0-6 Months: Early Communication
- Listening and hearing:
- Responds to sounds and voices.
- Can recognize the difference between sounds like "mama" and "dada".
- Crying and cooing:
- Uses crying to communicate needs.
- Starts to coo and make gurgling sounds.
- Social interaction:
- Makes eye contact and smiles in response to familiar faces.
6-12 Months: Babbling and Gesturing
- Babbling:
- Begins to babble (e.g., "ba-ba", "da-da") and combine consonant and vowel sounds.
- Listening and responding:
- Turns head towards sounds and voices.
- Responds to name being called.
- Gestures:
- Uses gestures such as waving or reaching.
- Understands simple commands like “come here” or “give me.”
12-18 Months: First Words and Simple Commands
- First words:
- May say their first recognizable word (e.g., "mama", "dog").
- Vocabulary:
- Understands 50-100 words.
- Communication:
- Uses non-verbal communication such as pointing and pulling to express wants and needs.
- Responds to simple questions like "Where’s your nose?" or "What’s this?"
18-24 Months: Expanding Vocabulary
- Vocabulary growth:
- Vocabulary begins to expand rapidly, often reaching 50-100 words.
- Starts to use 2-3 word combinations (e.g., "more juice," "big truck").
- Following directions:
- Follows simple one-step directions like "Give me the ball" or "Come here."
- Imitation:
- Imitates simple words and phrases from adults or older children.
2-3 Years: Early Sentences and Asking Questions
- Speaking in sentences:
- Uses 3-4 word sentences (e.g., “I want cookie,” “Where’s Daddy?”).
- Vocabulary:
- Vocabulary grows to around 200-1,000 words.
- Starts using pronouns like “I,” “you,” and “me.”
- Asking questions:
- Begins to ask simple questions like “What’s that?” or “Where go?”
- Following more complex directions:
- Follows 2-step directions (e.g., “Pick up the toy and put it in the box”).
3-4 Years: Complex Sentences and Storytelling
- Complex sentences:
- Forms 4-5 word sentences.
- Uses plurals, pronouns, and past tense.
- Storytelling:
- Can tell simple stories or describe events.
- Vocabulary:
- Vocabulary may reach 1,000+ words.
- Understands and uses prepositions like “under,” “on,” and “in.”
- Clearer speech:
- Speech becomes easier to understand for family and others.
- Asking more complex questions:
- Asks “why,” “how,” and “where” questions to understand the world around them.
4-5 Years: Refining Communication Skills
- Sentences:
- Uses complete sentences with 5-6 words or more.
- Can use conjunctions like “and,” “but,” and “because.”
- Vocabulary:
- Vocabulary grows to 1,500+ words.
- Can talk about past events and future plans.
- Clearer speech:
- Speech is generally clear and understandable to people outside of the family.
- Pronouns and grammar:
- Uses more complex grammar, such as regular and irregular past tense verbs.
- Engaging in conversations:
- Can maintain a conversation, understand and respond to others' comments or questions.