Speech and Language Development

5 – 6 years

Articulation/Speech:

• Consonants mastered: m, n, w, h, ing, y, b, p, t, d, k, g, f, v, l, sh, ch, th, blends

Receptive Language:

• Has a receptive vocabulary of approximately 20,000 words
• Sequences numbers
• Understands ‘left’ and ‘right’
• Understands most concepts of time
• Understands the meaning of most sentences

Expressive Language:

• Defines objects by there uses (“you eat with a fork”)
• Asks ‘how’ questions
• Answers verbally to ‘hi’ and ‘how are you?’
• Uses past tense and future tense appropriately
• Uses conjunctions
• Names opposites
• Sequentially names days of the week
• Counts to 30 by rote
• Counts 10 objects
• Reduces sentence length to 4-6 words
• Exchanges information and asks questions
• Uses sentences with details
• Accurately relays a story
• Sings entire songs and recites nursery rhymes
• Communicates easily with adults and other children
• Uses appropriate grammar in most cases

Basic Motor Milestones:

• Prints a few capital letters
• Builds complex structures with blocks
• Buttons clothes, washes face and puts toys away
• Reaches and grasps in one continuous movement
• Catches a ball with hands
• Makes precise marks with crayon, confining marks to a small area