Author’s practical guidance
Language is behind, and the screen is on a lot
Source named in the book: AAP guidance on early language and media use
These two things are found together often, and what that means is not settled.
Say this now
“Tell me about that.”
The turn matters more than the words you use.
“Really? And then?”
Keeps them talking without asking a test question.
Do this
- Book the appointment now rather than after a month of changing things at home.
- Write down what they say — a list of actual words and phrases is what gets asked for.
- Ask about hearing as well, because it is the first thing worth ruling out.
- Keep talking through the day.
- Ask for the referral rather than waiting to be offered one, if you are worried.
Avoid this
- Waiting to see whether cutting screens fixes it. That costs months you do not need to spend.
- "He is just a late talker." Often true, and still worth checking.
- Blaming yourself for the screen time. It is not established as the cause and it does not help.
TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR IF
- Under fifty words at two, or no two-word phrases.
- At three, a stranger cannot understand most of it.
- They have lost words or phrases they used to use.
- No response to their name, or to sounds behind them.
- They do not point at things to show you.
Why the book suggests this
These two things are found together often, and what that means is not settled. More screen time goes with slower early language in study after study, and the arrows plausibly run both ways: a child who talks less is also a child who gets handed a screen more.
For your purposes the tangle does not matter. If language is behind, that is worth a conversation on its own terms, whatever else is true in your house. Early help for language is one of the things that works well, and it works better the earlier it starts.
Related prepared situations
What happened next?
From this collection
Same Words: Every Screen
45 prepared situations in this family area.