speech - can't say 'L'

[Elvis]

My ds is 3 1/2 and has very good speech generally. However, he can't pronunce the l sound, as in lamp, light etc.
Should I be concerned? He starts school nursery in Sept. do I get help via school, GP, HV?
I'm not overly worried, but maybr it's one of those things that is easier to act on earlier rather than later.
All advice welcome.

What sound does he make in place of the 'l' sound?

Hi Elvis.... funny how when you've been on Mumsnet a while the same topics keep reappearing!!

I posted exactly the same question earlier this year.

See here

Basically I think I wouldn't worry - my son suddenly 'got it' virtually overnight, and afterwards we wondered why we were so concerned... 3.5 is still pretty young.

Hi Elvis, my Dd is 4 1/2 and still cannot pronnounce her L's and sometimes R's too.

I was a little concerned so my H.V reffered her for a speech assesment a couple of months ago.
Basically the speech therapist said that her speech is fine, and that the L and the R are some of the last letter sounds that they learn to pronounce correctly. She said that Dd was probably only a tad behind but that she expected the prob to have corrected itself by xmas. If it hasn't then I have to contact them again.

As your Ds is only 3 1/2 I would say not to worry at all, he sounds fine.

HTH

I wouldn't worry if I were you. Dd is 3 in Sept and has had very good speech from 2 but up until literally 3 weeks ago couldn't say her 'Ls' either. Then almost overnight started saying them very slowly and deliberately as if it had just occured to her, e.g. her name is Molly which she used to pronounce 'Moyyey'. She can now say Mo-LLy if she thinks about it beforehand! It's a very difficult sound to get your tongue round and if everything else seems ok with his speech (which it is by the sounds) I really wouldn't worry.

Agree with nutty and others. My dd also was referred at 3.5 with a lisp on all her s's, but speech therapist also put our minds at rest and said not to worry for now, though if she is still lisping and we're concerned at 5 - 5.5, then to go back, but it's v common and developmentally she's fine and it 's not holding her back in any way, so no big deal really. She may well grow out of it.

3.5 is too young to worry about L. it is one of the hardest sounds to get. I can look up the age it should have developed by if you want.

My DS can't say Ls either (just 3). I am not making an issue of it as I don't want him to interrupt what he is trying to say. he would say 'Moyyey', too, and is eating lots of 'yoyyeys' in this weather....

see table 4

Blu thanks for that- am going to read that slowly later- had a quick skim read and ROFL DS2 is so way out is it unbeleivable no wonder the SALT was looking shell shocked after testing him (she sad she couldn't think straight as all his speech sounds were floating round in her head!).

My dd was exactly the same and also put a y in place of l. Her best ever sentence was "Yook mummy, its a yong yeyyow yadder"!
When she started in nursery class I told them, just in case they struggled to understand. Can't remember when she stopped doing it, it just seem to happen.
HTH

Thanks everyone. Very reassuring. I'll wait and see what happens. You never know if it's one of those things that people will say, well if you'd come to us earlier....

Hah, the sluglet can't pronounce L's either. Worringly her name is Lexi, which she proudly announces to all and sundry as 'Sexy'

LOL slug!
DS loves to fiddle with the alarm clock on DP's side of the bed - and used to talk about 'pyaying with daddies cyock' which came out sounding ALL wrong!

Both of my DDs couldn't pronounce their Ls, and DD2 who is 3 1/2 still can't. Apart from that her speech is fine, good vocab and clear. The only person to comment on it was her future headmistress when she went for her pre-school interview (!).

Think DD1 got the hang of it almost overnight, but not until she was about 4.