1 Year Old and Talking

I wouldn't worry about it at all. My boys should win awards for being the slowest at all those kinds of things (talking, crawling, walking, etc.). My 2 yr old didn't start walking till 17 months and didn't really start talking in a language we could understand until he was closer to two. My younger son is almost 14 months and is still army crawling. It bugged me a lot at the beginning because people always told me that I ought to take them into see specialists or acted like something was really wrong. Crazy thing is... now my 2 yr old walks, run, talks in sentences like a pro. Kids are going to go at their own pace. Plus, in all the reading I did (while I was worrying about it) I learned that while they might be slower in one area, their brain is developing in another area. For example, while my second son seems to be even slower in the physical progression (crawling, walking) he seems to show signs for talking earlier than my older son. Their little brains are constantly developing - we just have to be willing to take it at their speed. Good luck!!

Hi Erica
Between 1 (or before) and 2 every child aquires language at their own pace. The key is that you are seeing progress with more sounds, phonemes, and words each week or month. Reference a few different developmental milestone charts on line. The American Speech Language Hearing Association has some valuable info. regarding typical language development.

I only have one child and she just turned 15 months. Her first word "bird" was at 8-9 months and she's got at least 40 words she uses all the time now. However, I know of kids the same age and older than my daughter who only have 5-10 words. But a few of those kids walked and ran and developed more quickly in terms of large motor skills than my daughter. So you can see it varies greatly. I got kind of nervous not too long ago because all the sudden my daughter was not talking as much and then found out that as they work on other skills the language may stall for a week or two then burst back onto the scene with even more vigor. It's amazing when you think about all the things our kids learn every moment. So hang in there. If you're super worried, call your dr. and set up an appt.

Perfectly normal (I'm a speech therapist). Kids typically say their first word at one. As far as the rocking, have you talked to your pediatrician? He might be looking for some sort of sensory input. He may benefit from some tactile therapies.

Well his talking isn't to bad since boys are further behind than girls. The rocking sounds a little different to me. I have an autstic son and yes it sounds scary but its not as bad as it sounds. I would love to talk with you more about his behavior and I have name and numbers to places if you want to have him checked out. THat is how I found my son had a problem and that he needed help. My email address is ____@____.com. I look forward to hearing from you. Angie

Hi Erica,
Your son seems normal to me. I had 2 girls before I had my boy and both were talking before 12mos and never really did the babble jibber thing but then my son came along and he was a very noisy baby, he squeaked and cooed at everything but like your son he never really spoke words until he was about 12mos and they were few and far in between. By 18mos I think he could say 5-10 different words but he just always used "that" all the time and I was concerned about his hearing or his speech and my family and doc said he was normal so i waited. Then when he turned 2 it was like a light came on and he was just rattling off words left and right and then the sentences came along and now he's 3 and its all I can do to get him to be quiet LOL!! Be patient and give him some time, the words will come along. Good luck.

C. C.

I think it's normal for babies to begin "talking" at different ages. My first child, girl, had a huge vocabulary at 18 mos, and my son, didn't really say much until he was 2. As for the rocking, I have not personally experienced this, but my niece did it and still does. She would wake in the night and hit her head against the wall (to go back to sleep?) Also rocked when she got tired/bored. She is now 6 years old, extremely bright, loves school, and still rocks. Don't know if this helps any, I'm a stay at home mom of 4 cherubs. :)

You're probably just fine, but I would talk to your doctor. Rocking can be very normal as a comfort type thing, but it can also be a sign of some serious things. As for the talking, I have an 18 month old that hardly says more than your 13 month old and neither his specialists or his pediatrician are worried. I hope I didn't scare you, that certainly isn't my intent, it's just what came to mind. (My mom works with Spec. Ed. kids, so I tend to over worry in this area.)

Hi Erica,
I would think that the rocking could very well be practice moving. My 12 month old daughter did (and still does) the rocking on her hands and knees. This decreased once she started crawling. I think it's just part of development. Also, with the banging his head, it could just be testing out what hurts or he might like the sound. My son did it when he would accidentally hit his head, then he would do it a few more times like he was figuring out how hard he could hit before it hurt. My 12 month old does it occasionally and laughs. I think it's because her sister saw her doing it and laughed and laughed, so she kept doing it. I've seen her do it several times since then. I think it's just kids figuring out their limits and where they end and the world begins. Speech-wise, I agree with the other comments - he is entirely within normal range. Good luck, and talk with your doctor about your concerns, I suspect that will make you feel better.

Oh that is soooooo normal! Remember, first borns tend to talk sooner, and especially girls. My daughter was born talking (you think I am joking), however her other milestones were not as early more like later (walked at 14mos). My son however was one to say few words until he was about 18 mos and then by 2 was really saying a lot more. He also though was crawling at almost 5 mos, standing alone at 7 mos and walking at 11 mos. So all kids are differents. Do not worry about his rocking either, sounds like he is gearing up for some serious traveling! Babbling is good. If you are really worried ask your Pediatrician. Make sure you never talk baby talk to him and just identify things when you are with him, like "see this ball", "or where is your sister"...he sounds fine to me....be patient.