Sep 21, 2026 · 21 min · 9 segments
“Every child develops at their own pace.” It’s something we hear all the time, and there’s truth in it. But sometimes this message gets used to explain away something that actually deserves a closer…
Today, I want to talk about something that comes up all the time when I'm talking about children's communication development with other parents, which is the difference between an average and a milestone, because those two things are not the same.
And unfortunately, I think this is an area where parents can sometimes be given quite confusing advice.
You might look at a communication milestone and think, okay, this is what the average two-year-old can do.
And then if your child isn't doing that, someone might say, well, there's a really wide range of normal.
Or some children just talk later.
Or don't worry, they're a boy.
They'll just catch up when they're older.
And sometimes that reassurance is completely appropriate.
But sometimes a child isn't actually meeting the milestone.
And that is a really, really important distinction.
So today I'm going to be explaining what I mean by that using the communication milestones published by Speech Pathology Australia as my example.
So just before I get into it, a bit of a disclaimer.
This is general information.
It is not individualized medical or speech pathology advice.
I am not assessing your child through this podcast.
Listening to this episode does not create a client relationship with me.
If you have concerns about your child's communication, please talk to your child's early childhood nurse, their GP, their paediatrician or a speech pathologist.
And if you're not sure whether your concerns warrant an appointment, many speech pathology services have an intake or triage process where you can talk through your concerns and find out what the next step might be.
Today, I want to talk about something that comes up all the time when I'm talking about children's communication development with other parents, which is the difference between an average and a milestone, because those two things are not the same.
And unfortunately, I think this is an area where parents can sometimes be given quite confusing advice.
You might look at a communication milestone and think, okay, this is what the average two-year-old can do.
And then if your child isn't doing that, someone might say, well, there's a really wide range of normal.
Or some children just talk later.
Or don't worry, they're a boy.
They'll just catch up when they're older.
And sometimes that reassurance is completely appropriate.
But sometimes a child isn't actually meeting the milestone.
And that is a really, really important distinction.
So today I'm going to be explaining what I mean by that using the communication milestones published by Speech Pathology Australia as my example.
So just before I get into it, a bit of a disclaimer.
This is general information.
It is not individualized medical or speech pathology advice.
I am not assessing your child through this podcast.
Listening to this episode does not create a client relationship with me.
If you have concerns about your child's communication, please talk to your child's early childhood nurse, their GP, their paediatrician or a speech pathologist.
And if you're not sure whether your concerns warrant an appointment, many speech pathology services have an intake or triage process where you can talk through your concerns and find out what the next step might be.
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