Did you know that as many as 1 in 5 children in the UK are starting reception with delayed speech or a language difficulty?
That’s not just a challenge for their learning – it’s a public health issue.
Communication and language skills lay the foundation for everything from friendships to future success, but how do we tell the difference between a child who’s just a little late to the party and one with a more serious Speech, Language, or Communication Need (SLCN)?
In this article, we’ll break down what communication and language actually mean in the EYFS, what typical early language development looks like, and how nursery settings like yours are essential in giving every child the best start.
What is ‘Communication and Language’ in EYFS?
Communication and language are at the heart of EYFS, and as one of the three prime areas for learning, they underpin everything you do in nurseries.
From babbling toddlers to curious question-askers, this area includes how children:
- Interact with others
- Explore language
- Develop listening and understanding skills
You’ll find plenty of reference to communication and language in the Early Learning Goals, too.
Listening, Attention and Understanding
Children should be able to:
- Listen attentively in a range of situations.
- Respond to what they hear with relevant questions, comments, or actions.
- Make comments and ask questions to clarify their understanding.
- Hold a conversation, even when talking with peers or adults in small or larger groups.
Speaking
Children should:
- Express their ideas and feelings about their experiences using full sentences.
- Use past, present, and future tenses accurately.
- Use conjunctions, like “and,” “but,” or “because,” to connect ideas.
- Engage in back-and-forth exchanges during conversations or discussions, showing an expanding vocabulary and increasing confidence in communication.
Why is ‘Communication and Language’ important?
Communication and language skills are needed for strong development in, well… every area you can think of.
All EYFS statutory documents highlight the need to close the gap in language development between disadvantaged children and their peers. Your provision must also prepare all children for their next stage of learning: reception and key stage one.
Statistics in the EYFS field are frustratingly sparse. However, historical and latest Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) figures highlight SLCN as the most prevalent need (without an education, health and care plan [EHCP]) across England – by a landslide, too.
Although these figures are taken from children and young people aged five and above, we know Communication and Language needs don’t appear overnight. This means that nurseries are invaluable in identifying communication and language delays in toddlers and boosting speech and language opportunities through play.
The role of EYFS in early language development
We know the importance early education has on a child’s successful development. The nursery setting is like no other, play underpins all learning.
Interactions with other children and adults are arguably at their highest in nurseries. Due to the required ratios for under fives, children experience more contact with adults, and the interactive nature of play means lots of social communication opportunities.
Nursery practitioners have a vital role in a child’s early language development, helping to boost the number of words a child understands and uses before they reach school age.
When children develop their communication and language skills during their early education, they are building the foundations needed for:
- Play
- Friendships
- Learning
- Confidence
- Speaking their mind
- Sharing their worries
- Developing curiosity
The 3 parts of Communication and Language in EYFS
When it comes to communication and language in EYFS, it all boils down to three key areas:
- Interacting with others
- Using and understanding language
- Listening and understanding
These skills are the building blocks of every child’s ability to make sense of the world and express themselves. Whether it’s tuning into story time, following simple instructions, or chatting confidently with new friends, these are the moments where growth happens.
But with 1 in 5 UK children starting school with speech and language delays, your nursery team has got to work smarter than ever to give early support.
EYFS back-and-forth interactions
Back-and-forth interactions are like a game of verbal table tennis – they’re the foundation of strong communication skills in the EYFS.
When working with babies and toddlers, knowing what good back-and-forth interaction looks like can be hard.
It’s all about taking turns: when a child babbles, points, or speaks, and an adult responds, it sparks the neural connections that drive early language development.
Typical development looks different at every stage: by 18 months, children might use gestures and single words, while by 3 years, they’re stringing together simple sentences and asking endless questions.
Planning to have a variety of communication and language activities threaded throughout your nursery day can make a world of difference to a child’s speech and language skills and confidence.
EYFS Exploration of language
Exploring language is all about how children play with words, sounds, and meaning as they grow. From learning new vocabulary to experimenting with sentences, it’s how they make sense of their world.
By the age of 2, children typically understand around 200 words, and by 3, they’re using short sentences and starting to grasp concepts like “big” or “on.” This journey includes lots of imitation, trial and error, and a healthy dose of curiosity.
Challenges within the area of exploring language might include stammers, difficulty using and finding words to suit the context, fluency and speech sound use.
Your nursery’s EYFS curriculum should be language-rich, ensuring your practitioners help children explore language at every opportunity.
EYFS Listening and understanding
Listening and understanding are the unsung communication heroes – they’re how children process what they hear and make sense of the world around them.
By age 2, children typically respond to simple instructions like, “Get your shoes,” and by age 3, they can follow two-part directions, like, “Pick up the ball and put it in the basket.” These skills develop through everyday interactions, whether it’s a chat during snack time or a shared story.
When Speech and Language Therapists assess a child for SLCN, they might use similar assessment tools used in Bedfordshire, where understanding is split into information-carrying words and then comprehension of the words in context.
For example, if a child is playing with a toy horse, they are demonstrating their understanding and ability to listen if you ask them, ‘Can you make them jump?’ (Jump is the information-carrying word.
To increase this to three information-carrying words, ‘Can you put the horse under the blanket?’
To assess a child’s comprehension, they may be asked questions linking to description of the object, or reasoning to what might happen next (depending on their age of development).
Ensuring your nursery staff have access to good-quality training for communication and language is vital in achieving these three key areas.
Speech, Language, or Communication Need (SLCN) in the early years
SLCN is a broad term including all interactions, understanding and use of language and listening and attention. As we know, children under the age of five are new to the communication world – they don’t know social norms expected of them.
So, how do you identify when a toddler might be demonstrating signs of a Developmental Language Disorder (life-long) or a delay in language acquisition? The answer isn’t a straightforward one.
SLCN can present in so many different ways, and many interlinking conditions are associated with communication and language difficulties:
- Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
- Social Emotional Mental Health (SEMH)
- Hearing impairments
- Learning difficulties
Given that the average age at which a child is diagnosed with a specific (or multiple) SEND need is 9 years old, identifying and diagnosing at an age when all children develop at different rates is slim – unless the evidence is glaringly ‘obvious’ (or your staff are excellently trained and knowledgeable).
Speech, Language, and Communication Needs (SLCN) can present in many ways in toddlers: difficulty making eye contact, limited vocabulary for their age, trouble forming sentences, or struggling to follow simple instructions.
It’s important to distinguish between a language delay, where development follows the usual pattern but progresses slower, and a Developmental Language Disorder (DLD), where challenges are more persistent and don’t resolve without intervention.
With up to 10% of children experiencing long-term SLCN, early identification and support are key. For nurseries, this means creating environments rich in communication and working with families and professionals to help every child thrive.
Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN) resources for early years
There are plenty of resources available to support communication and language development in the early years. Here are a few of our favourites: some are newer than others, so it’s helpful to check they are in line with the latest EYFS guidance when you access them.
Developing Communication and Language in your nursery
Developing outstanding communication and language provision in your nursery starts with a whole-setting approach. Enrich your curriculum with EYFS activities that promote talk – think storytelling, singing, role play, and even simple back-and-forth conversations during snack time.
Build strong links with parents by sharing tips and activities they can use at home to support their child’s language development. By adding home observations, you can encourage parents to share their language-rich experiences.
Having effective EYFS tracking systems in place helps your practitioners to identify starting points with communication and language (a hot topic for 2025 Ofsted inspections). Aligning practitioner observations with frameworks marries the Early Learning Goals for communication and language with daily observations.
Regular staff training is a game-changer too, ensuring your team feels confident spotting needs and embedding communication strategies into daily practice. Don’t forget to audit your communication and language provision – look at your environment, resources, and routines to check how well they support communication for all children.
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