"Presume competence" means assuming your child understands and has something to say, even if they can't show it the way you'd expect, and it's worth taking seriously rather than treating as a slogan. If you've been searching this phrase, you're probably not looking for a lecture. You want to know whether this is normal, whether you should act, and what you can actually do without turning your child into a test subject. The most useful shift here is moving away from "how do I get my child to talk right now" and toward "what is my child already communicating, and what would make the next step easier for them." That change protects your relationship with your child, and it also gives you better information to bring to an SLP, pediatrician, early intervention team, or school team. Watching for this means paying attention across several moments, not judging things off one rough afternoon. Notice gestures, pointing, imitation, response to name, scripts, AAC use, sound attempts, and whether your child seems to understand more than they can say back to you. A pattern across routines tells you far more than any single checklist item. For something to try this week: pick one routine that already happens daily, and model one useful word, phrase, AAC button, or gesture inside it. Pause long enough to let your child respond in whatever form that takes. Accept approximations, signs, points, scripts, or device use as real communication, not just a stand-in for "real" talking. And stop before the moment turns into a battle, that's the whole point of doing it inside a routine you already have. Part of this is philosophical as much as practical: talking to your nonverbal child the way you'd talk to any 4-year-old, rather than simplifying your language or talking about them in front of them, matters more than people expect. If this pattern is part of something bigger, don't wait to ask for help. A hearing check, an early intervention evaluation, a private SLP evaluation, a school-based evaluation, or a developmental assessment are all reasonable next steps. Getting ahead of it isn't overreacting. It's making sure your child has access to communication support sooner rather than later. For related reading, there's a full stimming and regulation hub, along with pieces on realistic first-word targets for autistic toddlers, where to start when your autistic child doesn't talk, why "quiet hands" hurts autistic communication, 10-minute speech practice for toddlers who won't sit still, what 10 minutes a day actually did for one child's speech, what strangers should understand at age 3, whether it's normal for a 4-year-old to still be hard to understand, and how to get an AAC device covered through insurance. You can also browse the full parent guides collection for more. Little Words is meant as educational support for home practice, not a medical device, an AAC replacement, or a stand-in for a licensed speech-language pathologist, pediatrician, early intervention program, school team, or developmental evaluation.