According to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), late talkers are toddlers (18 to 30 months old) who have a limited vocabulary for their age, but do not have any other developmental delays. Some late talkers may talk by three to five years of age.
Some late talkers will start to catch up to their peers by the age of three, but some may continue to have difficulty with spoken language. There are many different causes of late talking, and it is often hard to pinpoint the exact cause.
Speech/Language Milestones
Boys tend to develop language skills a little later than girls, but in general, kids may be labeled "late-talking children" if they speak less than 10 words by the age of 18 to 20 months, or fewer than 50 words by 21 to 30 months of age.
There are several reasons why a 2-year-old is babbling but not talking. Sometimes, it may be because they are shy or introverted. It can also be related to hearing loss or other developmental delays. In most cases, however, the cause is unknown.
In general, there is no need to worry if your toddler isn't talking and seems "behind"—even if they are at the older end of that range. Of course, if your child is 19 months and still not talking, you may be concerned, but this too can be normal. It takes some children longer to master speech than others.
Delays and reductions in canonical babbling associated with autism. Evidence indicates that autism is associated with babbling differences. Two studies examining toddlers with ASD found reduced babbling overall.
Call your doctor if your child: by 12 months: isn't using gestures, such as pointing or waving bye-bye. by 18 months: prefers gestures over vocalizations to communicate. by 18 months: has trouble imitating sounds.
By age 3, a toddler's vocabulary usually is more than 200 words. Kids can string together 2- or 3-word sentences. They can talk with you in a conversation that has at least 2 back-and-forth exchanges. Other people can understand your toddler most of the time.
Although 3 is the age when your child should begin to leave the baby talk behind, every child develops differently. It's fine at this age for your child to still be saying three-word sentences, but the content of the sentences should change.
So if your toddler is 2 or 3 years old and isn't yet talking, it's vital to go ahead and speak with their pediatrician, or with a speech-language pathologist. They will likely recommend a speech evaluation in order to assess your child's current abilities. Early intervention is so important in these situations.
A “Late Talker” is a toddler (between 18-30 months) who has good understanding of language, typically developing play skills, motor skills, thinking skills, and social skills, but has a limited spoken vocabulary for his or her age.
A delay in speech development may be a symptom of many disorders, including mental retardation, hearing loss, an expressive language disorder, psychosocial deprivation, autism, elective mutism, receptive aphasia and cerebral palsy. Speech delay may be secondary to maturation delay or bilingualism.
70-80% of late talkers will catch up (Whitehouse et. al, 2011). “Late talker” refers to a little one younger than 30 months old who is meeting milestones in other domains, including understanding of language, just not in expressive communication. But unfortunately, that does mean that 20-30% will continue to struggle.
Children with autism often have speech delays, but speech delays alone do not mean your child has autism. Autistic speech delays usually occur along with other communication issues, such as not using gestures, not responding to their name, and not showing interest in connecting with people.
Children hit milestones at different times, and many factors can influence how much or how clearly a child speaks. Sometimes, though, speaking late or speech that is unclear can signal a developmental delay or a physical problem. In those cases, your child may benefit from speech therapy.
If you think your child has a problem with their speech or language, let their doctor know right away. The doctor will need to test their hearing. They'll probably also suggest that your child see a professional who can diagnose and treat these delays, called a speech-language pathologist or speech therapist.
Talking: What to expect when
By age 3, your child will probably have words for almost everything. And by age 4, he'll talk in sentences using five or more words, though his vocabulary will vary widely. He'll also be able to answer simple questions and mimic adult sounds well enough for most strangers to understand him.
Einstein famously didn't start talking until he was 3 years old. Other famous late talkers include mathematical genius Ramanujan, a nobel prize winner (Gary Becker), a US talk show host (G. Gordon Liddy) and even Mussolini.
Studies report a link between TV and language development in young children. The more time kids spend watching television, the more slowly they learn to talk.
The main difference between other speech delays and autism-related speech delays is that children who are just late talkers still attempt to engage and communicate in different ways. For example, they might make babbling sounds, point, and use other types of body language to get what they want.
Repetitive behaviour
For example, children might: make repetitive noises like grunts, throat-clearing or squealing. do repetitive movements like body-rocking or hand-flapping. do things like flicking a light switch repeatedly.
Some children with autism smile to show they're happy but don't share their enjoyment. Others show little facial expression or have flat affect and rarely smile so you may not know when they're happy.
Children with ASD often need a hug, just like other children. Sometimes they need this much more than other children. But some children don't like to be touched. Respect their personal space.