Almost two with NO WORDS!

I have a 23 month old girl in my care who does not have any words in her vocabulary as of yet. The only things she says are "mmmmmmm?" and "eeeeeh?" I can count two occasions where I have gotten any real words out of her. She does not repeat as other children her age do and will not attempt a word if you ask her too.

I know it's not her hearing as she understands everything I say whether I am loud or quiet. At first, I thought that she was having trouble with consonant sounds, but I've also ruled that out. Mom reads to her all the time and speaks to her all the time, and is just as concerned as I am. So I'm not worried that she isn't getting the stimulation at home. It seems to me now that she just doesn't want to.

I've tried all my tricks in the book to encourage her and interest her in learning to speak, but I'm out of ideas.

-She loves music but is completely uninterested in singing
-If I won't give her something until she attempts the word she'll just walk away and find something else.
-If she knows that you want her to repeat a word she'll look the other way in stubborn defiance
-If a child asks her a question she'll just say her usual sounds in "answer form"
- Asking her 'whats this' will also illicit an "EEEEH!"


Any suggestions?

Children develop language at all different stages and ages - however what you are describing SHOULD show up as a red flags on the Nippissing Screening Tool that Dr use at the 24 month old check up - I would still suggest to the parents to make arrangements to have her hearing tested - and NOT by the Family Dr but my a specialist who deals with ranges of hearing AND children ;)

IME just because she 'understands you' does not mean she can properly HEAR you ... children with hearing loss or impairment learn to read lips at a very young age but still cannot 'speak' because they cannot make the sounds WE hear in order, they can still listen to music cause they FEEL the beat and so forth.

Also with some children while they can hear and understand ... the pathway from the brain to the area that controls SPEECH is not fully developed yet ... a speech therapist might be able to suggest games and activities to play specifically designed to 'work out' that area of the brain to help that develop faster and get her speech and language back on track.

I see you are in Toronto so you have access to Ontario Early Years Centres - I would call the one in your neighborhood and get the parents a list of organizations that support speech and language development in the early years to see if they can get a referral or if not a referral if they could at least give you some ideas on games and activities to play with her to help that you and the parents can both engage her with see if it helps?

Not even "Mama" or "Dada"? How long have you had her? I ask this because I too had a little girl who was just 24 months when she came onto my care 2 months ago...she had about 5 words, but had been using Sign language/guestures/gibberish to communicate at home. She has improved a lot (now has about 20 words) with immersion in with the other kids. Perhaps time will tell? One thing I've learned with 2 year olds is that it's on their own time;)

Reggio - Mom is getting her hearing tested and is starting the process of enrolling her speech therapy. We have all those avenues covered. I was more looking for things I could do.

Dream - She says mama at home SOMETIMES, but not enough to satisfy me and her mother. I've have her for about 4 months, maybe more. She says things very randomly at times. such as this morning when a child came and she screamed out his name. but, these times are few and far between and the words are inconsistent (not repeated again for weeks once said)

Big praise to you for trying so hard Flex! Sounds like not much else you can do...did you try Gummy Bears? I say that jokingly because I swear they have been my magical reward for teaching all kinds of things...I have to laugh at all the little faces lined up at our letter board shouting out the letters and colors for a gummy bear (even my 1 year olds!).

The good news is that you are hearing words from time to time. I would be more concerned if there was nothing in her gibberish that could be mistaken for a whole word. I am finding children talking later and later - kind of on par with their development which is later in all areas than it used to be 10-20 years ago. The ones I have had that are like the one you describe are taking it all in but not able to get it all out. Sometimes that comes with time and they just start talking one day in complete sentences. Others need speech therapy help to start processing what they are hearing. Glad to hear that they are having her assessed to rule out things like hearing - even though she appears to hear you if there are gaps in the kinds of sounds she can hear that will determine which word sounds she can make. Also make sure that she is following what you say specifically and not just following the group. If you say come to the table she might just be following the other children to the table or what you are saying is like a guide as in she has mastered routines and isn't really doing it because of whay you said but more because that is what she has learned to do in certain circumstances. Someone above mentioned sign language. I know it is supposed to help increase language but my experience has been that parents continue it too long and let the kids get away with a sign when an oral response is called for. Again we would never have allowed an 18 month old to point and grunt or act out what they wanted like sign for a drink. IF they didn't say it they didn't get it. But parenting has changed - and not always for the better in my opinion.

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Originally Posted by Dreamalittledream

...did you try Gummy Bears? .

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LOL. I'm sooooooooo not above bribery at times. Mom is against sugary candy but I have tried cookies and other such acceptable treats. She just walks away when she realizes that she'll have to speak. Following her and making sure I have her full attention is useless

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Originally Posted by playfelt

I would be more concerned if there was nothing in her gibberish that could be mistaken for a whole word.

Also make sure that she is following what you say specifically and not just following the group. If you say come to the table she might just be following the other children to the table or what you are saying is like a guide as in she has mastered routines and isn't really doing it because of whay you said but more because that is what she has learned to do in certain circumstances.

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This little one doesn't even have gibberish like we are all used to. she won't go up to me or any child and start talking "vjdaiogv[fands nvhdsyuigfdhsiu vuuf dfhusf?" like the other little ones

I know she is definitely hearing me and following direction. I've done the tests like if I call her to me from another room (loud and at normal tone). or if I ask her specifically to do something on her own without looking at her (she she can't see me mouth).

I think maybe she is just being stubborn . . . . sigh . . .

I agree with the different parenting styles. I find parents know what their child wants and give it to them rather than make them say it first.

This reminds me of a dcg that I have.
She would only say mama and dada from 18 m-2 years old. I knew that she understood what I said though because when I would ask her to come, or 'bring me your cup please' -- she could follow what I said.

She loved books and I would read picture books with her over and over and go through ABC flashcards like A is for Apple, B is for ball etc

Anyways...she was probably 26 months or so and only learning 1 word every 4 weeks or so.

Then one day we are one on one and reading the flashcards and she suddenly out of the blue starts saying all the things as I flipped the page.

I got to B and she suddenly pointed to the word and said Ball and I turned to C and she said "Cat" and I said "that's right". Suddenly I realized she was saying the words and I literally CRIED. It was such an emotional moment. We continued through the book and she was saying 70% of the words. Just like that - out of the blue. I hugged her and squished her and said "You have been listening all this time after all!"

It was probably one of the best daycare moments ever to know she had been learning the words and just for whatever reason didn't say them or show interest in talking.

She is now the best talker out of my group and went from being the farthest behind in communication to the furthest. She is turning 3 soon and she talks long stories and can already tell you entire paragraphs of stuff and very clearly so that even others can understand her.

I actually had another girl who was very very slow at talking too and had to go through hearing tests etc. Both of these girls ended up fine. It was just a matter of persistence and continually reading to them and talking to them. Even during diaper changes I would talk about anything and everything to get the words out there.

I guess reading to them as much as possible would be my suggestion and don't be surprised if it just 'clicks' one day. When she does stuff like say the boys name then make a big deal and clap and hug her so she sees there is a reward for talking.

It sounds like you and the mom are on top of it though :)

Thanks Spixie! We'll continue doing what we're doing then. Just wanted to make sure I'm doing right by her.

I'm in a similar situation; 18 month old and no words, not mama or dada, ba-ba...nothing. Just grunts, screams, screeches and cries. We read books and I focus on first words books for the little ones, i try my hardest to get him to repeat what I say, but to no avail....he laughs at first then after a few times starts to cry because he just doesn't want to, or as another poster mentioned....can't make the connection??? I dunno.

I googled it last week, a few sites did mention that if a child is a late walker then they'll most likely be a late talker. As long as the other milestones are being met, like eating on his own, making eye contact, communication in other ways, like if we wants something out of reach, he points to it and grunts.... It can be frustrating though, I wish I could get just a yes or no answer sometimes, even a head shake or nod....but nothing.... :unsure:

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Originally Posted by FlexFunCare

Reggio - Mom is getting her hearing tested and is starting the process of enrolling her speech therapy. We have all those avenues covered. I was more looking for things I could do.

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Awesome news!

For things you can try in the meantime ... depends on what the 'cause' of the delay is?

If it is low muscle tone in the mouth - does she drool a lot cause that is an indication of low muscle tone in mouth which means that 'would sounds' will be hard to develop with the mouth you want activities to strength that .... blowing bubbles, or getting out straws and playing games to blow feathers around help to increase mouth muscles and forming of certain 'sounds' with the tonuge?

If it is an issue with 'processing' where she is not able to quickly make the connection between hearing something and sending the 'speak' message back to the mouth games and activities that help the brain to gross mediums between left and right side of the brain .... clapping hands together with you and doing left hand to right hand and right hand to left hand with you, games where she crosses her hands or passes things from her left to right hand and so forth to get the 'brain' talking back and forth so to speak and work those muscles so to speak.

A speech therapist would be able to give you way more games and ideas - call your local OEYC and ask them for ideas for working with a child with speech delays they might even have 'ready to go kits' you can sign out with different games and activities to promote these skills development?

If they speak two different languages at home this could be the reason too. Bilingual kids normally take their time.

Cocoon

IME just because she 'understands you' does not mean she can properly HEAR you ... children with hearing loss or impairment learn to read lips at a very young age but still cannot 'speak' because they cannot make the sounds WE hear in order, they can still listen to music cause they FEEL the beat and so forth.

This is just what I was going to say.... I am interested to know what the hearing tests come out with. My friend's daughter presented very similarly, in that it SEEMED like she could hear, but in actuality she heard sounds as though she was underwater. Everything was muffled, due to her enlarged adenoids and tonsils, etc. They didn't even really notice until she was about 3, and her 1 year old sister's vocabulary began to surpass her own. She also made sounds, but no clear words. It may be helpful to get her checked by an ear/nose/throat doc to make sure that there are no issues there?
Having said that; my own son was almost 3 before anyone (outside of immediate family) could understand what he was saying. Then, *poof* he started chattering away!! He also required an outpatient surgery to remove his adenoid, later on.