This is a continuation of the speech and language developmental milestones resource from 60 to 72 months (5 to 6 years). To try and make this information easier to read we have created a made-up child called Bill. Bill was lucky, he had a childhood free of any illness or accidents and he had pro-active parents who played with him and gave him lots of quality 1:1 attention. The rate at which children reach their speech and language developmental milestones can vary, depending on the child. Some children will develop certain speech and language skills quicker than others, and some children will be slow to develop certain skills and reach certain developmental stages compared to their peers, even if there are no related problems. This information sheet is just a general guideline, and many experts vary considerably on what they believe to be the normal stages of development.

Speech and Auditory Awareness

60 – 72 months

Bill now has no difficulties producing any sounds - m n p b t d w ng k g h f s y l r v z sh ch th sp st sk sl sm sn sw tr gr br pr cr fl bl pl gl spr str scr spl . He is using around 2000 words and his auditory memory allows him to store and repeat back 4 -5 digits.

Expressive Language and semantics (content)

60 – 72 months

Bill is using 2000 words with an average sentence length of 6 - 8 words. His grammar is now complex and he speaks fluently. His vocabulary will also continue to grow at a fast rate as he is now attending school. Bill will continue to learn new words (especially in the next few years of his life) and the complexity and content of his sentences will continue to increase through to adulthood.

Social use of Language (use and pragmatics)

60 – 72 months

Bill is quite capable of expressing his feelings verbally and he is also showing more of an interest in things being funny. As Bill reaches the age of 6, he may start to get more interested in games with rules such as sports. These are not made up games that are created spontaneously and Bill will begin to learn to negotiate the rules of the game.

Receptive language (comprehension, perceiving and understanding) and cognition

60 – 72 months

Bill can state his birthday, full name and address. He stays with one activity for 20 minutes and uses problem solving and complicated reasoning to solve a task. Bill can make logical relationships and solves problems verbally. He also demands increasingly detailed explanations of things, sometimes to the point the adult is unable to answer. His classification of objects has also increased in complexity and he classifies by form, colour, use, or composition, e.g., "You eat with a fork", "A fork is made of metal." He continues to learn and understand new concepts such as "more" and "less." He describes people, places or things using attributes. He names a time of day associated with an activity and recites days of the week and uses simple money concepts. Bill is using 2000 words, but understands 6000, and continues to ask the meaning of new words. He can listen and attend for longer periods of time which is a skill he requires as he is now attending school. Bill has a good grasp on reality and understands the difference between reality versus fantasy.

Morphology and syntax (structure)

60 – 72 months

Bill is now well versed to be able to answer questions about a story and its plot. He can comprehend all question types including "how many", and can comprehend complex questions related to remote events. He is using sentences that average 6 to 8 words and they are grammatically correct. He is also starting to use complex verbs such as "could have been," "will be going," etc

Gross and fine motor skills

60 – 72 months

Bill’s gross and fine motor skills are well developed now, but as he is getting older Bill is starting to find that he is quite good at some things such as drawing and playing football. If he practices and continues with these pursuits he will find that his skills continue to develop right into adulthood.