Communication Milestones: 13 to 18 Months
Curious what communication milestones your little one should be reaching? While each child develops differently and at their own pace, be on the look out for these skills. If you have a concern regarding your child’s communication development, contact us today for a free screening and consultation in the home.
Look around when asked “where” questions—like “Where’s your shoe?”
Follow directions—like “Give me the cup,” “Come here,” or “Show me your head.”
Point to make requests, to comment, or to get information.
Shake head for “no” and nod head for “yes.”
Understand and use words for common objects, some actions, and people in their lives.
Identify one or more body parts.
Use gestures when excited, like clapping or giving a high-five, or when being silly, like sticking out their tongue or making funny faces.
Use a combination of long strings of sounds, syllables, and real words with speech-like inflection.
How can I support my child?
Listen and talk about the sounds you hear around your house. Make the sounds together.
Play with sounds at bath time. Blow and pop bubbles. Emphasize the beginning sounds of words.
Talk to your child as you do things and go places. For example, when walking through the grocery store, point to and name what you see. Say things like, “I see a banana. We can eat the banana. A banana is a fruit. The banana is yellow. Mmmm you like bananas!”
Give your child two-step directions, like “Get your shoes and sit on the step.”
Use short words and sentences that your child can repeat. Add to words your child says. For example, if they say ball, you can say, “The ball is bouncing. It bounced on the couch!”
Tell stories or read to your child every day. Try to find books with large pictures and a few words on each page. Talk about the pictures on each page or things you see around you.
Have your child point to pictures, body parts, or objects that you name.
Ask your child to name pictures. They may not answer at first. Just name the pictures for them.
Talk to your child in the languages you are most comfortable using. If your family is multilingual, give your child many chances to hear and practice your languages daily. Learning multiple languages will not cause speech or language problems.
Source: ASHA Communication Milestones 2023
