Speech & Language Milestones

3 Months

• Have an established feeding routine that is typically stress free
• Show adequate weight gain
• Briefly gaze at people
• Quiet when picked up

6 Months

• Enjoy mealtime
• No longer lose liquid during sucking from bottle or breast
• Show interest in other people’s food
• Make high-pitched squealing sounds
• Make grunting or growling sounds when playing
• Respond to voices or sounds by turning head
• Make different sounds like ‘da,’ ‘ga,’ ‘ka,’ ‘ba’
• Smile at self in mirror

8 Months

• Take soft solids from a spoon
• Be fed sitting upright with back supported
• Respond to name
• Produce 4 or more different sounds
• Listen to own vocalizations
• Try to imitate sounds

12 Months

• Drink liquids primarily from a cup even though may still be breast or bottle feeding
• Eat coarsely chopped table foods
• Enjoy crackers, and cereals for snacks
• Say 2-6 words, like ‘mama,’ ‘dada,’ and ‘baba’
• Imitate familiar words
• Follow one simple direction, like ‘come here’, ‘give it to me’, or ‘put it back’
• Point when he/she wants something

15 Months

• Sit unsupported for meals
• Eat raw vegetables, fruits, and most meats
• Not drool unless teething
• Ask for more
• Wave bye-bye
• Point to pictures in a book

18 Months

• Eat most table foods safely
• Drink from an open cup with some assistance with minimal loss of fluid
• Say 18-50 different words, including names
• Point to body parts like toes, eyes, and nose
• Go into another room to find a toy when asked, like ‘get your blanket’
• Repeat a 2 word sentence

2 Years

• Chew and swallow with no food or saliva loss
• Swallows solids with lips closed
• Name familiar things
• Combine two words on his own
• Have a vocabulary of 150-300 words
• Use two of: I, me, you, my, mine
• Understand differences in meaning (stop vs. go, and big vs. little)
• Follow 2 step directions (get the toy, give it to me)
• Asks “what” and “where” questions
• Asks for drink, food, and toilet

3 Years

• Eat the same foods as the rest of the family
• Not drool
• Point to at least 7 different body parts on him/herself
• Make a sentence that has 3-4 words in it
• Have a vocabulary of 450 words
• Tell you what is happening in a picture (running, eating, crying)
• Tell you his/her first and last name
• Talks to children and adults

4 Years

• Tell at least 2 things you do with an object, like a ball (throw it and kick it)
• Use endings on words, like ‘-s’ to talk about more than 1 item and ‘-ed’ to talk about something that happened in the past
• Follow 3 step directions
• Speak in complete sentences
• Ask “who” and “why” questions
• Identify some colors and shapes

5 Years

• Use comparing words, like ‘heavier,’ ‘stronger,’ or ‘smaller’
• Know full name and address
• Answer ‘what do you do when you are hungry?’ or ‘when you are tired?’
• Be able to have a conversation that makes sense with an adult
• Use good grammar in sentences
• Ask questions to get information
• Use all speech sounds correctly