3 years

By the age of 3 years, your child should be able to:

UNDERSTANDING

• Follow two step related commands (get your socks and put your shoes on)

• Understand prepositions (top/bottom, under/over)

• Understand quantity concepts (empty/full)

• Understand basic concepts (hard/soft, big/little, same/different)

• Point to body parts (simple- eyes, complex- eyebrows)

• Knows function of body parts and objects

• Understands ‘who’, ‘where’ and ‘what’ questions (what’s the dog doing?)

• Understands negatives (no shoes, not running)

• Recognises simple colours (red, blue, green)

• Name actions from pictures (running, jumping)

• Understand gender (boy/girl)

TALKING

• Uses approximately 500 words

• Uses 3-4 sentences

• Begins to use simple grammar (kicked, socks)

• Begins to ask yes/no questions

• Asks questions ‘what’, ‘where’ and ‘who’ questions

• Starts to tell stories

• Identify gender (boy/girl)

• Use basic verbs (play, do a wee)

SPEECH SOUNDS

Children can be understood 60% of the time. Sounds that are produced correctly:

• p

• b

• m

• w

• h

• t

• d

• n

• k

• g

• y

WARNING SIGNS

• Using short sentences (2 words)

• Doesn’t respond to questions or repeating back your questions, rather then answering

• Doesn’t ask questions

• Doesn’t follow two step instructions

• Doesn’t play/ not interested in playing with other children

• Doesn’t produce sounds at the beginning, middle or ends of words

• Less familiar people find it hard to understand your child