Early Intervention First Words Checklist | Functional Communication | EI SLP

Helping families understand which words to focus on can be one of the biggest challenges in EI. Many caregivers want colors, shapes and ABCs, but those words don’t lead to meaningful communication.

This checklist helps you and families focus on the words that matter most for real, functional communication.

What's included:

✔ SLP-approved first words organized by category

✔ Covers function words, people, objects, verbs, descriptors, and more

✔ Parent-friendly layout that's easy to use at home

✔ Perfect for sessions, handouts, and home practice

✔ Print-ready PDF

💡 How EI SLPs are using this: Go through it with caregivers to identify which words to target first. Send it home so families know exactly what to practice between visits. Use it at IFSP meetings to guide goal setting around functional vocabulary.

💛 Part of the Early Communication Bundle, grab the First Words Poster and First Words Tracker to get the full system.