Speech and Language Milestones, Ages 3 to 5 Years
Overview
Language and communication milestones relate to two areas:
- Receptive language. This is the ability to understand words and sounds.
- Expressive language. This is the ability to use speech and gestures to communicate meaning.
A child's language and communication skills become more advanced starting around age 3 through age 5. Receptive language skills during this period become more sophisticated. A child learns to make subtle distinctions between objects and relationships. Also, the child can understand multi-step requests. Most children also gradually speak more fluently and use proper grammar more consistently.
Language and communication milestones
| Age |
Milestones |
| 3-year-olds: |
- Talk with you in conversation using at least two back-and-forth exchanges.
- Ask "who," "what," "where," and "why" questions.
- Say what action is happening in a book or picture when asked.
- Say their first name when asked.
- Talk well enough for other people to understand most of the time.
|
| 4-year-olds: |
- Say sentences with four or more words.
- Say some words from a song, story, or nursery rhyme.
- Talk about at least one thing that happened during their day.
- Answer simple questions.
|
| 5-year-olds: |
- Tell a story they heard or made up with at least two events.
- Answer simple questions about a book or story after you read it or tell it to them.
- Keep a conversation going with more than three back-and-forth exchanges.
- Use or recognize simple rhymes.
|
Credits
Current as of: October 24, 2024
Current as of: October 24, 2024