Milestones are a crucial thing to monitor when you’re bringing up a baby or young child. Speech is an important one and it’s one that parents would be wise to take stock of at regular times in their child’s early years. Today we look at this milestone at around the age of 30 months. So, what should you expect your 30-month-old to be able to say at this age and, if appropriate, how can you encourage them to speak more? Let’s explore speech milestones at 30 months…
So, What is the Average 30-Month-Old Saying?
It’s important to appreciate that children develop skills, including speech, at different rates and times. However, that said, by the age 30 months (2½ years of age), many toddlers can say about 200 or more words. They can also start to put 2- or 3-word sentences together. Conversations between you and your toddler are starting to take shape, with exchanges back and forth. Parents, or anyone looking after your toddler on a regular basis, should understand about 50% of a child’s speech at 2 years of age, increasing to about 75% at 3 years.
30 Month Speech Milestones
By the age of 30 months:
- Toddlers are starting to successfully use verbs as part of their language, for example, drinking, dressing, and playing.
- They are starting to use two or even three syllable words, like carrot and banana.
- They are starting to use three to four words into short sentences, for example, “We go to swings.”
- They understand that adding an ‘s’ to nouns makes them plural, for example toys.
- They can say their own name.
- They are differentiating between big and small.
- Having learnt to take turns and share with other children, they may use words like “share.”
- The can understand a question like, “Where is the ball?”
- They may still be practising putting the correct sound at the beginning of each word.
- They may have accomplished the general sound but may still be trying to properly finish words.
Encouraging your Toddler to Talk More
The more ‘chatty’ time you have with your toddler, the more they will naturally get involved — and learn from you. Talking to your toddler facilitates good listening skills and helps them to build up their own vocabulary, particularly when you make physical reference to the things you are talking about. In this way they can associate a word with its physical equivalent (e.g. holding up or pointing to an object that you’re talking about).
Helping them build vocabulary can be as simple as talking to them about what they are having for lunch, or about activities they are taking part in. Maybe talk about friends and family, daily activities such as dressing, meal times and suchlike. Use words that they will relate to and therefore eventually understand. For example, “What jumper would you like to wear today? Would you like to wear the purple one?” or, “It’s cold outside today; shall we put our coats on?”
When talking about objects, try expanding the conversation. For example, say, “The car is going fast,” or, “The big blue ball.” Try and describe things as you speak to your child as it will add to their vocabulary and comprehension.
Use repetition. This helps your toddler through hearing the same words over and over again. They will copy and get used to which words go with which scenario in this way. You can take this a step further too…
There are many songs and nursery rhymes that toddlers can join in with. Sing along to them, do the actions to the songs and encourage your child to join in. Then, they’ll learn words and sentences through both repetition and song — and it’s all achieved in a fun way!
Talk about feeling words. For example, “The boy is happy, the girl is sad”. You can use the appropriate face to back up the words.
Puzzles and books are a great way to lean new words. Basic puzzles, often of farm animals or vehicles, or incorporating colours, are a great opportunity for your toddler to repeat the words relating to the puzzle pieces as you point them out.
The same applies to books. Get your toddler to point out details in pictures sand repeat the words after you. You can also ask your toddler questions about the book and get a conversation going, for example, whether they know a particular character, a particular object or a colour. Point to details and see if they know the word, or say the word out loud and let them repeat it.
Making up games can encourage your toddler to get involved verbally. Pretending to be animals, spacemen or any character at all can promote their speech, even if it’s copying from a character they have seen on screen time.
Remove distractions like TV and music when speaking with your child. It will help them concentrate more on listening to and speaking with you.
Help them with their sentences. For example, if they say, “This ball”, you could clarify it and say, “Yes, this is a ball.”
What if You’re Concerned About Your Toddler’s Speech?
As we said near the start, it’s important to remember that all toddlers are different and you cannot compare them to their friends or family and expect them to all learn and develop at exactly the same rate. That being said, perhaps ask yourself:
- Can my toddler say at least 50 up to potentially 200 words (and actually understand up to 500)?
- Can they say their name?
- Can they respond well to instructions?
- Do they respond to questions involving “who” or “what”?
- Can they say what is going on in a particular scenario? For example, if you asked, “What is the boy playing with?” can they recognise and say the answer, e.g. “A ball”?
- Can they point and say what pictures are in a book or puzzle?
If you have any concerns, it is worth mentioning it to a health professional just in case, for example your GP or health visitor. In some rare cases, this may identify speech or even hearing issues. In such cases, a child can be referred to an appropriate professional, for example a speech and language therapist (‘SLT’) although parents in the UK are also able to make a referral themselves (more information is available here). If there’s no problem, though, advice from a professional may simply put your mind at ease. At the very least, a closer understanding of your toddler’s progress will be beneficial to all parties, including the child.
More information about helping your little one to learn to speak is available on the NHS website.
Childcare Places at our Wonderful Nursery & Pre-School in Streatham
Babies & Under-Fives Get the Best Start in Life at Little Cedars Nursery, Streatham
This article was brought to you by the team at Little Cedars Nursery in Streatham. Here, babies and children under five are lovingly looked after, given the best early years education and nurtured for success in a fun, homely environment. The nursery and pre-school has a good Ofsted rating.
Why not come for a visit, so that you can see the nursery and pre-school in action? Bring your little one and see how well they will fit in. Or, if you’ve already decided you’d like to register for a place for a child — or ask any questions — please get in touch using an appropriate button below:
Little Cedars Nursery is based in Streatham, close to Tooting Common and the A214. It is also convenient for families near Streatham Hill, Streatham Park, Streatham Common and Furzedown as well as Tooting, Tooting Bec, Tooting Broadway, Tooting Common, Balham, Norbury and Colliers Wood.
Improving Education for Disadvantaged 3- & 4-Year-Olds
To be eligible for the EYPP funding, a child must meet certain criteria:
After checking eligibility, interested families or guardians can either 
In today’s post, we look at the importance and benefits of periods of ‘quiet time’ for toddlers and children under five. Toddlers are busy little people, often rushing around, going from one toy or activity to the next. They’re at a stage where they realise the world is an exciting place and often want to experience it all at once. However, when they are so ‘on-the-go’, playing and learning from everything and everyone around them, their brains and body have a lot to take in and process. It can be extremely tiring! So, this is where some much-needed quiet time often comes in, bringing with it a whole range of benefits. Studies also back this up.
With so much going on around them, children’s young senses of sight, hearing, touch and smell are experiencing a full-on assault. Their minds are also being challenged with learning new skills. This can all be very tiring for our youngsters, so a period of quiet time will give them a break, to allow them to breathe and unwind.
After prolonged activity or concentration on the part of the child, a well-earned nap may well be on the agenda. As well as giving the toddler a chance to re-charge their batteries, 
Quiet time provides an opportunity for children to develop their own, natural creativity. During quiet time, they have the opportunity to make up a game or activity, without intervention from others. This time is totally unstructured too, so children can be as free as they like to explore and adapt the game or activity. They can create their own little environment and immerse themselves in their own new world. Their imaginations are set free and opportunities to be creative will come naturally.
As we can see above, during quiet time, children can engage in activities that they have chosen for themselves. This can greatly help them to become more independent and self-reliant. That’s a great skill for them to develop as they approach the time to transition to school. There, they will need to rely much more on such skills.
When you first introduce quiet time to your child, start slowly and begin with short periods each day. This can be increased as your little one gets used to it.
It’s easier and often quicker for adults to take the lead in getting toddlers and under-five children dressed, fed, washed and suchlike. However, at some point, our little ones have to become confident and self-sufficient at doing these – and many other things – themselves. After all, they won’t have Mum or Dad around when they’re starting at school. So, today, we look at the ways we can help children under five help themselves and become more independent, including in their learning. First, though, let’s look at the many benefits of encouraging their independence.
Increased self-esteem: Children feel a sense of accomplishment when they are able to do things on their own. This can give a healthy boost to their self-esteem.
Better self-management skills: Children who are used to taking care of themselves and making their own decisions are better able to manage their own learning and behaviour. This is important, particularly once they move on to a school setting. Studies published in the Journal of Educational Psychology have highlighted better grades and higher levels of achievement in this regard.
A greater sense of responsibility: Children who are able to do things independently may more easily learn to take responsibility for their own actions and decisions. Learning from one’s own mistakes is also one of life’s most important lessons.
Encourage self-care skills: Help children learn how to dress themselves, 
Provide opportunities for children to make their own decisions: Give children small choices and let them choose what they want to do. This helps them feel a sense of control, encourages independence and builds confidence. A good example is allowing them to choose what they want to wear.
Set realistic expectations: Children are still developing their skills and abilities, so be realistic about what they can do independently.
In today’s post, we explore the benefits of using positive language around under-fives. All too often, it’s tempting to say ‘No!’, ‘Stop that!’ or even ‘Don’t Eat That!’ and similar around little ones. This is particularly true when you want them to cease the offending activity urgently or are simply exhausted if it’s been a challenging day. There are good reasons for such negative commands, of course, not least that of their safety in many cases. However, such commands can sound stern and cause stress for the little ones. What’s more, if a child hears too much negative language and cannot understand why they’re not allowed to do a particular thing, problems can begin to arise and, indeed, the issue can become insidious. It may even result in worsening behaviour. Let’s explore, therefore, the issues around negative language and the simple solution that’s available in the form of positive language.
Sometimes, though, constantly hearing ‘no’ can spark tantrums, particularly if a child doesn’t understand the reason they are not allowed to do something. They can feel particularly frustrated when they receive a succession of negative commands and, in the end, may feel they simply can’t do anything right. This can lead not only to stress for them, but also to possible low self-esteem. Furthermore, if they hear ‘no’ and other negative language too often, they can begin to ‘tune out’ to it. They could then go on to develop challenging behaviour due to this, their confusion and frustration. Stress levels can then rise for the parent too, the infant can pick up on this and it can become a real vicious circle. It doesn’t have to be that way, though …
Stop shouting!
Please use a much softer voice.
Today’s post will appeal to families who are finding the current financial climate particularly challenging. With energy costs and inflation so high, the following may represent a welcome piece of good news. Today we highlight the many Baby Banks that are popping up all around the UK and explain how they can help struggling families, all for free.
A Baby bank is a similar concept to a food bank. However, instead of food and drink, it provides second-hand clothing, toys and equipment for babies, under-fives and often even for children up to the age of 16 in some cases. Baby Banks can also be compared to a charity shop, however, with baby banks, everything is free.
Baby Banks are run by all sorts of different people and organisations and therefore the rules around actually getting ones hands on the free items vary from Baby Bank to Baby Bank. Some accept requests for items directly from families themselves. Others only deal via a referral from some kind of professional. Examples include social workers, family support agencies, teachers, family centres, health visitors, medical professionals, food banks and women’s refuges. So, once you have located your nearest Baby Bank, you will need to check whether they will deal with you directly or only through such a referral. Either way, you will usually need to agree a time and date for collection of your item with the Baby Bank (you can’t usually just turn up, although there are exceptions). Not all Baby Banks are open all week and that’s another reason to check with Baby Banks or their websites first.
Absolutely! Baby Banks rely on the generous donations from families that no long require their baby clothes or equipment. Perhaps the child has grown out of them and the items are still in good condition, or perhaps they were an unwanted gift. Donating items is also a great way to declutter and to make space in the home, as well as helping others. However, before donating to a Baby Bank, always check with them to see if all your proposed items are required and, as before, ensure you know whether an appointment is needed or whether you can just turn up with your items. Certain rules may also apply around the condition and type of items (this varies depending upon which Baby Bank you are dealing with). Baby car seats and electronic items may also have special rules due to the extra safety considerations.
A nature-based, food-related activity that young children can enjoy indoors at any time of the year is cress growing. Today we outline how it can be made even more fun and creative for kids by growing the cress as little ‘egg heads’. These come complete with comical faces and amusing hairstyles made of green cress shoots! Children will absolutely love it when they end up with little egg faces with spouting hairstyles that each have real character. And, they’ll even be able to eat the results!
Cress is Easy to Grow, & Tasty!
Growing Cress for Small Kids and Big Kids
Next, find a vessel to prop the egg shells up in. This could simply be an egg cup or even an egg carton, like that shown in the photo. Then, decide what to fill the empty egg shells with. Children can choose either damp kitchen roll or damp compost/soil to grow the cress seeds on. Carefully fill the empty egg shells almost to the top with the chosen filler. (We tried both and each grew well. Interestingly, the cress seeds grown on kitchen roll tissue paper grew a little faster and therefore taller than those grown on compost. They therefore looked a bit more ‘wild’ — it was quite a surprise and had an amusing impact on the egg-people’s hairstyles).
Make sure you or your child add some funny faces on the shells — maybe even give them names. The faces can be drawn simply using a marker pen (Sharpies are ideal) or you can get even more creative using coloured paints. Children may find drawing the faces easier if they are shown some visual reference and perhaps they can practise first on paper. If too young to draw suitable faces, a parent or creative older sibling may be able to help.
Within a week or so, the little egg heads should begin to sprout green ‘hair’ shoots!
Are you a student as well as a parent? If so, there are several Government schemes that offer help with childcare costs, some of which will save student parents substantial amounts of money. By doing so, they also make the prospect of juggling parenthood with being a student much more manageable. Today we examine the key childcare funding options, including how the type of course and the age of the parent affect eligibility.
The very generous Student Childcare Grant is available for eligible students who who are studying full-time on a higher education course and have dependent children aged 14 or under (16 or under if they have special needs).
If you are aged 20 or over, are a parent studying in further education for a qualification on a Level 3 course or below and are facing financial hardship, you may be eligible for childcare funding under the Learner Support scheme. This funding could help you with childcare and other study-related costs if you fit the right eligibility criteria.
If you are a parent as well as a student aged under 20 when you begin one of a range of publicly-funded courses in England, you may be eligible for childcare funding through the Care to Learn bursary scheme. If eligible, you could claim as much as £175 in childcare per week, per child if you live in London, reducing to £160 per week, per child, outside London.
Both children and adults have a natural affinity with music. It’s one of life’s simple pleasures that just about everyone seems to enjoy in one way or another. Children will naturally start to move, dance, join in or even learn songs that they hear — such reactions seem instinctive to them. Learning to play a musical instrument is therefore a natural next step for them. Indeed, it’s one that parents, guardians and carers should consider encouraging, particularly given how beneficial such an endeavour will be to their child. Learning to play a musical instrument is not simply fun; it profoundly benefits children’s learning and development. With that in mind, we take a look today at the incredible array of benefits that learning a musical instrument poses for children, including under-fives.
Studies have also shown that learning an instrument or learning how to read music develops the left side of the brain. This area is responsible for processing language and reasoning. Hand-eye coordination skills are also aided when learning to play a musical instrument and reading music. As children’s playing and reading become more advanced, it requires the brain to work at a range of speeds, which is also great exercise for the brain.
Music gives children a really flexible way of expressing themselves. For instance, the way they choose to bang on a drum, shake a tambourine or strum a guitar can allow them to show happiness, anger, frustration, calmness and many other emotions. Playing a musical instrument gives them a real freedom of expression, even at a very young age. Then, if they reach a point where they are able to make up their own melodies and arrangements, music can become an almost immeasurably powerful tool for self-expression and communication.
Although playing an instrument is creative, music and maths are very much intertwined. Beats, rhythms and scales are all based on maths and children naturally need to work out some maths in order to understand the song and any sheet music. This will naturally help them to better grasp mathematics and illustrate a real-world example of how it underlies many things.
Whether your child is listening to a tutor, teacher, friend or relative, listening skills are very important. Music is a natural way to encourage listening and that’s even more true when children learn to play music themselves. Doing so in their early years will help them to follow instructions, listen out for smaller details as well as the bigger picture. Working together on a piece of music is also a fantastic way to hone group listening skills and teamwork and to encourage collaboration.
Indeed, music helps to support all 7 focus areas of 
When children master a song, no matter how basic, they get an enormous sense of achievement and even more so if they are praised by adults and peers. Such praise also encourages the child to progress further, of course. Boosting self-esteem and self-confidence in their early years is important for their future wellbeing too. Achieving something through learning, patience and practising regularly also teaches them that persistence and effort will help them overcome challenges. That’s a very important lesson in life.
Little ones can first practise keeping in time to music or a beat that an adult is demonstrating, perhaps. Maracas are also good starter instruments although, again, anything that makes a shaking sound can be made at home at zero cost. For instance using an empty carton or plastic container securely sealed with dried rice, pasta or lentils inside. Once they get the hang of such percussive or shaker-style instruments, you can consider transitioning them to more advanced instruments like recorders, ocarinas, keyboards, stringed instruments and so on. Often, children will be more than willing to give such instruments a try and some encouragement and guidance from knowledgeable adults or older children will always be helpful. And, who knows, they could end up being maestros and even stars in the making!
A childcare nursery should not be thought of only as a crèche, playgroup, or simply somewhere that looks after babies and children while parents go to work. Good nurseries and pre-schools like Little Cedars are so much more than that. It’s incredible just how much they benefit under-fives, families and society as a whole once you take a closer look at everything they do — and that’s exactly what we’re doing today…
What’s more, staff at childcare settings like Little Cedars will form close bonds with little ones. Studies show that 
Good Ofsted-registered nurseries/pre-schools like Little Cedars also give under-fives a full early years education. That’s important to know. Through a learning and development programme that’s customised to each individual child, we ensure they achieve their own personal bests in all areas of the statutory 
Part of children’s personal, social and emotional development comes through active play with other children that they meet and get to know at the nursery. This is firstly great fun, of course, and that’s a hugely important part of any happy childhood. However, they’ll also learn many things through play. Without socialising with others, it would be more difficult to improve social skills, for example. Only by being around other children will they learn to account for the feelings of others, learn to respect one another and ultimately form close bonds, trust and friendships. Many such friendships will indeed continue long afterwards, as children move to schools at the age of five.
Another key aim of good early years childcare provision is to prepare children thoroughly for school. Why? Because 
It’s almost as if children are super-charged for success — the benefits of a good early years education are surprisingly long lasting. Some studies even show that the benefits last into people’s working lives, improving salaries (
Working so closely with babies, toddlers and preschoolers allows us to continually monitor their individual progress. In so doing, we are in a prime position to spot any issues early and to make appropriate arrangements to mitigate them if needed. For example, we may spot that a child is finding reading challenging. If so, we can put extra effort and time into improving the situation for the child. On occasion, that may even include talking to parents about the possible intervention of a specialist of some kind, or it could simply be that they need to practise specific activities to overcome the issue. The earlier challenges or any special educational or developmental needs are spotted, the sooner the child in question can be helped.