There are may reasons a child may be late to start talking. Here are just a few of the reasons that we may see a late talker.
*Personal differences. Communication milestones represent the average of child development, but there can also be a lot of variability. The majority of late talkers will overcome the delay without any intervention. However, it is impossible to know which children would have benefited from additional intervention and as early intervention is currently seen as the gold standard for supporting development, it is worth looking into.
*Coordination difficulties. Speaking requires precise coordination of many muscles and facial structures as well as the brain signals that enable them. There are some conditions related to difficulty with this process. Some examples include childhood apraxia of speech, phonological delays, articulation delays.
*Developmental disorders. There are some underlying developmental conditions that can affect communication. For example, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), genetic conditions, learning disabilities, intellectual disability.
*Hearing loss. In order for children to learn speech sounds, they have to be able to hear. Even if they are responding to sounds, music, etc., a mild hearing loss could mean they aren’t detecting higher pitched sounds or “quiet” sounds – think “s” or “h” – which can make learning to talk more complicated. For this reason, hearing screening is always recommended to rule out any hearing loss.
*Structural differences. Tongue tie, small oral cavity, high or cleft palate, missing or misplaced teeth can all lead to complications with articulating words.
If you have any concerns, it is best to consult with your pediatrician to see if speech referral may be warranted.
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