Preschooler Developmental Milestones: Language Learning (4 to 6 Years)

As your child enters the preschool years, she is able to speak clearly and fluently in an “easy-to-listen-to voice.” Though most sounds are pronounced correctly, there are still some instances when the child lisps as 4- to 5-year-olds still have difficulty pronouncing the letters “s” and “r.”
Caroline Bowen, Ph.D., co-founder of an independent Speech Pathology Group Practice in Australia, gives a rough rule of thumb for the intelligibility of a child’s speech. By 18 months, a child’s speech is normally 25% intelligible, around 50 to 75% clear by age 2, and roughly 75 to 100% intelligible by her third birthday.

 
SOURCES

Rose Aligada, Ph.D. child development specialist and director, Learning Inn, Inc.An Abregana, speech and language pathologist, The Medical CityAges And Stages: Development Milestones For Receptive And Expressive Language Development: Speech And Language Development In Infants And Young Children Typical Speech Development by Caroline Bowen, Ph.D.Websites: intelihealth.com ; med.ucmich.edu ; urmc.rochester.edu 
Photography by Jun Pinzon