The age old question.

I have read over and over that theres a language explosion at 16m-18m. IM still waiting and im not being very patient.

The kids understand alot. I ask them to get their shoes so we can go bye bye and they get their shoes.
I ask them to toss something in the garbage and they do.
bring me their cup and they do they understand alot of simple commands and I have read that understanding is a huge step in learning to speak but I would love for them to start talking. They say quite a few words so I guess I shouldnt worry but thats a moms never ending job right?

How many words does your 18m old say? What can i do to encourage them to talk more rather then point and grunt?

 

Mine said the basic words at 18 months, but weren't as explanatory as they are now. What yours are doing sounds/seems normal to me.

 

My boys will be 2 next week. Jackson is my talker and had about 30 or 40 words 2 weeks ago. Now I can't even count them anymore. I was trying to keep track and he is over 200 now. He just took off -- crazy and fun . Ethan basically says "mama" and "that" consistently. Just this week, he said bubble, bye, hi, meow, yes and milk. I was getting a little worried but now I'm not. He does pretty much what I ask him to. It is fustrating with the grunting and pointing though . Just keep encouraging them...

I saw a baby shirt today that said "I heard Einstein was a late talker!" I would buy that for Ethan if he wasn't just starting to talk !

Mendy

 

One of my DDs (and girls supposedly talk earlier than boys) still just says a few words and grunts, and they are 19m. It sounds like Sarah is right where yours are now. She knows 10-15 words, but they don't sound like words to anyone but us -- they all sound like "baaaa," "deeee," "buuuuu," etc. She hasn't discovered that a word can have more than one consonant. I asked the ped about it at their 18m checkup and he said it was fine, and not to worry unless she hadn't progressed by age 2. She is clearly progressing (just very slowly).

Amy had the language explosion around 15m and it seems to speed up every day. It is fun! But Sarah seems to understand just as well as Amy does -- I think she just can't quite get her mouth around the sounds yet.

Anyway, I totally understand being impatient. We try to encourage Sarah to talk by looking at lots of books with her and pointing out the pictures. I also try to respond very enthusiastically whenever she does say something. But you can't really make a toddler talk!

 

My girls had about 50 words and 30 signs at 18 months. They started doing 2-word sentences shortly afterwards. They didn't speak at all until 16 months or so so they progressed pretty rapidly. Remember that your babies were a little early and there's always an age range for everything so you'll probably see that language explosion soon.

 

Mine are 19 Months old and I believe they are a bit behind but not terribly They understand everything.
they say:
mama, dada, uh oh, dow (down), ry-ry (ryan), by-by, baaah (bath, I think :blush: )

I think that is about it.

 

At age 2 my boys really only said a handful of words. Than all of a sudden they were speaking full sentences. Just keep repeating words to them & they will get the hang of it. It really does just happen all of a sudden.

 

I am a speech therapist. Of course I would like my two to be doing more also. But it sounds like yours are totally on the right track. At 18 months, they should have between 10-20 words and soon after begin to put 2 words together. The explosion between 18 mo. and 2 years is HUGE. There is also such a wide range of what is considered to be within normal limits. You're right that if they do need to understand language receptively before they use it. At this point, don't worry about the quality of their words (single syllables...), just worry about the quantity. As long as they use the approximation consistently, it's a word. (So are all animal sounds!) Ways to encourage verbalizations: Always keep your language simple when talking to them. Even though you know they could understand more complex sentences, it gives them opportunities to imitate back what you're saying. Always talk about what you're doing or what they're doing...kind of narrarate their play. Read lots of books that have simple common objects in them. You could even make a little photo album of their favorite people, objects. Be repetitious, to the point where you sound like a broken record. Always give them choice (if you're doing a puzzle for instance) which will give them an opportunity to imitate back one of the choices. Hold objects up to your face when you label them so they can see how the word is formed. You could even break a word down that you are trying to elicit and have them just try to imitate the initial sound.
With all of that said...I would love mine to be doing more. I talked to my ped about possibly getting their hearing checked (they've had 3 ear infections in 5 months which I know isn't horrible) but I just wanted to make sure there wasn't residual fluid left over. She knows I"m a SLP and told me I was crazy! But since then, they seem to be saying more and more each day!

 

Mine had the language explosion at 18 months. They literally went from 3-5 words to saying over 50 words. At first, the words were just one syllable at first, and I still have to "interpret" what they are saying for other people, but they say more and more every day. Signing has also really helped. They could sign a lot of words before they could say them, and it also helps me know what they are trying to say.

 

My kids were not talking at 18 months (maybe a couple words, if that). At two, Hannah was starting to use more words. Now at 27 months, she is speaking in sentences. I can pretty much have a conversation with her. Ben is just starting to put two words together. And half of the time I have a hard time understanding him. But he is JUST starting to experience that language explosion.

We are late bloomers in this household though, with everything from crawling to teething to talking.

 

I have been feeling a little anxious about this too. The boys are just now 16 months and still not saying much. Carter just started saying uh oh and Hi within the last week or so, but it's not all the time and that's all he can say. Spencer still says nothing. They can understand a lot of words and simple commands and they recognize objects in books and can point them out, but it seems like every other baby their age cay say twice as many words. It's hard not to worry!!

 

hey nikki! we are about the same spot! i'm glad to read animal sounds count! We read ALOT of books and they can do almost all animal sounds and some animal names in brown bear and polar bear. They say, hi, bye, mama, dada, cookie, cracker, uh-oh, elmo, nemo, more, star, chicken, banana, broccoli, okra, no-no, eyes, nose, ears.. no sentences or anything. Most words are from the books we read. I say everything and point to everything all day long hoping they will catch on. they try to mimic me, so i guess its helping.. still waiting on the explosion here, but i guess we are making progress! they understand commands so i know there isnt anything wrong. i too worry that all their ear infections may play a role