We present a Guide to how a child's speech and language skills should develop :

18 months old

-Can say 'No' -Use 10 or more words -Understands the names of familiar objects (for example, 'dog', 'ball', 'bed', 'car') -Answers the question "what is this?" -Understand simple commands

Two years old

-Can use a wide variety of consonants -Point to some parts of the body when naming -Use two-word combinations (for example, “more cookies,” “Daddy left”) -Enjoy listening to stories -You can name some photos in stories -Has a vocabulary of at least 50 words. -Can sing simple songs or children's songs

Three years old

-Produces correctly the sounds made by the letters p, b, m, w, t, d, n, g, h, and -Pronounce the final consonant in a word -You can follow a two-part instruction (for example, "Go to the kitchen and have your juice") -Can participate in short conversations. -Puts three or more words together in a sentence -Ask "why?" -You can talk about something that happened yesterday or last week. -You are using basic grammar

Four years old

-Speak in complete sentences -Use adult grammar -Makes too many questions -Answers "who", "how", "how many" questions -Tell stories you can easily follow -Use language to create imaginative games with others.

five years old

-Explains how an object can be used. -Answer the questions "when" and "why" -Uses language to talk about past and future events. -Engage in detailed conversations. -Has little trouble thinking about what to say -He doesn't have too many difficulties learning to read.

If your child develops a stutter at any age, early intervention from a speech therapist is not only highly recommended, but has very good results in helping him or her overcome the problem.

If school-aged children show signs of feeling frustrated because they have trouble understanding or communicating or avoiding speaking, a speech pathologist evaluation would be valuable.