my baby is 2 years and 5 months she is limited to only few words, mama, baba, calls my name, no. her doc says its ok, she is alone, less social interaction, some kids take time. how can I help her , how to encourage her? she sometimes bables seems like she is trying to say something but I am not able to understand, she responds understands wht I ask and also make me understand wht she wants. any tips how can I help her 
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
Take her to a play group.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
^ she goes on weekends, will start her nursery at the end of this year
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
see a speech pathologist/therapist…
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
Her doc said wait for a year then they will refer to speech therapist
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
ok…then, that’s the way to go. iA, she will start speaking the way she should before the year’s end. 
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
My daughter is 2 and she does not talk either, only says a few words clearly and she has an older brother who talks non-stop. She has been around other kids too, goes to a baby sitter with other kids. A friends daughter who is few months older speaks clearly and in complete sentences. I think kids just develop differently.
I am not extremely worried though. I am sure iA she will start speaking clearly. (Unless you yourself see an issue with your daughter’s speech)
Also the problem I see with my daughter is that she gets things done or gets whatever she wants without saying anything. Like she points at things and does her umms and ooos and gets it. Recently I have started asking her to say something like either please or the name of the thing she wants and only then she will get it. It takes a lot of time because she insists on her uumms and ooos and pointing but in the end when I keep repeating her to say it, she atleast utters one word. Dont know if its the same thing with your daughter too.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
My son just turned 2 and he’s the same way. There’s no need to see a speech therapist! She’s still young. Some kids talk earlier, some don’t but they all talk eventually and then you wish they’d be quiet for just two minutes! LoL
my kid also does the umm’ing and ooh’ing to get to some things but he’s also repeating everything we say and starting to put small two word sentences together. And like your daughter Devi, there’s a lot of chatter in baby babble that is purely nonsensical to me. I think thats him practicing speech before he starts to substitute in actual words. It’s all part of the process. Speech is a HUGE development milestone for them- it makes sense that it takes them some time to get it.
i would suggest constantly talking to your kiddo- and use proper language not baby talk. Speak to her as you cook, as you do groceries, as you go about your day. Tell her what you are doing and encourage her to repeat words back to you. Mine has picked up a lot of language this way but also he’s now saying words I was telling him about months ago. It really is amazing how they’re constantly absorbing the world around them even when they can’t express themselves.
Oh and READ together. Read, read, read. The back of the ccereal box, signs on the road, her favourite books of course. It’s super important and I believe a big help in promoting language and comprehension skills.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
This is exactly what my sister started doing after my nephew turned 2 and was still doing a lot of his baby talk. Its only been a few months but its made a huge difference and he says sooo much more than he used to. It works.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
My kids a late speaker, 2 yrs 4 months and now eats my head. Especially with the demands for toys and wanting to go out! I know of kids who spoke around 3ish.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
I agree with sarad…
No amount of exposure can make a child talk faster… U know how midget is… Talkin from birth… I ought genie would be a fast talker too… But nopes… Same as your firl… Sngle words and even that, barely…
No speech therapist needed… We were told to chill out… A kid doesnt have to speak until its 5!!! Shockin but true. As long as it understands everything and can get its point across somehow… Infact that telaxes them a whole lot…
So now if she wants something…she has to say the word…not sentence.. Just the word… Biscuit, paani, potty… It tkes forever and she starts crying when she sees the thing in sight but not getting it … But she has learned to say auite a few words like this…
Amazing how every kid develops at its own pace… Seems like midget is on ffwd and genie in slow play out lol.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
one more thing tht ppl are telling me k she might gets confused she watch tv in English,in play area interaction is in English, you are speaking both English and Urdu, and her social circle includes both English n Urdu, does this thing matter???
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
No it doesn’t, our ped suggested we talk to our son in all the languages we speak
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
It may take kids a bit longer to speak if they are exposed to multiple languages, but the MORE languages you can expose them to early on, the better. They figure things out. Never again will they be able to absorb language so quickly. Speak as many languages as you can with them.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
Kids from bilingual households ‘might’ have a slight delay in talking but they are not confused when it comes to language,vocabulary and comprehension.Before the age of 5 its said that it is the easiest for kids to learn multiple languages as compared to later in life.
If you are too concerned,there is nothing wrong with seeing a therapist and see what they have to say.If they offer therapy,at this age it is mostly through play and that is something you can do yourself.Encourage her to talk.For example,instead of reading out the book to her,ask her what she sees and encourage her to say words or repeat after you.Stuff like that…you can do all through the day.And like Sarad said make her say it out what she wants …it takes patience on the parents’ part too but it helps them.
Try to make a list of words she says (both English & Urdu).I do not remember but there is a certain number of words 2 yo kids should be able to say and a person (other than the parent) should be able to understand.When mine was 2 years old I used to think that she did not say that many words,but once I listed them,she was doing perfectly ok for her age.
At 3 years,75% of their speech should make sense to an outsider person and at 4 years 100% of their speech should be understandable for others.
Each kid is different and things happen at their own pace and time.But if you are overly concerned,no harm in seeing her doctor.
how to encourage toddler to speak?
Do you talk to your child constantly? It helps to talk to them throughout the day and let them know what you are doing. Also, as others have said read to your child. They pick up a lot of words when you read to them. I’ve been reading to my girl since she was 6 months old and she’s already saying 2 to 3 word sentences at 19 months.
And honestly if healthcare is private where you live, you can always just go to a child speech therapist for an assessment. It never hurts to get early intervention and is actually very beneficial for the child.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
My daughter will be turning 3 this month. She does not speak in full sentences. She understands everything. Will repeat after you. Listens and picks up words when people talk. We encourage her a lot. I take her to the library for story time and to interact with other kids. I read to her several times a day. Sing to her. She knows many nursery rhymes, knows her numbers, letters and colors. But she will not speak in full sentences 
We’re seeing a speech therapist in a few days ..
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
mashallah mashallah mashallah my kiddo talks up a storm and she is about the same age. she speaks urdu for the most part and babbles when we speak to her in english (since she doesnt know all the words!). she is usually around adults who speak to her constantly and we always engage her in nursery rhymes (english and urdu) so she sings them around the house as well. we never speak in baby talk to her and mashallah she is quite social as well so i think that helps. keep re-inforcing and talking to him/her and ask questions and point things out. i suggest you also sing and watch nursery rhymes, abcs, 123s, colors, (twinkle twinkle, itsy bitsy spider, naani teri morni, lakdi ki kaati, sesame street, etc etc) with him/her and encourage your child to mimic and sing along at home, in the car, in the bath. take your child to the park, play dates, musjid, etc so he/she can interact with other kids. we also recite surahs and ayatul kursi in the car and at bedtime and mashallah she picks up words here and there and tries to emulate!
My son is 2 and doesn’t talk a whole lot. He just recently started saying small sentences. I always ask his doctor. He said yours is a case of isolation. I live alone for the most part with less social interaction. I read him books, I talk to him, take him to story time etc. Some kids just talk late. Just make sure you take her to peads regularly and mention your concern.
Re: how to encourage toddler to speak?
I think that when you live alone and there is lack of interaction in particular if there are no other kids in the household then a child may be slow to developing his or her communication skills. There is no need to get upset as the child will make good progress when he or she attends playgroups or kindergarten.