3 in July and not talking.

[Ftii]

My son is 3 in July and has very limited vocabulary.
HV said they won't refer to SALT until 3, which I think is quite late in the game.
He has only recently started saying mum and dad, and he can say around 20 other words. The only sentance he can say is 'where'd he go' but it's not clear, we know what he's saying cause it's what we say when playing hide and seek.
He has a great understanding of everything, If I say we're going out he gets his shows and goes to the door. Will point to the correct animals, objects etc. If we are out he'll point to birds, cars and make the noises for them. There is a game he plays on my phone with a small, medium and large box and you need to put the same sized objects in the box and last week he pointed to my daughter (7mths) and pointed to the small object, me for the big one and him the medium - I was shocked! He seems to be clever but just not with his speech.

Has anyone else experienced this? Should I push speech therapy before he's in nursery after the summer? Is this normal?

All my friends kids similar ages are miles ahead, so I feel alot of pressure.

Thanks for any help/advice given!

You might be able to self refer. Google - refer Speech language NHS. Some are grouped in much larger areas than you would expect so can take a bit of looking. You might be able to find a form online or find a number to call to be sent a form.

You could try to ask HV if you do a self referral now. They wouldn't have to do any paperwork then, which makes them happy. Might be an idea to ask for a hearing test too just to check.

Preschool will probably help, but in the meantime try just speaking to him in single words or 2 word sentences. This will build up word count. I'm guilty of complicated sentences which, is probably why my DS has a delay too Say the words often and yes you do sounds like a lunatic. I find this so hard to do, but it really does help them focus on the key words.

For example putting his coat on to go to the park

Coat
DS coat
Get coat
Coat on
Blue coat
Zip coat
Coat on

Shoes
Get shoes
Mummy shoes
Shoes on
Black shoes
DS shoes
Shoes on
White shoes

Walk park
Go park
Park time
Fun park
Park trip

DS swing
High swing
Push swing
Fast swing
Mummy swing
Stop swing

Look bird
Bird
Ohhhh bird
Black bird

Slide
Weeeee slide
Up slide
High slide
Slide fast
Go slide

You mention a game on you phone. How many hours per day does he spend in from of a screen of any size? I have several neuroscience books on screens usage and a common key element is speech delay induced by screen. A similar article is here www.pbs.org/newshour/health/toddlers-screen-time-linked-slower-speech-development-study-finds

Try to remove all screens for a couple of weeks for everyone in the house. The iPad/phone put away and the tv in the garage or basement. Go to the library and fill the house with new books .

It is an experiment worth doing.

At the same time, educate yourself on speech delay and the newest strategies. Buy or borrow books on the matter, read medical articles.

I have a genetic condition and there is a delayed medical response. So I look it up myself and apply the newest recommendations on my own.

Thank you for your reply!

I spose I do tend to complicate sentance too, but he understands all I'm saying but maybe breaking it down like that will help him pick it up better... And I can deal with the lunatic phase for a while 😂🙈

I will also follow up on the self referral, I really think it would help.

Thanks for your reply.

He has very limited screen time tbh, but the time that he does have he's actually learned alot from it.

I have been on mat leave so we are constantly out at playgroup, parks, farms etc etc with all my friends and kids. He is a very sociable boy.

I will have a read up on different strategies and hopefully will find something that could help .

I'm on another thread in behaviour / development started by a parent of a 2 year called 2 year old not talking

My DS is about the same age as yours. And I've done a few updates on the thread about his speech referral and going private, so hopefully that will help you too.

@LiliesAndChocolate And yes my DS watches morning Tv and goes on the iPad, this is real life. But he didn't watch anything until age 18 months and he was already very behind. I don't watch TV or iPad etc. The only Tv I see now is if my DS watches something.

Sometimes DS wants a break from playing and I need to get stuff done. Especially now he doesn't generally nap. I know other children who have the tv on in the background all day long. I see photos of friends kids similar ages eating dinner in front of the tv, lunch at the computer or out at dinner with the iPad. You know what they all speak a thousand times more than my DS.

Some children pick up words instantly after hearing it. They may even just hear it on Tv then copy it. Some need to hear it so much or need specific help to learn or have a issue.

Several new inventions have been linked to speech delays - food pouch is also one of them as children suck with very little chewing and little muscle involvement and you need muscles to speak- and many parents are not aware of it.
Speech delay can have many causes, I was just pointing a less obvious one. Comprehension and expression of language are two very diff things and screens can increase one and decrease the other.
iMinds and raising children in a digital worlds might be a good starting point to investigate how screens affect brain and brain junction at any age.