Talking

When we talk about talking we mean the words we use, and how we join them together in sentences. Sometimes it's called expressive language.

Children usually start by developing their single word vocabulary. There is a big variation for when this starts and how quickly it progresses – this is expected! When children have around 50 single words they may start to join them together. We often see two word phrases first. These build in length and complexity over time.

Talking includes grammar and sentence order. For most children this continues to develop over time with experience and opportunity to use their sentences. However, all children develop at their own pace.

Many children grow up in multi-lingual homes. This should be celebrated as talking more than one language is an amazing skill to have. There is no evidence that learning more than one language at the same time makes it any more difficult in the long term.

If you’ve come to the Talking section because your child is

finding it tricky to pronounce words, go to our Speech section
repeating sounds and words or other indicators of a stammer, go to our Stammering section
not talking in some situations, go to our Situational Mutism section
showing preference for other means of communication go to our Early Communication section and our Alternative Augmentative Communication (AAC) section

What you might notice if your child would benefit from support with their talking skills

Your child might:

have not yet developed 20 single words at 2 years old
be not yet putting words together at 3 years old
be jumbling up their sentence order at 3 years old
be missing out the little words at 3 years old
be learning language in chunks based on what they’ve heard
not always remember words you’ve heard them use before
find it difficult to think of the word they want to say

How you can help

Check out our Five Top Tips Video to find out more about how you can help:

Our advice leaflets contain lots of helpful information and ideas of things you can try at home to help.

Talking - 5 Top Tips [PDF 273KB]

What we can offer

Advice service

You can speak to one of our Speech and Language Therapists via our advice service. We can make suggestions about what might help and answer any questions you might have.

Our advice service is open every Thursday 9.30am to 12.30pm.
Tel: 01228 608177
Email: CumbriaCommmunicates@ncic.nhs.uk

Advice and support sessions

We run online advice and support sessions for parents and carers. A few may be helpful for your child.

These sessions include information on:

how language typically development
what we know helps language development
how to use Language Boosting Strategies
activities that are at the right level for your child

To book a place email: SLTCumbriaTraining@ncic.nhs.uk

Making a Request for Support

Anyone, including parents and carers, can request support from Speech and Language Therapy. You can do this via our Request for Support Form.

The support we offer is always tailored to the needs of your child. Some children benefit from individualised support, others benefit from support in their environment. Speech and Language Therapy support children with their talking where there is an impact on their

making friends
learning
joining in at home and at school
making choices and responding to change

Some children need more time to develop their talking. A child’s talking is always considered alongside the rest of their milestones, like walking and cognition.

Speech and Language Therapy do not work with children whose difficulty is with talking in English when they are talking as expected in their first language. Speech and Language Therapy support multilingual children when they have difficulties with talking in all their languages.

Speech and Language Therapy might look like:

a Speech and Language Therapist assessing a child’s talking through play
a language assessment in clinic to look at strengths and needs
a Speech and Language Therapist visiting their setting, or home
coaching with our Speech and Language Therapy Assistants
recommendations and strategies for practice at home and in their setting
an explanation of strengths and needs and how these can be supported

When a child continues to have difficulty with their expressive language beyond Reception age, they might be supported by the Specialist Advisory Teaching Team for Speech and Language.

Cumberland Specialist Advisory Teaching Team for Speech and Language

Westmorland and Furness Specialist Advisory Teaching Team for Speech and Language

We discharge at a point when:

adults around the child are confident supporting their continued communication development

the child is Year 1 and above and has continued expressive language needs. A child’s school need to make an onward referral to a Specialist Advisory Teacher for Speech and Language

progress means they are able to use words and sentences to connect with others and have their needs met

Speech and Language - information for families