She seems older for her age

[Justsawagecko]

My toddler Dd. She’s almost 3 but has crazy vocabulary..using words like ‘Absolutely’ ‘Broadcasting’ ‘Besides’ etc. She hears something and it just seems to stick in her mind, she knows what it means too. Ever since she was around 1.5, her language just took off and we’ve had normal conversations ever since. She crawled & walked fairly late, but just seems so attuned to things and like an older child in a toddlers body in many ways. It worries me for the future, is this normal?

@Mymapuddlington

Sounds very worrying, maybe she’s autistic. Have nursery expressed concerns?

It really doesn't sound worrying at all. Unless the OP has any other major concerns her child sounds exactly like lots of 3 year olds I've met.

@baldafrique

Well I’m assuming op either wants us all to tell her DD is a genius and should apply to Mensa or to say it’s very worrying and she must be autistic. normal is never an option

@HopeValley Thank you, that helps. I teach primary, so am not 100% confident in my experience of really little ones, I’m just comparing to friends at this stage and what my parents and sister say really.

@Maddox33

What's worrying you? Having a wide vocabulary and using it appropriately is brilliant, especially at her age. In 10 years time, if she's anything like my teen, you'll be lucky to get more than the occasional grunt in response. Enjoy her toddlerhood!

Indeed. My ds was a very articulate child with a very broad vocabulary. At 16... not so much.

** sorry I should add that I don’t think being on the spectrum at all means that you haven’t turned out fine - just trying to reassure the OP that childhood vocab hasn’t resulted in anything to concern.

Sounds like you got a bright one. I wouldn’t worry, my dd was the archetypal MN reading Harry Potter at 4yo, and yes she’s academic and good at English in particular, not a sign of anything more. In my defence , Harry Potter 1 was on a low shelf and I only found out when she was half way through, and it seemed mean to take it off her.

My daughter was very much like this. Talking in proper sentences from 18 months and hasn't stopped since. Also late with walking etc. She's in reception now, has just turned 5 and is doing very well at school, reading at a year 2 level and still talking for England. She's tall as well. She looks like she could be in year 2 but has the emotional maturity of the just turned 5 year old that she is. Only way this can be an issue is when other people think of them as older that they are and expect more from them as a result. Otherwise I'd say it's an advantage in life to be articulate, bright and able to hold your own. You have nothing to worry about and deep down I think you probably know that!

My friends DS was an amazing talker. It was very very noticeable compared to other children the same age. He's now a very average 11 year old and in my experience these things tend to even out. If the way she communicates seems to remain unusual then I guess it could be a sign of ASD but not really on it's own at this age.

Try not to worry - I think we all overthink things and as a teacher you're maybe more on the look out for conditions like ASD than some others would be. Having a wide vocabulary at age 5 is a key indicator of later academic success so hopefully it's a good thing. Knowing five nursery rhymes is another apparently. These are probably more to do with engaged parents than anything else really though!

Good grasp of language isn’t a sign at all for ASD.

we put it down to talking to her normally and not in baby gibberish from when she was born

I'm not sure that's the reason though. Did the same with all 3 children, one talked early, one average, one really late.

My DD was the same, spoke very early, first word at seven months. At her two year assessment the HV noted very articulate and early debating. But she walked very late - 19 months. And now she's 12 and walks and talks like all her 12yo friends! Just enjoy all those lovely early conversations OP and record some on your phone.

@GreenCrayon

She sounds like a perfectly normal 3 year old to be honest.

It's also totally normal for an only child to favour adult company and be confident to talk to adults.

Yes, I had an only who did this. 'Older' educated mothers tend to have more extensive vocabularies, and pass it onto the children.Not suggesting you are older btw. In my case by just whittering on

@Letsallscreamatthesistene

DS2’s GCSE English teacher told me she’d done an advanced A level course to make sure she was up to the job of teaching him, as he’s better than she is at English 

😂😂😂😂 ok

That stealth boast is so thinly veiled it’s naked and has its legs akimbo.

Why would it worry you for the future? If anything, it would be less noticeable as she got older. I’ve never heard a colleague use the word ‘broadcasting’ and thought oh my god they used a big word.

I wouldn't have thought 'broadcasting' was a usual word for a 3 year old and to use it in context

My DD (now 12) was exactly the same... slow to walk, but talked from 10 months with an excellent vocabulary! I refused to use ‘baby talk’, or devices to keep her entertained. Whilst she’s bright she’s not a genius but is very, very good at English and is very astute!

My middle DD was (still is) like this too but was pretty average in every other regard (same with the late walking). She's at school now and is just an normal pupil, and while she does well she's not anything extraordinary. She just picks up vocab really quickly.

Ds always had a brilliant vocabulary and is an avid reader.
Dd communicated through tantrums, grunting and pointing.

I know which one would survive a zombie apocalypse though. Ds would forget to tie his shoelaces or forget why we were meant to be running away in the first place.

Children use the words they are exposed to - it's why they have no issues using phrases like 'split digraph' when they learn phonics, yet adults act like this is incredible.

AMEN!

My 3 year old son (who is NO GENIUS) says “look mum, the carrot seeds have germinated”..... but that’s because we’re often gardening & chatting & sowing seeds together.

He also says “daddy is a mechanical engineer”... and that’s because he’s spoken to his dad about his job & draws pictures of his dad at work.

It’s not like he looked up these “adult”words in a damn dictionary. He uses them in the correct context, because he’s heard us use them in the correct context.

@Bananasinpyjamas21

You are incorrect.

Early language skills, when coupled with other areas of developmental delay, can very much be an early sign of neurodivergence.

www.healthline.com/health/hyperlexia

In my experience nothing means anything when it comes to kids!!

DS1 didn’t utter a single word (literally only ever said ‘uh’) until he was 2.5. At that point we realised he could read fluently! He’s 14 now and extremely gifted, immense vocabulary and teachers always comment on amazing he is. He does have ASD albeit very high functioning.

DD was talking in whole grown up conversations by the time she was 18 months old, so much so that the health visitor commented on her vocab at her 2 year check. She’s 12 now and is clever but normal clever.

No-one can tell you that’s she’s going to be a genius and no-one can tell you she isn’t!! All you can do is foster her interests and encourage to find fun and joy in things.

The preference for older children may be a flag for ASD - though at this stage it's possible that it might just be that they use more words!

Be very careful that you don't expect too much of her emotionally - looking back I'm pretty sure I got frustrated with S1 being at a perfectly normal level of development, because his vocabulary gave the impression of a higher point of understanding. (If there is ASD then this even more so, as emotionally she may be behind the mean.)

Does she do anything like Tumble Tots? - highly-structured play within her own age group, and physical development work as a bonus.

OP what exactly are you worried about? The short answer is that it's too early to tell anything at this stage.
I was similar to your daughter. I am in the top 1% for verbal reasoning scores (I have taken a lot as a result of my profession), am very good at languages and generally quite intelligent. I also have ADD (diagnosed as an adult). However as pp mentioned similar 'early talkers' have turned out to be quite ordinary otherwise.
Much like some children have an extraordinary ability for one thing without any form of neurodivergence (e.g. music) your child's may simply be verbal ability.

Both mine were like this, because that’s how we spoke to them.

One is dyslexic and struggles academically. The other is greater depth in everything.

Both still are complimented on their vocab, and like I say, it’s just how we speak to them.