Salalah College of Technology

Stages of Language in Child

Prepared by:
Hamdah Al- Mahri

This study presents information on the stages of development of language

in children. The chart below presents typical language development.
There is a wide range of normal development. Most children will not
follow the chart to the letter. It is presented so you will know what to
expect for a child.
Birth
Language learning starts at birth. Even new babies are aware of the
sounds in the environment.
They listen to the speech of those close to them, and startle or cry if there
is an unexpected noise. Loud noises wake them, and they become "still"
in response to new sounds.

0-3 months
Between 0-3 months babies learn to turn to you when you speak, and
smile when they hear your voice. In fact, they seem to recognize your
familiar voice, and will quieted at the sound of it if they are crying. Tiny
babies under three months will also stop their activity and attend closely

to the sound of an unfamiliar voice. They will often respond to

comforting tones whether the voice is familiar or not.
4-6 months
Then, sometime between 4 to 6 months babies respond to the word "no".
They are also responsive to changes in your tone of voice, and to sounds
other than speech. For example, they can be fascinated by toys and other
objects that make sounds, enjoy music and rhythm, and look in an
interested or apprehensive way for the source of all sorts of new sounds
such as the toaster, birdsong, the clip-clop of horses' hooves or the whirr
of machines.
7-12 months
The 7 to 12 months timeframe is exciting and fun as the baby now
obviously listens when spoken to, turns and looks at your face when
called by name, and discovers the fun of games.
1-2 years
Now the child points to pictures in a book when you name them, and can
point to a few body parts when asked. He or she can also follow simple
commands and understand simple questions.
This is a stage in which he or she will want the same story, rhyme or
game repeated many times.

2-3 years
At this age child will understand two stage commands and understand
contrasting concepts or meanings like hot / cold, stop / go, in / on and
nice / yuccy. He or she notices sounds like the telephone or doorbell
ringing and may point or become excited, get you to answer, or attempt to
answer themselves.
3-4 years
Three or four year old child understands simple "Who?", "What?" and
"Where?" questions and can hear you when you call from another room.
This is an age where hearing difficulties may become evident.
How to receive language of child
It's important to discuss early speech and language development, as well
as other developmental concerns. It can be difficult to tell whether a child
is just immature in his or her ability to communicate or has a problem that
requires professional attention.
Before 12 Months
It's important for kids this age to be watched for signs that they're using
their voices to relate to their environment. Cooing and babbling are early
stages of speech development. As babies get older (often around 9
months), they begin to string sounds together, incorporate the different
tones of speech, and say words like "mama" and "dada" (without really
understanding what those words mean).
Before 12 months of age, babies also should be attentive to sound and
begin to recognize names of common objects (bottle, binky, etc.). Babies

who watch intently but don't react to sound may be showing signs of
hearing loss.
By 12 to 15 Months
Kids this age should have a wide range of speech sounds in their babbling
(like p, b, m, d, or n), begin to imitate and approximate sounds and words
modeled by family members, and typically say one or more words (not
including "mama" and "dada") spontaneously. Nouns usually come first,
like "baby" and "ball." child also should be able to understand and follow
simple one-step directions ("Please give me the toy," etc.).

From 18 to 24 Months
Though there is a lot of variability, most toddlers are saying about 20
words by 18 months and 50 or more words by the time they turn 2. By
age 2, kids are starting to combine two words to make simple sentences,
such as "baby crying" or "Daddy big." A 2-year-old should be able to
identify common objects (in person and in pictures), points to eyes, ears,
or nose when asked, and follow two-step commands ("Please pick up the
toy and give it to me," for example).
From 2 to 3 Years
Parents often see huge gains in their child's speech. The Child's
vocabulary should increase (to too many words to count) and he or she
should routinely combine three or more words into sentences.

References
http://www.slideshare.net/LamaAlbabtain/stages-of-child-languagedevelopment
http://childdevelopmentinfo.com/childdevelopment/language_development/
http://www.ling.upenn.edu/courses/Fall_2011/ling001/acquisition.html