A Specialist Paediatric Speech-Language Pathologist outlines the early communication and language skills to expect at three years of age.

If language development is progressing well, an explosion of new words will occur from the age of two years. By the age of three a child should have a vocabulary of at least 300 words. Three-year-olds will also be trying to ask questions, repeat lengthy sentences, be frustrated if others are unable to understand them (i.e. they are aware that their verbalisations allow them to communicate with others), be interested in books (which is important for their developing literacy skills), imitating new words, and singing simple songs to music.

Communication and language skills of three year olds include:

Says Three-Four word Sentences SpontaneouslyBeing able to say a short sentence by themselves without copying someone else is an achievement in three year olds. An example may be, "Mummy in big car!". It means that they are gaining an independent understanding of language and its structure and can use it to relay events.

Imitates Five Word Sentences

Copying difficult sentences with or without prompting is an important step in child language development. By the age of three a child should be able to imitate sentences around five words in length, such as, "John wants big red ball."

Has At Least Three Hundred Words in Their VocabularyTeaching new words is vital at this age, as children need to have many new words to use in their increasingly lengthening sentences. Reading books together is an ideal way for increasing vocabularly.

Actively Listens To Stories

By hearing stories, a child is able to improve their attention and comprehension skills. They also tend to have favourite books and television shows.

Looks At Books Independently

Children imitate what they see. If they observe adults enjoying reading, they will attempt to read too.

Recognises and Communicates Needs

Being able to tell someone when they are hungry, tired or need the toilet are important milestones for three year olds.

Chats To Themselves When Playing

Children need to gain confidence with their speaking skills by practicing talking during play with their toys. They may be narrating or providing the voices for characters.

Uses Three PrepositionsPrepositions are position words such as “in”, “under”, “over” and “on”. Children may say phrases such as "Teddy in box" or "Dolly on bed".

Understands Basic VerbsVerbs are action words. Children who are three years old are usually able to say verbs that are commonly used, such as “sleeping”, “walking”, “washing” and "eating".

Can Identify the Longer of Two ObjectsAwareness of concepts such as long and short emerge at this age. For example, if asked to point to the long pencil, they should be able to distinguish it from a shorter pencil.

Can Identify At Least Six Body PartsChildren of the age of three years are usually able to point to a few body parts, such as "head", "eyes", "nose", "mouth", "tummy", "hand", and "foot"

Follows Simple InstructionsThree-year-olds can understand simple requests, such as "Please put this ball in your room"

Asks “What?”, “Where?” and “When?” QuestionsChildren are generally curious and asking questions is an important developmental milestone. Adults are often required to patiently respond to endless questions when children are three years old.

Can Tell Stories and Verbally Recall EventsEver increasing sentence lengths enable children to produce small "stories" and describe activities.

Sings Nursery RhymesChildren enjoy singing. It's an important aspect of language development.

Matches Primary Colours and Can Name One

Children don't have to be able to verbally identify "red", "green", "yellow" and "blue" at the age of three, but being able to find an item that's the same colour as another is an expected milestone. If they can actually label the colour by saying the word, that's a bonus skill.

Can Draw a Circle and Line

Being able to hold a crayon to create vague shapes is a step towards literacy skills when children learn to write letters.

Can Say The Following Sounds: “b”, “p”, “m”, “g”, “k”, “h”, “w”, “d”, “t” “n”These sounds should now be appearing within words that children say.

Can Be Understood By Family and Close FriendsUsually children are best understood by familiar listeners who are used to listening to an individual child.

By the age of three children should be progressing well with their language development in preparation for school. If children appear to be struggling, seek the advice of a speech-language pathologist for tips on three-year-old language development.