Expert: Valerie Herskowitz - 9/15/2010

Question
QUESTION: My grandson will be 3 on January 2, 2011.  His speech is very limited to only a few words.  I have read that when a child reaches age 3 their vocabulary should consist of 600 words.  My grandson says less than 10.  He says phrases like "thank you" and "love you" but not very clearly.  He only started saying those phrases recently.  He can say words when he wants to like "ok" and "yeah".  When I try to count with him he can repeat, one, two, three, etc. but again not very clearly.  He has never said the words "Mama" or "Nana" and he cannot point to body parts when you name them like eyes, nose, ears etc. but then no one has really worked with him extensively in that area.  He does not seem to have any social disorders that I can see, but then again he is an only child and does not attend daycare so he's not around other children much.  When he is around other children he seems to play very well and he does make eye contact and socialize with people.  He does not present any unusual play patterns that I can see, but I'm very concerned about his lack of speech.  He loves to watch movies that are above his age group.  For example his favorite movie now is "The Sandlot" which is a movie about a group of boys around 10 - 11 years old.  He loves Dennis the Menace, etc.  He will act out scenes as he is watching the movie like trying to repeat what they say.  he will say words like "ok" and "yeah" at the same exact time they do and if they run around he will run around.  In your opinion do you think I should be concerned or is it normal for some children not to speak at that age.  I did hear that Albert Einstein did not speak his first word until he was 3.  Thanks for any input you can give.

ANSWER: HI Lisa

At best, your grandson has a speech and language delay or disorder and needs help with that. If left untreated, you may be in for a bigger problem later: behavior issues, reading issues, and speech problems are harder to fix later on. So he does need help in this area for sure.

As far as autism, it's hard to say. I would have to speak with you a little more to determine whether or not his issues are just limited to speech and language or more global. One red flag is the fact he likes to repeat movies.

I wouldn't use Albert Einstein as a role model it was speculated that he had Asperger's Syndrome or was a high functioning person with autism.


There are several ways you can improve your grandson's speech:
1. You can take him to the local public school and enroll him in school and ask them to work with him on his speech and language
2. You can bring him to a private speech therapist in your area
3. You can work with him at home-I teach you how to do this via a phone consultation with you.

Hope this helps and let me know what you would like to do

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for the information. My daughter is going to take him to his Pediatrician to see what he recommends. If we should choose to treat him at home, what is your fee for phone consultations?

Answer
FYI
Let's see what your pediatrician says. However, to be honest, many of them miss the mark. But let's be optimistic and see. A developmental pediatrician would be better.

Anyway, I charge $150 for an hour phone consult. I would give you activities to work on his speech and language