Children develop an understanding of what others are saying before they can talk themselves.
Every child will start speaking at a slightly different time, but it can be helpful to have an idea of what you might expect.
Children usually say their first words at about one years old. They haven’t mastered all the sounds yet. Their words won’t sound the same as an adults’.
By two years old, children can usually say about 50 words. They also start to put two words together into phrases like “more juice” or “daddy shoes”.
There will still be sounds they can’t say, so it might not always sound clear.
By this stage your child is likely to use four- or five-word sentences. They may ask lots of questions, and enjoy listening to simple stories. By the time they’re three-and-a-half, their speech should be clear to everyone.
As they reach four, children can have longer conversations. They talk about things that happened in the past. But you might still hear “I runned” instead of “I ran”.
At five, your child is likely to understand more complicated language. They’ll talk in sentences, and can understand longer instructions.
You can use questions and games to help your child learn.
If your child has been slow to start forming sounds and words, we have some advice on what this might mean.
This advice was written by our experienced Parent Talk coaches. Parent Talk is a free online service for parents and carers, provided by the charity Action for Children. For more advice, message our parenting coaches with our online chat.
