When you’re a parent of a small child, it often seems like there are a million developmental milestones to keep track of. One of the most important ones is speech, which starts as incoherent babbling and becomes more intelligible over time. However, some children don’t develop speech skills according to the typical patterns. Read here to discover five warning signs that your child needs speech therapy.

No Gestures by One Year Old

While kids are growing up, they learn to point at things they want, clap when they’re happy, and make other gestures to communicate. A child who doesn’t do any pointing or gesturing by their first birthday should see a pediatrician first, then possibly a speech therapist. Sometimes a lack of gesturing is an early sign of autism.

Phonological Mistakes at Three Years Old

Phonology is pattern of sounds we use to pronounce words using the correct sounds. By three years old, your child should have grown out of most phonological mistakes, like saying “tootie” instead of “cookie” or “ba” for “bat”. If they’re still having trouble at this age, it’s time to see a therapist for articulation exercises.

Lisping at Five Years Old

Plenty of kids develop lisps while they’re learning to talk, but most of them will grow out of it on their own. If your kiddo is still mispronouncing words like “school” as “thool” by the time they’re five years old, it’s a good idea to see a speech therapist. Once your kid gets to school, lisping can hurt their confidence and make social engagement difficult.

Stuttering That Lasts Longer Than One Month

Children often mispronounce things while they learn to talk. Not every communication flub is a problem; in fact, most instances are normal. We often see a natural increase in dysfluent speech in children ages 2-4, which will resolve normally without intervention.

However, if your kid has been stuttering for several weeks in a row, it may be time to see a speech therapist. Stuttering is different from regular “disfluency” which we all experience, like saying “um” or “you know” or changing our thought mid-sentence. This is when your child repeats a word or syllable repeatedly before moving on to the next word, gets stuck on a word, or starts to show physical signs like facial grimaces or limb movements to get words out.

Inconsistent Voice Pitch

Human beings talk by moving their tone up and down to indicate emotions and emphasize a word or phrase. However, one warning sign that your child needs speech therapy is if they sound shrill or hoarse for a period of longer than two to three weeks.

It’s normal for a child’s voice to change when they have a cold, are entering puberty, or after an exciting day of shouting at an amusement park. However, check in with a speech therapist if your child’s voice changes for no apparent reason.

Getting Help

Thankfully, you don’t even have to leave your home to see a speech therapist. Your child can use online speech therapy to meet with one of Linguabilities’s licensed professionals right from the comfort of their home. Sign up today for a free, no-pressure phone call with our owner to learn more about how Linguabilities can help your child.