I read an article that I think really explains the path our guy is taking with language acquisition. It states some more cautious and reserved 18-month-olds tend to wait until they understand a great deal of what they hear before actually speaking.
As long as they are pointing to things they want, to pictures in books, if they seem to understand what you're saying, use gestures and facial expressions to communicate, and grunt (yep, grunting is a sign of language development--must be part of our cave man heritage, lol), your kid should be on track.
Reading books, talking about what you see, encouraging pointing, labeling, sounded out words, etc., are all things parents can do to help develop language. Comparing to others can act as a flag to check in on research out there, but usually there is nothing wrong. The key is, with almost all milestones, that development is happening. That's what I've been learning lately.
If you feel there could be a major problem, talk with a pediatrician who may refer you to to a language development specialist, which would be covered under most insurance companies.
Here's a link to the article on Baby Center referenced above.
As long as they are pointing to things they want, to pictures in books, if they seem to understand what you're saying, use gestures and facial expressions to communicate, and grunt (yep, grunting is a sign of language development--must be part of our cave man heritage, lol), your kid should be on track.
Reading books, talking about what you see, encouraging pointing, labeling, sounded out words, etc., are all things parents can do to help develop language. Comparing to others can act as a flag to check in on research out there, but usually there is nothing wrong. The key is, with almost all milestones, that development is happening. That's what I've been learning lately.
If you feel there could be a major problem, talk with a pediatrician who may refer you to to a language development specialist, which would be covered under most insurance companies.
Here's a link to the article on Baby Center referenced above.
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