5 year old has started getting stuck on the first word, mostly in Hindi

teal_moon_295926 Oct 2026

Since the start of the month my daughter has been repeating the first sound of a sentence, like 'm-m-m-mumma can I'. It's more when she's excited and much more when she's talking to her nani on the video call in Hindi. Her preschool teacher says she hasn't noticed much in class. My mother thinks it's because we 'mixed the languages'. The teacher said give it a few weeks. I'd rather not panic, and also not wait for months if we should be doing something 🤷 Anyone been through this with a preschooler? Who did you see first, if anyone, and how did you get the family to stop finishing her sentences for her?

4 comments

peach_trail_604626 Oct 2026
Not a speech person, but one practical thing from the teaching side: write down when it happens for a week. Time of day, which language, who she's talking to, whether she was tired or excited. When parents have brought a note like that to a meeting with me, it made the whole conversation shorter and less of a guessing game.
fern_moon_962026 Oct 2026
The schools I've worked in usually point families to a speech and language therapist for this, and most parents who went early told me it was reassuring rather than alarming. Also ask the preschool for two written lines on what the teacher sees. 'Hasn't noticed much' is hard for anyone to work with.
coral_sandal_741627 Oct 2026
Did anyone actually tell your mother that two languages cause this, or is it her theory? Plenty of kids around us grow up with two or three languages at home. I wouldn't drop Hindi with nani on the strength of a guess.
linen_gecko_179027 Oct 2026
One question that might help whoever you see: does it happen when she speaks Hindi to you as well, or only on the calls with her grandmother? Video calls have a lag and she may be rushing to get her turn in before someone talks over her. Our younger one used to talk very fast on calls with his grandparents for exactly that reason. Not an answer, just something I'd separate out.