Preschoolers are starting to use language to learn more about the world. By the time they are 3 years old, your preschooler will likely be asking non-stop questions.
To keep the conversation going, it's better to use comments instead of questions. Comments put less pressure on your child to come up with an answer and give more information than questions. For example: say "I hear a fire truck!" instead of "What is that sound?"
Talk about what your child is doing; talk about things as they are happening.
Add new ideas and words to what your child has said.
Turn questions into comments. For example: say "I wonder what your doll is doing," instead of "what is your doll doing?"
When asking questions, give possible answers. For example: "What shall we play with – the doll or the train?"
It's good for children to grow up learning more than one language, so if you speak another language, share it with your baby. Read more about learning more than one language:
In order to see where your child's language development is in relation to his or her peers, you can use this
checklist for speech and hearing. If you find that your child is behind, don't panic. It might be normal for them to develop more slowly. However, you should contact a speech-language pathologist at VCH or your health care provider if your 3-year-old isn't able to do the following:
Use 3 or more words together in a sentence. For example: "Kitty drinks milk"
Respond to you if you call them from another room.
Understand most of what you say to them.
Ask questions using "what" and "where".
Have questions about your child's speech or language? If you have concerns, talk to your health care provider or contact a speech-language pathologist at VCH. If services are needed, it's important to start them as early as possible.