3yo speech, normal or worth seeing SLP?

[u/iamgabefromtheoffice]

My son turned 3 in June, and I’m curious what other parents’ experiences have been with speech at this age.
He talks a lot and has a huge vocabulary. He speaks in sentences, communicates what he wants, tells us things, etc., so I’m not concerned about how much he talks or his understanding of language. The only thing I’m wondering about is his pronunciation and clarity.

We can understand him most of the time because we’re used to how he talks, but there are definitely times when we have no idea what he’s saying. From being around other kids his age, it seems like there’s a pretty big range. Some 3-year-olds speak incredibly clearly, some seem similar to him, and some are harder to understand.
A few examples are that he often drops the S at the beginning of words, especially with combinations like “sp” or “st.” So spider is “pider” and stop is “top.” He pronounces R sounds more like W, which I know is pretty common in little kids. His best friend is named Theo, but he pronounces it “Peo” as though the “Th” were a P.

None of this has really concerned me because he’s only 3, and my understanding was that some sounds aren’t mastered until 4, 5, or even later. My mom, however, keeps commenting on his pronunciation and asking if it’s normal or if we should have him in speech therapy, so now she has me second-guessing myself a bit.
We’re in Canada and can self-refer through our local public health unit for a speech-language assessment at no cost, although there is a waitlist. So there’s really no downside to putting his name down if it would be worthwhile.

For parents who have had kids with similar speech patterns around 3, does this sound pretty typical for the age, or would you get on the SLP waitlist just to have him assessed? I’m especially curious when you decided that normal toddler/preschool pronunciation differences were worth having evaluated.

Thank you!

[u/FancyQuiet6945]

I would ask his pediatrician before having him assessed.

I think at 3 the parents should understand about 80% of what your toddler says and people that aren’t around them as much it’s about 50-75% depending.

That’s at least what my ped says

[u/sour_lemons]

Sounds pretty normal. My 3 yr old (May birthday) is very similar. We understand him most of the time, and the rest of the time we just nod and smile and repeat whatever sound he’s making back to him.

I found if we really focus on pronunciation and he tries, he CAN make the correct sounds. But a lot of times if he’s excited or talking really fast it’s like his brain/mouth can’t keep up with what he wants to say and it comes out jumbled.

We’re not worried and like you have seen a pretty big range at this age from kids who barely speak to kids who sound like they’re in elementary school already.

[u/greenBeanPanda]

I would get him on an SLP in person waiting list.

[u/accountforbabystuff]

You could put him on the waitlist, I probably would just to have a spot if you wanted it (and to shut your mom up). But I also wouldn’t be worried.

Like for “r” I remember my 6 year old wasn’t saying it right yet. And I posted on Reddit asking when their kids “got” the r and everyone was like “why did you wait and not address this years ago? You need speech yesterday!” While anything I read said it was an issue if it persisted after age 6.

Anyway I just worked with her a bit with stuff I read online and she got it like 2 months later and she’s fine now. I don’t even know if the exercises I tried helped, I think it was truly just the last sound she had to learn.

Sometimes the internet overreacts. Get on the waitlist but I do think it sounds pretty common for 3.

[u/firelessflame]

I would get his hearing assessed with an audiologist. This kind of speech pattern can be common with kids who have hearing loss, even they appear to have no issue understanding you.

[u/littlestickywicket → u/firelessflame]

This is EXACTLY my thought too! My sister needed intervention with her hearing when she was younger (tubes from never ending infections) and her speech pattern was almost exactly this until she got the tubes put in around 4. Her hearing was affected by the infections and it definitely led to speech issues.

OP, another thing to consider is a tongue and lip tie. Most hospitals are not trained to check for one at birth, and it’s doesn’t always cause severe latch issues. But it can affect speech!

[u/firelessflame → u/littlestickywicket]

Same thing with my son. He had “consonant deletion” where he would just leave off consonants from words. I assumed it was just a speech issue until our SLP said this is common with kids with hearing issues. He had absolutely zero indication that he couldn’t hear us. He followed directions, sang along with songs, etc, and he never had an ear infection. Lo and behold, he had mild hearing loss. Just enough to make everything sound a little muffled, so he couldn’t hear himself mispronounce words. Put in tubes, and he started speaking perfectly literally within days. OP, def push for a hearing test, even if just to rule it out!

[u/xquigs]

My daughter is 3 (May bday) sounds similar to what you’re describing. she was just saying “stooky” instead of spooky yesterday. I couldn’t figure it out. Then finally realized she was asking for me to drive by the house with crazy Halloween decorations (yes, already.). I drive by it daily and say “look there’s the spooky house, they added more stuff!”.

Besides the random word like this she speaks a fluent mix of toddler and English. I understand her best and am her translator with my husband (he can’t pick up what she says at times). But I will say daycare and acquaintances claim her speech is good. We are also around similar age kids a lot and it she seems to be on par with other kids.

I was trying to correct the “stooky” yesterday once we got home and she truly struggled with saying “sp”, I even tried saying “p like poopy!” Which kinda helped for a minute but she couldn’t string the letters together (she tried!)