Speech Sounds for Different Ages
As your child develops and says more words, you will likely notice that they do not say all words correctly at first! For children of younger ages, it is common for many sounds in words to sound not quite right. For most children these sounds will naturally correct overtime but for others they will need extra help with developing their ability to correctly produce sounds in words.
The information below outlines the age by which majority of children (approximately 90%) can say each sound correctly. It is important to note that all children develop at different rates. This information should be used as a guide only.
2 years – p
3 years – h, y, w, ng, m, n, f, k, t, b, g, d.
4 years – L, sh, ch, v, j, s, z.
5 years – r, zh
6 years – th.
How much of your child’s speech can be understood
When determining if your child’s speech is developing at the expected rate for their age, we should also consider speech intelligibility, not just their ability to produce certain sounds. Speech intelligibility refers to how much of your child’s speech can be understood by others. For example, if 75% of your child’s speech can be understood by others, their speech intelligibility is 75%. Speech intelligibility will typically gradually increase with age.
This information below outlines speech intelligibility typical for each age:
3 years – 50% – (half understood)
4 years – 75% (three-quarters understood)
5 years – 90% (mostly understood)
What can I do if I think my child’s is having difficulty with their speech?
Reviewing speech norms for different ages should only be one consideration when determining if your child is having difficulty with their speech. We also need to look at if their speech is having a functional impact on their life. For example, does your child’s speech:
- Affect their ability to communicate with peers at preschool/ school, during group activities or with family and friends?
- Make them embarrassed and not want to talk in certain situations?
- Attract negative attention such as teasing?
- Contribute to behavioural difficulties such as your child becoming easily frustrated when they are unable to be understood?
- Sound very different or is much harder to understand in comparison to children of a similar age?
If you answered yes to any of the above questions, it may be worth booking in for your child to see a speech pathologist. A speech pathologist can complete an assessment and provide practical strategies to help you help your child’s speech.
References
- Hustad, K.C., Mahr, T.J., Natzke, P., and Rathouz, P.J. (2021). Speech Development Between 30 and 119 Months in Typical Children I: Intelligibility Growth Curves for Single-Word and Multiword Productions. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 1-13.
- McLeod, S., & Crowe, K. (2018). Children’s consonant acquisition in 27 languages: A cross-linguistic review. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 27, 1546–1571. doi:10.1044/2018_AJSLP-17-0100.
