Toy recommendations for late talker/potential Autistic 2.5 YO

[peaches36]

Looking for some suggestions please

I have a 2.5 year old, he’s a non speaker at the moment and is a little behind other children in some other ways too. We are thinking of getting him screened for autism too, just to rule it out as he has a lot of the ‘red flags’ (i won’t go in to detail too much but he doesn’t really listen, he’s very hyper, doesn’t do some things a 1 year old should be doing etc) I’m a massive worrier so this is a big deal for me as a parent.

We want to find some cheap(ish) toys/activities suitable for his age that will help him develop his speech and in general. If anyone has any recommendations I’d be very grateful :)

Also just thought would any ear/hearing problems cause issues like this? The lack of understanding things/lack of interest, lack of speech etc. Opinions welcome! X

Also just thought would any ear/hearing problems cause issues like this? The lack of understanding things/lack of interest, lack of speech etc. Opinions welcome

Hearing problems can definitely affect speech and behaviour. I'd self refer for a hearing test.

This speech progress checker might be helpful as well.

Not sure about toys though sorry.

Our DS is just over 2.5years. At 2.5 he only had 4 words but the last few weeks its picked up a bit. We have him booked in for a hearing test (we asked to be referred via gp and it's taken about 8 weeks).

For us toys havent really helped. It's been books, singing repetitive songs and changing how we speak.

Hes obsessed with cars at the moment so if hes pushing a car back and forth with you, you say 'You've pushed me the car.' Then you wait for him to gesture to the car and you say 'would you like me to push it back?' And wait for an affirmation sound or gesture. Then confirm 'yes'. And lots of ready steady...go. Plus counting things in books suddenly he says 2 and 10! For him it's very much repetition and anticipation. We have to wait quite a few seconds for him to say go etc.

Also hes started to do some basic makaton signs to help communicate. The nursery uses PECs cards which we might invest in depending on the results of his hearing test. Mr Tumble is a good one for learning basic signs.

Sorry for rambling but I would suggest a hearing test and getting on the very long list for speah referral if you havent already. I know its tough so sending you lots of

@peaches36 how’s your little guy doing now? Sounds similar to my little guy. Thanks

@mondler how’s your little guy doing now? I’m going to try these tips you suggested above . 3 months off 3 and not a single word yet 😥

@FinnsMammy hi our little guy is doing well thanks. At the hearing test they couldn't test each individual ear but overall he had god hearing. We go back in a couple of weeks for another hearing test so I'm hoping they will be able to test each ear this time.

His speech has really come on. He went from 4 words to lots of individual words and then within a few weeks he started speaking in sentences. He really was just learning everything internally before braving speaking.

Hes still hard to understand but hes constantly improving. We had one speech therapy assessment face to face and he got put on the speech therapy list so are currently waiting for that.

Hows your little ones understanding? Do they know colours/objects and follow simple instructuons?

@mondler thanks for responding. He understands simple things like get your shoes , put that in the bin etc. if I ask him where is the dog for example he won’t point to it so I don’t know if he doesn’t understand or does and just doesn’t want to show me . He will usually drag you by the hand to what he wants example the fridge and I’ll say do you want milk and he will smile and say hmmm which I’m guessing means yes lol 😂 his crèche says he understands everything, I don’t think he does. Sometimes if I say touch your head show me your foot he will but most of the time he ignores me so it’s hard to know 🙈 it’s difficult to navigate but I suppose when you live with it every day it becomes your “normal” we always know what he wants so the tantrums are minimal. He’s starting preschool in September and will be getting a support teacher so I’m praying this will bring him on. He’s a little dote and I love him so much and I try to remind myself that our problems are small compared to others but I’d love to hear even one functional word from him that would be amazing .

Yes! My 2 girls are both on the spectrum. Oldest never had any communication issues. Current 3 year old does. She had a hearing test first before she was referred to speech and language because if they can’t hear well they can’t repeat the words because communication is learned. My daughter always loved books, nursery rhymes and flash cards so we went with that. Not going to lie I wasted so much money on toys that seemed appropriate but she had no interest in them. Her current communication isn’t consistent, she uses words when she feels like it like “drink” “eat” “lunch” “wash hands”. But it’s not consistent and she will push me around the house to show me what she wants or needs. It’s very tiring and she’s on the waiting list for speech and language therapy.