Should a 3 yr old be able to answer questions?

Question

My son was 3 in feb and he still is not answering questions even simple ones like how old are u? And what's ur name? His speech has been slow but counts and knows letters and recognises words and have been told he is advanced in that, just wondered if he should be answering questions by now?

Answer 1

He should be able to answer simple questions like that by now, especially if you've tried teaching him. Does he respond non-verbally to questions (e.g. "where is your nose?"). Does he respond to his name and make good eye contact? Does he play with other children, or does he play beside them (or not even tolerate them). Does he parrot things you say or other things he hears like things on the TV or echo back the question when asked instead of answering?



The reason I ask these questions is that there may be a chance that he has autism - which sometimes results in a condition called hyperlexia where they are ahead in reading (and pre-reading skills like recognizing their letters much earlier than children their age) but are behind in verbal language skills such as understanding what's asked of them and being able to formulate a response.



You should talk to your doctor - first rule out a hearing problem then ask to have his language skills assessed just to be sure and bring up any other odd behaviors if any at that time.



It's probably nothing, but it's worth investigating. My daughter sounded like this at her age - she was diagnosed with autism just before turning 4 years old.

Answer 2

You should teach him, at the nursery I used to work they do a calednar every morning with the children e.g doing the days, months and the year, also they would be engaged to go outside & recognise what the weather is like. Then they would do a register and the children found and recognised their own names on the floor on paper after the staff would ask the child their birthday & age and they always get it right because they were taught this each morning. Your not just a mother to your child, your also a teacher (:

Answer 3

Is the question being asked by another adult? Most 3 year olds will talk to adults if asked a simple question. Maybe your son may be a bit shy?



If he does not answer your questions, he is either ignoring you, or he has a hearing issue or some other problem. Personally, I'd take him to a pediatrician.

Answer 4

You know your son the best, so in the end, listen to your gut.



My wife has had a dayhome for over 6 years. In her experience, boys tend to take longer to talk than girls and its fairly common for boys to lag behind in the speech department up until 3 or 4 years old.



If he counts and can recognize letters, I'd say he's doing pretty good!

Answer 5

huh? feb, that's already passed right ? lmao, so he is two ?

yeah could, it depends how much you teach him, my daughter 3 in july , will spell her name, if you ask her, she can tell you her first and second name, im working on, age and when she was born she will say july , it depends, because if he doesn't know months and stuff you cant confuse him in doing what ive done, it all depends, but he sounds ok to me, he can answer some, he knows his letters, the boy is only 2, , all children learn at their own paces , because peoples parents might teach them different things to other parents, it all depends on what you teach him and that he knows then can move onto questions, questions about what hes learnt about, if he knows all his body parts etc you can also ask questions to do with that, , he sound ok, don't worry yourself !

Answer 6

He should be answering things like that, only if you have taught him. If you have, then call his doctor. Its hard to put a price on piece of mind, and early intervention if it is necessary.