Trouble with 23mth year old - i think

Question

my son is not speaking fluently as yet. he does say a few words however becomes very frustrated when we don't understand him. i am beginning to worry - we read him 4 books every night, will he talk soon? any suggestions out there.

he also is biting other kids during playtime what can i do?

Answer 1

HI there,

at 23 months children should have a few words in their vocabulary, but every child develops differently. In the few months after their 2nd birthday they will develop at an incredible rate and you may notice that he will increase very quickly. I would suggest possible starting a form of signing with him, it is more benificial to start when they are younger but its never too late, just some basic hand gestures for everyday things that might help him comminucate it to you, i would be happy to reccommend some books and websites for you. Keep reading it really helps and also try reading in the daytime too, books about different things he does in the day, for example playing,eating,clothes so he may be able to show you what he wants by way of pictures in books.

if you are really worried please go and see the peadiatrician.

As for the biting, if its day care he is in, i think you need to chat to the carers about any events that may have recently happened to start this behavior. it may be a form of frustration possibly linked with the comunication.

if its when he is with you out with the other children, can you think of anything that has happened that he might be reacting to?

he needs to know this behaviour is wrong however and it must be addressed now. tell him its wrong and if he continues remove him from the situation.

Never ever bite or hit a child to "teach them right from wrong" it never works and is abuse.

hope this helps, am happy to chat more

cheers

Rai

Answer 2

Don't worry about the talking, he is still young and will most likely be fine! The fact that he does say a few words is a great sign! I think it is 4 words at the end of the 24th month is what is considered "normal" Don't take my word on that though! If you are really worried, take him to the DR and get him checked out.

As for the biting, I'm not sure what to do, sorry :(

Answer 3

Hi There at 23 mths your son won't be speaking fluently yet he will be able to say some words but not all.

As for the bitting, bite him back I believe it is the only way to stop him, my daughter some time ago bite me so I did it back to her (gentle) and she realised that it hurt so she never did it again.

My sister's boy was going around biting people all the time and she didn't want to bite him back until he actually drew blood then she did and he never did it again.

Hope this helped.

Answer 4

It seems like the biting is a behavior that works hand in hand with the fact that he can't really communicate yet. It must be frustrating to him for other people to not understand him, and that may lead him to lash out by losing his temper and biting. My son is almost 23 months old and only says about 10 clear words..everything else is still a babble...but it seems like he ALWAYS has something to say..and sometimes if he senses that we can't understand him, he too gets frustrated. He has started to ask a lot about what things are though....by pointing and saying that?? ..Hopefully he will start repeating the words soon.

Was your son an early walker??

It seems to me that children who have started walking very early on are a little behind on the talking...seems to me that as soon as my son started walking (at 8 months) all he cared about was being on the go and exploring new physical things...he never wanted to sit down and read a book...and when other kids where asking what things were, he was trying to figure out how to climb things...he is now doing what most 18 month olds were doing...(the asking thing.)..

Answer 5

I started to worry about my boy round the same age,  it was like the day he tured to he just started stringing all the words together and making a lot more sense.  I dont think there is anything to worry about sounds pretty normal as the biting does too.  My son just would not stop biting his sister until one day I had enough and bit him back, sounds awful but didnt do it really hard and he never bit again.  

Answer 6

Try not to get discouraged.  My son did not start talking more fluently till he was 3 year old.  Having your child in social settings will definitely help.  The biting may be him testing the boundaries of discipline.  If communication is a real problem, have you taught him any sign language?   (assuming there are no hearing problems)

Just a few thoughts.

Answer 7

23 month olds don't speak fluently. He should be saying a few words but as far as putting them together to make a sentence/statement, not at this age. As far as the biting, a lot of kids go through this stage and he will most likely stop when he gets bit back( that's the only way my daughter stopped)

Answer 8

i dont think you should worry about the talking thing.... you could go to the Dr. and see if somethings wrong with his ears, my cousin had that problem when she was younger. so maybe his next checkup you could ask the docter to see

and for the biting, when i bit my parents hit my mouth, and once i bit my dad so he bit me back lol, my parents say after that i never bit again lol

hope i helped

♥Hayley

Answer 9

i wouldn't worry about the speaking thing;

when my son was 23 months he could just say about 15 words;

now he's 31 months and speaks just like i do;

but if you feel that maybe it's a speech problem or something;

then you should get that checked by your doctor;

as for the biting; my son went through that stage many many times;

as for ppl saying to bite back; i really dont think that works;

i mean " if mommy or daddy bites me; then it's okay for me to bite back; right?" i just think that that would confuse a child!

i say just wait it out; but let him know that it's not acceptable;

when he bites; take away his toy[or whatever he is enjoying at the time] and firmly but calmly tell him "mommy took this toy from you because u bit whoever" & just keep the toy away from him for a few minutes; and everytime he bites continue to do this; thats how my son learned =]

but i hope i helped =]

good luck♥