How many words should my toddler be saying?
“How many words should my child be saying?” is a frequently asked question that we’ve been avoiding for a while. Why? Because the amount of words a child can say is just one indicator out of many when it comes to understanding if your child’s language skills are developing as expected for their age or if they would benefit from some extra support.
We need to look at the big picture. The average number of words for each age is different than the milestone— we will get into that, too.
There is so much more to communication than the number of words your child can say at any given point. We would never want you to get caught up in focusing on this number as the main measure for communication skill development, because it’s not. We really hope that if you’ve been worried, you walk away from reading this with a bit better of an understanding of language development!
This post will give you some insight into the other factors that speech-language pathologists look at to assess how a child’s communication skills are developing.
We’ve put together a must-have resource for all toddler parents, it’s out talking milestones checklist that will help you meet your child where they are at.
Download it here:
What “counts” as a word
Parents are sometimes surprised that their child is saying more than they had originally thought. It’s important to know that when children first start to speak, their words typically don’t sound exactly like adult words.
To “count” as a word, your child should be saying the world intentionally, and in the right context (so not just random sounds). They should also be saying the word consistently. This tells you it’s not just a happy accident, but that they’re actually saying that word to communicate something with you on purpose (so amazing!).
The Difference Between a Milestone and An Average
Just like other areas of development, there is a range in which it’s typical for milestones to be met. For example, your child may be saying fewer words than average, but still meeting the milestone. A milestone can help us know if more support may be needed or not.
A milestone is what 90% of children do at a certain age.
An average, on the other hand, is just what it sounds like: a mathematical average. It’s not what “average” kids should do-- just what about half of kids typically demonstrate.
See how there is such a big difference between the average and the milestone?! That’s why it’s important not to compare your child to other children their same age. Your two-year-old may be saying 50 words and your friend’s two-year-old may be saying 250 words and these are both considered to be within the typical range for their age.
If your child is not meeting certain milestones, we would recommend that you seek an assessment for them.
Click here if you’d like to read through all the communication milestones at 12-36 months.
If your child hasn’t hit the average number of words by a certain age, that’s completely okay! From our perspective, it’s important that you look at your child’s overall development instead of focusing in on this one metric.
Other Language Development Considerations
We know it’s easy to focus on the number of words your child is saying when it comes to thinking about their language development, but communication is so much more than just saying words. You also want to look at their ability to understand, convey meaning to others using non verbal communication, and use the words they do have for a variety of communicative functions (like greetings, requesting, refusing, commenting, bringing your attention to something, etc.).
Foundational talking skills might feel small, but they are important.
Download our talking milestones checklist here:
We hope that helps! We know things like talking, singing, and reading with kids helps support language development, and that’s exactly what we teach you here at Wee Talkers. Be sure to check out our Songs+Stories membership and TalkToddler course for more ways to help your toddler at home.
If you’d like more support and guidance to help with your child’s language development, we’ve got you covered.
We created our online course, TalkToddler, to provide parents the strategies, support & step-by-step guidance you need to help your toddler say more.
Related: Do Boys Talk Later Than Girls?
References:
LinguiSystems Guide to Communication Milestones cites sources as Child Development Institute at www.childdevelopmentinfo.com. Nicolosi, Harryman, Kresheck (2006). Owens (1996).