Speech Therapy Checklist (From Robert E Owens Jr 1996 “Language Development – An Introduction”)

AGES 0-3 MONTHS

• Looks intently at a speaker
• Listens to voices
• Establishes eye contact with mother
• Quiets when held and also quiets when hears human voice (1 month)
• Makes going or gutteral sounds (2 months)
• Visually searches for sounds (3 months)
• Smiles spontaneously (1 month)
• Turns when hears human voice (3 months)
• Responds vocally to the speech of others (3 months)
• Makes predominantly vowel sounds (3 months)
• Coos single sound syllables (consonant vowel)
• Vocalises to indicate pleasure and displeasure
• Laughs, gurgles, squeals, cries, screams
• Responds to familiar faces – visually discriminates different people and things and recognises mother (3 months)
• Begins exploratory play- explores own body (3 months)

4 MONTHS

• Reacts to sounds and turns his/her head to locate the sound
• Looks in direction of person leaving the room
• Smiles at notice of another baby
• Anticipates being lifted
• Laughs when played with
• Discriminates different faces – joyful vs. angry
• Babbles strings of consonants
• Varies pitch and imitates tones
• Smiles at person speaking to him/her

5 MONTHS

• Visually follows a vanishing object
• Is capable of a 3 hour visual memory
• Explores objects by mouthing and touching
• Reacts differently to smiling and scolding
• Vocalises to toys
• Discriminates angry and friendly voices
• Responds to name
• Smiles and vocalises to image in mirror
• Imitates some sounds

6 MONTHS

• Vocalises pleasure and displeasure and squeals with excitement
• Varies volume, pitch and rate
• Prefers people games such as “peek-a-boo”
• Explores face of person holding him/her
• Differentiates social responses
• Looks and reaches smoothly and quickly
• Inspects objects and reaches to grab dropped objects

7 MONTHS

• Visually searches briefly for toy that disappears
• Plays vocally
• Imitates a physical act if in repertoire
• Teases (beginning of humour)
• Produces several sounds in one breath and listens to vocalisation of others

8 MONTHS

• Recognises some words
• Repeats emphasised syllable
• Imitates gestures and tonal quality of adult speech; echolalia
• Is clearly attached to mother
• Shouts for attention
• Explores shape, weight, texture, function and properties (e.g. in/out)
• Prefers relatively complex toys

9 MONTHS

• Explores other babies
• “performs” for family and imitates play
• Plays action games
• Uses social gestures
• Imitates coughs, hisses, clicks, raspberries
• Anticipates outcome of events and return of persons
• Uncovers object if observes act of hiding first

10 MONTHS

• Displays moods
• Helps dress and feed self
• Imitates adult speech if sounds in repertoire
• Obeys some commands
• Points to body parts
• Searches for a hidden object but usually in a familiar place

11 MONTHS

• Seeks approval
• Anticipates mother’s goal and tries to change it by protest or “persuasion”
• Associates properties with objects
• Imitates inflections, rhythms, facial expressions

12 MONTHS

• Expresses people’s preferences
• Expresses many different emotions
• Searches in a location where an object was last seen
• Uses common objects appropriately
• Can reach while looking away
• Recognises own name
• Speaks one or more words
• Follows simple motor instructions especially if accompanied by a visual cue (bye bye)
• Reacts to “no” intonation
• Practices words he/she knows

15 MONTHS

• points to clothes, persons, toys and animals named
• uses jargon and words in conversation
• has 4 to 6 word vocabulary
• plays in solitary manner
• pushes toys
• likes music and dancing
• looks for adults when left alone
• imitates housework
• plays make believe

18 MONTHS

• begins to use two word utterances
• has approximately 20 word vocabulary
• identifies some body parts
• refers to self by name
• “sings” and hums spontaneously
• Plays question-answer with adults
• Explores reactions of others; tests others
• Enjoys solitary play engages in increased cooperative play from her on
• Pretends to feed doll
• Uses a stick as a toy
• Imitates adult object use
• Remembers places where objects are usually located
• Recognises self in mirror and recognises picture

21 MONTHS

• hugs spontaneously
• plays near but not with other children
• likes toy telephone, doll and truck for play
• likes rhyming games
• pulls person to show something
• tries to “tell” experiences
• uses “I” and “mine”
• knows shapes
• sits alone for short periods with book
• notices little objects and small sounds

24 MONTHS

• has 200-300 word vocabulary
• names most common everyday objects
• uses short, incomplete sentences
• uses some prepositions (in, on) and pronouns (I, me, you) but not always correctly
• Uses some regular verb endings (-s, -ed, -ing) and plural ‘s’
• Enjoys parallel play predominantly
• Cooperates with adults in small household tasks
• Communicates feelings, desires and interests
• Imagines toys have life qualities
• Prefers action toys
• Orders others around
• Can role play in a limited manner
• Matches familiar objects
• Comprehends “one” and “many”