My son turned 24 months old last week (b
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My son turned 24 months old last week (born full term at 39 weeks).
He currently uses about 15-20 spoken single words reliably (mama, dada, ball, milk, dog, car, bye-bye, no, more), but he has not started putting two words together into phrases like 'more milk' or 'bye-bye car'. He points to show me things, waves, follows 2-step directions, and brings me his shoes when I say 'get your shoes'.
My mother-in-law visited yesterday and insisted he has severe developmental delay or autism because her kids were speaking in full sentences at two.
Can you walk me through the official CDC 24-month milestone expectations, what this means without diagnosing, and what dated observations I should take to his 2-year checkup next Tuesday?
Answer
He's just turned 24 months — full term at 39 weeks, no corrected-age adjustment needed — so the right CDC card is the **2-year** one.
**What the 2-year card says most children (75%+) do**
- Language: points to things in a book when asked; **says at least two words together** ("more milk"); points to at least two body parts; more gestures than waving (kiss, nod).
- Social: notices when others are hurt or upset; looks at your face in a new situation.
- Cognitive: holds something in one hand while using the other; tries switches/knobs on a toy; plays with more than one toy at a time.
- Movement: kicks a ball; runs; walks up a few stairs; eats with a spoon.
What your son is already doing covers several of those: pointing to show, waving, following 2-step directions, bringing shoes on request, and 15–20 single words used reliably. The one card item not yet reached is **two-word combinations**.
Source: https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/2-years.html
**What 75% does and does not mean**
75% means *most* children that age can do each item — it does not mean the other 25% are delayed. The CDC itself says these checklists are family monitoring, not a substitute for a formal screening. The WHO motor windows you'll see quoted elsewhere (sitting, crawling, standing, walking) don't apply to language, so they don't apply here.
**What this does and does not say**
A checklist gap, a word count, or one missing item is not a label. Neither "severe delay" nor autism spectrum disorder can be given from a kitchen-table comparison, a relative's memory of her own children, or a chatbot. Both need a formal screening (ASQ-3 at 24 months for development; M-CHAT-/F for autism likelihood) and, if those flag anything, a full evaluation by qualified clinicians. Your son's pointing, following 2-step directions, and bringing shoes to show are strong social/communicative signals, not the absence of them.
**Take this to next Tuesday's 2-year checkup**
| When | What to write / say |
| --- | --- |
| Today, 2026-09-17 | "24 mo, ~15–20 single words used reliably; no two-word combos yet (e.g., 'more milk'); points to show, waves, follows 2-step directions, brings shoes on request" |
| At the visit | Hand that line to his doctor; ask for a formal developmental screening (ASQ-3 is the standard at this age); say out loud that a relative raised the autism worry and let the screening answer it |
The CDC's own "share with your child's doctor" prompts at this age: what you and your son do together and what he likes, anything that concerns you, any lost skills (he has not lost any — say so), and whether he was born prematurely (full term — doctor moves on). Bring dated observations, not conclusions. I can't name a local screening programme without knowing where you live — if you want me to point at one, tell me your country or state.
Does he point to things in a book when you name them, or point to at least two body parts when you ask? Those are the other two language items on the 2-year card, and the answer would change what I write next.