Communication Development: By 3 Years

Here is some information about how children's communication skills usually develop by the age of 3. Below are some activity suggestions to encourage communication from 3 years. Use the language that you are most familiar and comfortable with. 

By 3 years, what should my child be able to say and do?

• understand instructions containing 3 key words; for example, "get the spoon and the big cup"
• use a vocabulary of several hundred words, including describing words, such as 'fast' and 'small'
• combine 3 or more words into a sentence; for example, "What's daddy doing?"
• play imaginative games; for example, pretending a block is a phone
• talk about things that are not present 
• take an interest in other children's play and sometimes join in 
• take an interest in playing with words; for example, rhyming words
• be starting to recognise a few letters
• be understood by unfamiliar adults most of the time; for example, the librarian or relatives they don't see often

What are some tips to help my child's communication development at 3 years?

• give your child plenty of time to speak. Focus on what they are saying, not how they are saying it
• have fun reading books – talk about the story and characters and make it exciting. Point to key words in the text as you read
• involve your child with lots of everyday routines – talk about what you're doing and introduce new words; for example, "sweeping" when sweeping the floor
• add extra words to your child's sentences; for example, if he says "my car", you could say "that's right – it's a big car"