing sounds. Sometimes a child can produce the sounds (articulation) but have arranged the sounds incorrectly in his phonological system which will cause him to be unintelligible. This will take a professional to determine. I hope I have been a little helpful...have been counseling parents for 35 years...and I still love doing it...though I am now retired. Good luck K. Thorson Gruhn Speech-Language Pathologist

He is still developing and speech is rapid in its development between 1-3 years of age and even then it takes until almost 6 yrs of age for children to be able to say all of their letter sounds and blends correctly. Give him some more time and see what happens. Of course you will be the one who knows most about what he is saying because you hear it all the time. I would encourage you to do some research on milestones and see if he has met those language milestones for his age or is close to meeting them and if not, then I would seek a professional opinion. It might also be something you want to discuss with your ped. or another care provider.

Most school districts, and I think, all school districts in TN will evaluate a child at 3 yrs. old. I have seen the speech therapist in the school I teach in evaluate little ones. She is trained to know what is appropriate at that age and also will probably understand him close to your level of understanding him. There is also no charge for the service as it is part of the school readiness programs. We all want children to have every advantage possible to them for a successful education! Check into it, they may even do it at his age instead of waiting until 3 yrs. If nothing else, they can give you more advice and even things to do to help him. Good luck and let us know what happens!