When children are first learning to talk, it is not uncommon for them to make mistakes in their speech. Here are some mistakes that you might have noticed in your child's speech.
They might use a different sound, like saying tat when they mean cat.
They might shorten words to make them easier to say, like saying mato for tomato.
They might miss out certain sounds, like saying ca for cat or nake for snake
As kids get older, they usually stop making these mistakes. By age 8, they’re expected to make all their speech sounds the right way and they should be understandable by a wide range of people. Find out what sounds or words your child should not be saying from the list below. You can refer to the full chart here: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Phonological-Processes-Elimination-Chart-sorted-by-age-5634797
3-YEAR OLD
You can expect a child of 3 years to no
longer say gar for car, bat for bad, no for
nose, tittycat for kittycat, tore for four, and dun for sun.
3-1/2 YEAR OLD
You can expect a child of 3-1/2 years to no longer say gar for car, bat for bad, no for nose, tittycat for kittycat, tore for four,
dun for sun, tea for key, see for she, berry for
very, and doo for zoo
4 YEAR OLD
You can expect a child of 4 years to no longer say gar for car, bat for bad, no for nose, tittycat for kittycat, tore for four, dun for sun, tea for key, see for she, berry for very, doo for zoo, nana for banana, and pider for spider.
4-1/2 YEAR OLD
You can expect a child of 4-1/2 years to no longer say gar for car, bat for bad, no for nose, tittycat for kittycat, tore for four, dun for sun, tea for key, see for she, berry for very, doo for zoo, nana for banana, pider for spider, dop for shop, dump for jump, and tare for chair.
5 YEAR OLD
You can expect a child of 5 years to no longer say gar for car, bat for bad, no for nose, tittycat for kittycat, tore for four, dun for sun, tea for key, see for she, berry for very, doo for zoo, nana for banana, pider for spider, dop for shop, dump for jump, tare for chair, wabbit for tear for there, and dat for that.
If your child drops the first sounds in words (e.g. ar for car), uses a sound such as /g/ or /k/ for /t/ or /d/ (e.g. key for tea) or substitutes two sounds with a different sound (e.g. foon for spoon), I would encourage you to book in an assessment with a Speech Pathologist. These sound substitutions in particular are ones that we do not expect to see in a child's speech. They usually indicates a more severe speech delay or speech disorder.
A Speech Pathologist, or also known as Speech Therapist, are equipped with skills to correct these speech errors and improve the clarity of your child's speech! We will demonstrate how to teach speech sounds, provide resources and suggest fun activities that you can do to make practice fun!
Call 0403 118 979 to book an appointment for an assessment now!