Typical Ages / Stages of Pragmatic Language Development

The approximate ages that Pragmatic Skills (Social Communication) develop:

0-18 months:

• Will bring objects to adult to show them.

• Will try to gain attention by using sounds, gestures, grabbing them by the hand.

• Will wave to say hello or goodbye or say the word “bye”.

• Will request things using gestures, sounds or words (e.g. reach for the biscuits in the cupboard, etc.).

• Will protest by shaking head, vocalising, pushing an object away.

• Will comment on an object or action by getting the adults attention, pointing, vocalising or saying a word (e.g. pointing to the dog and saying “woof woof” with intention of showing the dog to the adult).

• Will look at the speaker or respond with facial expression, vocalisation or word when someone speaks.

18 months – 2 years:

• Use words or short phrases for various language functions (e.g. greeting:”hello”, “bye bye”, protesting:”no”, “mine”, making a statement “Ball blue”, etc, giving a direction – saying” ball” while pointing for you to get the ball, etc.).

• Uses phrases like “what’s that?” to get attention.

• Will name things in front of other people.

• Engages in verbal turn-taking.

2 to 3.5 years:

• Can take on the role of another person within play.

• Engages in greater number of turns within interactions with others.

• Begins to recognise the needs of other people and will speak differently to a baby than to an adult.

• Acknowledges partner’s messages by saying things like “yeah”, “ok”, “mm”, etc.

• Begins using language for fantasies and make believe.

• Requests permission to do things (“Mummy, can I go outside?”).

• Begins to correct others.

• Is able to engage in simple story telling and is beginning to make guesses at what might happen in a story (inferencing).

4-5 years:

• Can use correctly terms such as ‘this’, ‘that’, ‘here’ and ‘there’.

• Uses language to discuss emotions and feelings more regularly.

• Uses in direct requests (e.g. “I’m hungry” to request food, etc.).

• Ability to tell stories is developing and can describe a sequence of events (e.g. “The man is on the horse and he is going to jump over the fence and then he is going to go home”, etc.).

5-6 years:

• Ability to tell stories develops and now able to tell a story with a central character with a logical sequence of events but still may have difficulties with ending (e.g.” Once upon a time there was a little boy called Joe who has a sister and a brother and likes to go fishing, one day ……. etc., etc.).

• May praise others (“Well done, you did it”).

• Beginning to be able to make promises (e.g. ” I promise I will do it tomorrow”).