Son nearly 2 and still not talking

freda

I haven't seen any one mention sing and sign (makaton) type classes?

They are fantastic for teaching babies and toddlers to sign the basic makaton signs, and thus allowing them to start communicating. If you think his screams and shrieks are frustration, it may be because he can't make himself understood, and signing would help every such a lot with this.

There are lots of books as well about it - our local library has nursery rhyme books showing the makaton, and books for adults showing the signs for 'more', 'milk', 'biscuit' etc etc

I've had friends who have used this with immense success. It doesn't delay speech development and it isn't for 'special needs' children (although the same sign language is used in SN schools)

Do give it a go!

love2shopforbargains

I have a friend whose daughter has autism and as such I do know a few signs for makaton and also Mr Tumble helps, lol.
Someone sent me a PM mentioning makaton also.
I will give her a phone and see if she has some of the books and aids that she got in the beginning when starting to learn/teach makaton.

Thanks again everyone.

jellyhead

Sing and Sign classes are where we learned the makaton signs - most children stop going before they turn 2 though, so mine was the eldest because he kept going right up to his 2nd birthday, he wasn't talking and he enjoyed the classes. They were £45 for a block of ten classes when I booked them.

There's a sign and sign DVD you can buy, they sell it in the early learning centre. Stage 1 and another for stage 2. I loved them, and we bought Jessie Cat from ebay (not an official Jessie Cat, but the only difference is that her label says 'bear factory' instead of 'sing and sign' - the cat is the same one).

Be prepared for some people to tell you signing is bad and makes children lazy, and delays their speech. I heard a lot of that, especially from over-50's.

Between 2 and 2.5 he started to sign while saying the word, and then he just talked and all signs had stopped before 2.5

Oddly, now he is 3.5 he has no memory of ever knowing any signs and enjoys learning them at nursery (one of the children signs and staff are teaching the children a few basic signs).

Curious_George_2

love2shopforbargains wrote: »

Both sets of parents have criticised my style of bringing up my children. They were both breastfed and this was a big stumbling block for them. I personally found it so much easier. They didn't have babywalkers. My mum said to me that was the reason my daughter wasn't walking and then when I had my son they said I should buy a babywalker for him. I didn't. They only drink milk or water, sometimes a small amound of diluting juice if at party and I don't really allow them crisps or chocolate and they say I am cruel and that I am depriving them of things. I try to stand up to my mother and say that they get plenty of love, good food and lots of interaction so other than junk food what am I depriving them off. I am well aware they will have these things when older I just don't need to let them have them just now.

cant help with the walking / talking thing but if this is anything to go by i strongly advise you to ignore any future advice either set of parents give you,
listen, smile, nod and forget
how can anyone knock breastfeeding? (not being able to do it/not wanting to do it/it all not working out these are different subjects all together) but someone saying its the wrong thing to do?? how bizarre!

lots of people dont like baby walkers, wether you have one is personal choice, we didnt have one for DD as i had a house with a step that could have been dangerous for her but years later (in a different house) my son had one and he loved it, and they both walked independantly at around the same age.

and what you feed your kids or allow them to drink is totally up to you,
sounds like your doing a great job....opinionated grandparents have a lot to answer for!

scrimpingbadger

My son is coming up to 5 and struggles with 3/4 word sentences. He's had speech therapy - NHS (which has been good, but not much of it) and private speech therapy (which has been costly). He's had this for 18 months now and has made a real improvement. Adults understand him but children struggle, but since children (particularly boys) don't really have long chats whilst playing it has not been an issue. I'm confident he'll be up to speed in a couple of years.
It's frustrating - all my friends children recite the complete works of Shakespeare and there he is, trying to string 4 words together. I used to talk to him all the time and get nothing back - days seemed long and grim..... But I didn't give up and neither has he. He does have things he excels at though - he can beat most children hands down doing jigsaws and has the most amazing memory.
Don't worry about the inlaws/outlaws and the food thing. It's only because the want to give him treats and be the favourite granny. They may also be trying to engage him a bit more using treats if the language isn't there, because it can be a bit of a barrier. I hope that makes sense.
All children do things at their own pace - it's really hard but try not to worry.

love2shopforbargains

Thanks again to everyone for their help and encouragement.
It really means a lot.

Dormouse

I meant to reply to this thread a few days ago, but got distracted (am blaming the kids, LOL! :rotfl:)

I have a 20-month-old DS2 who sounds very similar in terms of his speech (or lack of, LOL!). He hardly has any 'proper' words apart from 'mama' and 'hiya' and er, that's about it! I have to admit I am not too worried at the moment, as his comprehension is fine, and he makes himself understood in other ways IYSWIM, shouting, grunting, whingeing, pointing, just making any noises, or whatever. Also, I have no concerns about his development in any other respect.

I also have a DS1 who is 5, and we went through exactly the same with him at this age, so it seems I just produce children who are not great at speaking, LOL! Seriously, that's why I am a bit laid back about this - I've been through it before.

What happened with DS1 was he eventually started getting speech therapy at about 4 (don't get me started on the NHS and its lack of resourses!) and is still getting it now. His speech has improved tremendously - whether it was due to therapy (half an hour once a week for a couple of months at a time? Hmm... :rolleyes:) or it just happened naturally (yes, probably!). The biggest improvement has actually been since starting school, and amazingly, learning to read, as he's even now re-learning the way words are said and written properly, if that makes any sense. He's doing absolutely brilliantly at school and socially too, so his speech has not been a problem at this stage at all.

So what I'm trying to say is, good luck! Try not to compare your LO to others (I know it's hard!), especially little girls who mainly just seem to have proper conversations at 12 months old. I'm sure your LO will get there when he's ready.

And do ignore your in-laws and relatives criticising you - they're very ignorant if they think breastfeeding caused any negative effects to your children. :mad:

sunflower_2

maybe u r trying too hard to get ur little man to speak?

i did this with my littlest boy - he didnt start even saying words til he was about 26 months old. he is now almost 3 and is just starting to get the hang of the speaking milarkey ;o)
every day i am amazed at what he comes out with and how much he progresses - its sooo all of a sudden

totally dif with my little girl - she is just 18 months old and can say just as much as youngest boy.
but with now having 3 kids - she has been more "dragged up" ha ha - i.e. i have not spent as much time coaxing her to speak, walk etc

so without any doubt - i wouldnt be putting any blame on yourself!
if you talk to people in his company - i really think its good enough for him to learn

dont worry

sunshines

Hi,

I have not read all the posts, but considering what you have written, you need to ask your GP to refer your son to a 'community paediatricain' who will make a formal assessment of his overall development. There may or may not be problems - if there are none, great; if there are, comm. paeds are the people who co-ordinate all the therapies required.

You may listen to 100s of people telling you that their children were the same/caught up later/needed help, but every child is different and at this stage, you should ask your GP for the referral. Don't forget to mention your daughter's problems to the comm. paediatrician.

It is not how vocal he is that matters, but how he communicates. Does he point to things? guide your hand to something? what is his understanding like? There could be hundreds of reasons for any developmental hiccup, but people will give you their own stories. Make a chart of when he started doing what, what he can and can not do, write down how many words he recognizes/understands, etc.

Ask your GP to refer him to a physiotherapist/occupational therpaist if the referral takes more than 3 months. Hope this helps. If you need more info, pm me.

love2shopforbargains

Hi

We have attended the child development centre and met a paediatrician, she knows of me as I attended with my daughter, although I say another paediatrician.

I am starting learn to talk workshops, although you are only allowed 2 sessions, but there is speech and language therapists there so at least he will get seen a bit quicker than waitiing for an appointment although it won't be an actual appointment lol as there will be other mothers and children there I will voice my concerns and speak to them before/after class.

Thanks again for everyone's help.

p.s. just had another dig from my mother about my parenting. I just said well these are my kids and it is upto me on how they are brought up, thanks for your advice, but I am going to do things the way I think are best. She then said they door had went and had to hang up and answer it.