Children’s speech development
Information for parents and carers
- Children need to learn new words first, and then they need to practice using those words to make full sentences.
- Children also need to practise pronouncing the words so that they are clear and easy to understand.
- When children are learning new words, it can sometimes be hard to understand them.
- This is because they might say some sounds the wrong way. Most of these ‘mistakes’ are totally normal.
- Usually, children’s talking gets better little by little.
- By the time they are 4 years old, most people can understand them. Some sounds might still be tricky for them to say.
How clear should my child be?
The table below gives a general idea of how clearly your child might be talking between the ages of 18 months and 4 years old.
Remember, every child learns at their own pace:
| Age | Percentage that parents can understand |
|---|---|
| 18 months | 25% of what child says |
| 2 years | 50-75% of what child says |
| 3 years | 75-100% of what child says |
| 4 years | 100% of what child says. Slight errors in speech can still occur |
Typical sound errors
- When children are learning to say words, they often change them so that they are easier to say. This is a part of typical speech development.
- Below are some common changes that children make:
| Process | Example | Age Resolved (Source: Dodd, 2007) |
|---|---|---|
| Final Consonant Deletion | Missing off the sounds at the end of a word. For example: Cat = ca Dog = do | 2 years |
| Voicing | Using a loud sound in place of a quiet sound For example: p and c are quiet and b and g are loud: Pig = big Cat = gat | 2 years 11 months |
| Fronting | A sound in a word is replaced by a sound made at the front of the mouth. For example: c, k and g are made at the back of the mouth, t and d are made at the front of the mouth: Cat = tat Dog = dod | 3 years 11 months |
| Stopping | Using a short sound in place of a long sound. For example: ffff is a long sound and puh is a short sound. Fan = pan Face = fade | 3 years 6 months |
| Weak Syllable Deletion | When a part of the word is missed off. For example: Banana = nana | 3 years 11 months |
| Interdental Lisp | Using a /th/ in place of a /s/ sound. For example: Sock = thock Miss = mith | 4 years 6 months |
| Deaffrication | When /CH/ and /J/ sounds are replaced by a short sound. For example: Chocolate = toclate Jump = dump | 5 years |
| Cluster Reduction | When two or three sounds are replaced by one. For example: School = sool Splash = plash | 5 years |
| Gliding | Using /W/ in place of /R/, or /Y/ in place of /L/. For example: Leaf = yeaf Rabbit = wabbit | 6 years |
Non-typical speech errors
- Some children with speech problems may make mistakes that are not part of the usual way children learn to speak.
- These speech difficulties usually need help and practice to get better.
- The table below shows some examples of mistakes that are not typical:
| Error | Example | Age Resolved |
|---|---|---|
| Backing | Using a sound made at the back of the mouth (g,k) instead of at the front of the mouth (t,d). For example: Done =?gun Teacher = keacher | Non typical error |
| Initial Consonant Deletion | Leaving the first sound off words. For example: Fish = ish Sheep = eep | Non typical error |
| Medial Consonant Deletion | Leaving the middle sound out of words. For example: Monkey = mon_ey Pocket ? po__et | Non typical error |
| Sound preference substitution | When a child uses a particular sound in place of several other sounds. This could be any sound. | Non typical error |
How can I support my child’s speech?
- Be face-to-face when talking together. The child can then see the way your mouth makes the sounds.
- Repeat back your child’s words using the correct sounds, e.g. Child: “a tat!” Adult: “yes, it’s a cat!”
- Play listening games, e.g. go for walks and talk about the noises you hear, hide a noisy toy (e.g. a small radio or egg timer) and see if your child can find it.
- Play around with sounds, make animal noises, make silly sounds/lip shapes, e.g. blow kisses, poke your tongue out – you can use a mirror!
- Don’t make your child repeat words – if they could say them, they already would!
What if I can’t understand my child?
- Don’t expect to understand everything your child is saying and don’t pretend to have understood.
- Try to guess what your child is talking about using clues from what has happened recently, e.g. “are you talking about the park?”
- Ask your child to try and show you what she is talking about, e.g. “can you show me?”
- If you don’t understand something that the child says, be sensitive and say e.g. “Sorry Billy, mum/dad doesn’t understand that word”.
- Remember to focus on what your child is saying, not just how they are saying it
Contact our service
Call us on 020 3224 4399 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm)
Email whh-tr.huts@nhs.net
Published:
12 May 2026
Review:
12 May 2028
Reference:
CYP/HarEYSLT/CSD/01