“Tootie” or “Cookie”? When Speech Mistakes Are (and Aren’t) Normal
Parents eagerly await hearing their child say their first sounds and words. This anticipation can gradually turn into concern when you realize you can’t quite understand what your child is saying or they are using only a few words.
Although it’s normal for children to mispronounce words, like saying “tootie” for “cookie” or “wed” for “red”, these sound errors should decrease as they get older. When they don’t, it may be time to take a closer look.
The SLP’s Role
Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs) are trained to understand which sounds children should be able to produce at different ages. SLP’s use speech sound developmental norms to determine whether a child’s speech is developing as expected.
For example, consider these two sound errors in a 3-year-old:
“tootie” for “cookie” (/t/ substituted for /k/)
“wed” for “red” (/w/ substituted for /r/)
While sound development varies from child to child, most 3-year-olds can typically produce early-developing sounds such as: m, n, h, w, p, b, t, d, k, g, and f.
Because of this, difficulty producing the /k/ sound would be more concerning than difficulty with /r/. The /r/ sound develops later, so errors with it are still age-appropriate at this stage.
SLPs are experts in how sounds are formed and can help children learn how to correctly produce sounds and hear the difference between correct and incorrect speech.
What Can Parents Do?
Read with intention: Read to your child often and emphasize the target sound(s) while reading together.
Model correct speech: For example, “Do you want a cookie?”
Play with purpose: Engage in activities that naturally include the target sound, like playing with cars or baking cookies.
When should I be concerned?
If you observe the following, it may be time to seek an evaluation from an SLP:
Your child is hard to understand compared to other children their age
They become frustrated when trying to communicate
They are not using many words or combining words by age 2–3
Sound errors are not improving over time
You notice regression (losing sounds or words they previously used)