Is it normal for my 6-year-old to speak in third-person?

Question

When my 6-year-old son speaks about himself he says his name instead of I or me. Ex: Sage wants more milk please. Can Sage go play outside? She would we just ignore it and let him grow out of it? Is it a stress issue? Any suggestions where to go for answers? I've tried to find info on the internet with no luck. My aunt says it could be from something causing him stress. HELP!!!

Answer 1

It's all a part of a child's imagination.  Quite normal.  He is "telling a story" It's not a "stress" issue, it isn't even an issue.  

Answer 2

By itself it could be nothing, maybe a phase he's going through- with kids it's hard to tell sometimes. However, some children with autism will refer to themselves in the third person. Does he have any other unexplained quirks? If so, that might be something you want to look into. Here's a link to an article that lists some other autism symptoms... http://www.helpguide.org/mental/autism_s... If nothing in that article sounds like your son then I would guess it's probably a phase. If he does have some of the other issues that are listed in the article then I'd make an appointment with his pediatrician and see what he/she thinks. But like the first person said, he could just be copying Elmo! Lol. Best of luck! =]

Answer 3

tell him gently that it is okay to want to speak in third person but that he should learn to get in the habit of saying "i" or "me". Maybe introduce the penny tactic. Put a penny in a jar every time he remembers to say "i" or "me". Then, if he uses the third person you pull one penny out and take it back. Then, when he learns to speak in first person all the time take him to get a savings account and put the money in there and teach him to see how the money grows (very slowly) with interest.

Answer 4

I don't thinks it's because of stress. I would just ask him why he says that, he is just a little boy he'll probably tell you why.  

Answer 5

Elmo talks like that. Is he watching a lot of Sesame Street?

Answer 6

its a phase. or maybe hes been watching sesame street

Answer 7

My 3 and a half year old nephew does the same thing. But I think it is mainly because everyone in my family refers to their self in third person. For exlample my name is Myranda, but he calls me Rana. So when I talk to him I will say "Rana is leaving." I think he just picked it up from us. So now everything he says is "Rhian wants...." Everyone that hears him thinks it is really funny, but hopefully it is a type of stage and he will grow out of it.

Answer 8

my son did it when he started nersery we had 2 stop him when he said hes name ex antony loves you we said no i love you and he would repeat it and soon got the hang of it iam shore this will work for ur son if u give him a lot of time and prase hope this helps hun  

Answer 9

Many parents will talk about themselves in the third person absentmindedly leading the child to understand this as the appropriate way to talk. Chances are you or your husband are doing so with out realizing it leading to your son to imitate you. Honestly, no biggy, just pay closer attention to what you are saying and when you catch your son doing this kindly explain to him that he is to say "I would like an apple" as opposed to "Sage would like an apple".  

Answer 10

(I love his name!!)

No, it's not normal, but a phase. It's a form of regression into being a 'little boy'. Just keep correcting him - repeat what he says the proper way - for example, if he says Sage wants more milk please - you mirror back, So YOU want more milk? If he answers, yes Sage does - then you have to explain why we don't refer to ourselves by our name and why we use I and me.

Answer 11

Have you been modeling that speech, yourself?  "Can you go get that for Mommy?"

No.  Actually, it is not normal for a 6 year old to still be doing that.  Have you been trying to correct it?  I would NOT ignore it, as that should have passed long ago.  And you should pay attention to your aunt, and see if you can observe some reason why he might be feeling stressed.  

It might be stress, and it might be a learning problem, and it might simply be that he has picked it up from you.  I would see if there is some way to have him evaluated.  In Colorado, we have something called "Child Find", which is dedicated to early intervention and remediation of all sorts of learning problems and physical issues.

The Elmo comment is spot-on!  It might not be YOU modeling it, but imitatin Elmo!

Answer 12

My 13 year old cousin does that

My 4 year old sister does too

It's just a habit

Answer 13

Is he in school yet? beacause in kindergarden and 1st grade they learn 3ed person so that may be why hes doing it. Barney,elmo,and the muppets all talk like that. So see what he watchs and see if thats it.

Hope this helped

Peace&&Love&&Jonas

Answer 14

i say its semi-normal for a 6 year old. he still young. what i would do is try to teach him how to talk the way you prefer him to talk or let him cruise for another year or so and see if he grows out of it. he should be able to learn from his classmates and teachers this and i dont think its stress but then again its not impossible