Two Year Old Not Talking

Aside from the other two suggestions, both good ideas, have you ever considered she just doesn't want to speak yet. My son didn't speak for a while, we thought there might be some problems. Then one day he decided that he wanted to be heard. I'm not going to say that he spoke clearly, he didn't and still doesn't at times, but he had a lot to say and now he just doesn't stop. Keep talking to her, use sign language, and don't try to force her to speak. It really could be she is just not ready.

I'm no expert, but it sounds like she's feeling a lot of pressure. I wouldn't ask her to talk, as that's clearly not working. Perhaps instead ask things like "do you want the red one or the green one?", without having them available for her to point at or grab, for instance while they are still in the cupboard (her cups or plates or socks or whatever). No pressure, just ask her, and give her what she indicates. Also, don't let her pull you around by the finger to show you what she wants, if she does that. Have her tell you, but again without pressuring her.

My son was speech delayed, though he was premature. We were new parents and I had probably baby talked him too much, so once the doctor noticed that he wasn't talking at nearly age two and referred us to have him evaluated, and he was at about a 12-month level, we started talking to him like crazy and reading age appropriate books to him, and got him into speech therapy along with physical/occupational therapy, which the activity got him to talk more readily. With less than a year of the "early intervention", he was on track and kicked out of the program (for being on target).

I have a cousin who was the youngest of 7. She didn't talk particularly before about age 5 because everything was done for her by the 8 people she lived with (mom, dad and 6 older siblings) before she even needed to ask, so she didn't "need" to talk. So, wait for her to come to you for her needs, instead of you taking all the initiative.

I think you should just give her time. My sister's oldest son didn't talk until he was 3. He had started saying a few words when he was 1 and then just quit altogether. He didn't say much of anything. She had him checked by a speech pathologist who said everything was fine. It drove my sister crazy, but finally after he turned 3 he started talking in sentences. She did end up sending him to a speech therapist for a little while after he started talking, but it was more to make sure that he was up to par than for any problems he had.

At two years, my daughter was barely talking. In fact, your daughter sounds identical to what we experienced. It was disturbing for us because both of her brothers were quite skilled talkers (i.e. wouldn't stop talking) by the time they were two. Our pediatrician, especially knowing our sons, was also concerned, but he told us to just keep monitoring the situation, and if she didn't improve, recommended speech therapy. We never ended up with a speech therapist because within each time frame given, although she was behind, she had made enough progress where it wasn't essential. What we did do is spend a lot of time pointing and naming things for her, and I ramped up the reading to several books at day instead of just a couple. It was not immediate, but shortly after turning three, we realized that she was talking like crazy. In fact, she's chattering away even as I type this. The interesting thing is, unlike my boys, who went through those steps of having their special little names for things (you know, those words that YOU know, but you have to explain to everyone else), she pretty much went straight to normal talking. Not perfect, but she uses the correct names for things and went straight to sentences instead of talking in single words. I think she was just biding her time till she could "perform" better. Definitely keep an eye on it, though, and do regular checks to see if her vocabulary is increasing. But if she is progressing in all other ways, chances are good, she's just not ready yet.

Have you tried sign language? I know it helped us communicate with our daughter when she was small. It seemed to give her a lot of confidence to be able to communicate with us. There are lots of books at the library on it, and I'm sure you could find the basics online.

Both of my boys did not speak till they were almost 3.4-5 year old not talking might be delayed but a 2 year old???I would not think so. If she turns her ahead away, it might be that she is just stubborn.....and wants to do things in her time. Good luck when she is a teenager:)

My 22 year old son was just over 3 before he said his 1st 2 word sentence "Daddy home" . Up until that point, he only said a handful of words. The doctor didn't seem concerened and said he wouldn't test until he was 3, which because he said a sentence, we never tested him. He took off after that & one would never know he hadn't spoken earlier. He did have some speech therapy at 8 for the fact that he said his 's's' with his tongue between his front teeth & he 'r's' were more like 'w's'.

I would just keep working with her without frustration in your voice. Just talk to her a great deal while doing normal daily things, which I'm sure you do. I sometimes would call things by the wrong name to see if Addison would correct me and after a while he did, LOL.

Best of luck to you. All children are different and I know that as a Mom we worry when our kids aren't where we feel they should be. If all things have been ruled out, then it's probably just a matter of time.

A.,
This may be a good time to introduce sign language. Children at her age can learn very quickly. This may take some of the pressure off her to speak but still be able to communicate. I'm sure she'll come around when she's ready. Don't sweat it! :0)

My daughter also had services through First Steps. Our Speech therapist is excellent and has many very tough cases. She has a wesite that I would highly recommend looking at. On her site you would be able to ask her this same question and get a professional second opinion. She probably even knows your child's therapist and they could consult to come up with the best plan for your child. Her website is www.teachmetotalk.com

My niece had the same problem and it turned out that my sister was just doing everything for her daughter, so child had no need to talk. So the speech therapist instructed her to demand a response. IE: my sister purposely left the straw out of her drink, when it wasnt there, my sister acted dumb to what was wrong as my niece threw a fit, but eventually she said "straw" and when giving a Popsicle or such my sister gave a choice so that she had to say "red" and so on. my niece is talking a lot more now. hope this helps!

why that is not totally normal it may be normal for her. keep working with her, but you are a mom and moms normally are right on about their children, keep searching for answers