YouTube personality Rachel Griffin-Accurso — better known to millions of families as Ms. Rachel — is facing unexpected backlash after sharing a video of her 1-year-old daughter’s early speaking skills.
The educator and content creator built a massive following with videos designed to help young children develop speech and language. A former preschool teacher with a Master’s degree in music education, she’s become a trusted resource for parents navigating early childhood milestones.
But a recent TikTok featuring her daughter Susie — whose arrival she announced in April 2025 — speaking at 12 months struck a nerve. In the clip, posted just days ago, Ms. Rachel prompts Susie to “say hi,” and the toddler responds almost instantly, waving to the camera and saying “hi.” From there, she repeats a string of words, including “bye,” “mama,” “dada,” “nana,” “papa,” “aww,” “pop,” and “baba,” a nickname for her brother, along with “uh oh” and “yay.”
Instagram/msrachelforlittles
While the video was meant to highlight a sweet milestone, many parents flooded the comments with a very different reaction, admitting it left them feeling discouraged about their own children’s progress.
“Well this made me feel like s**t,” one user wrote.
“Well this made me feel like a s**t mum to a 4 year old non verbal,” another reacted.
“Never been so jealous of a baby,” another said.
“My 14 month old knows how to scream,” another said with a laughing face emoji.
“My 11 month old isn’t anywhere near this,” another commented. “I get a ‘hi’ once in a blue moon but that’s it. Just screaming and mmmm.”
Some followers also turned to Ms. Rachel for reassurance, questioning whether their own children were on track.
“Is my 14 month old supposed to be saying anything other than mama and Dada lol,” one person asked.
“Ms. Rachel, what do I do if my speech delayed toddler starts crying when I ask him to repeat things? 😅 Idk how to help his speech when he doesn’t want to even try. And yes, we are starting speech therapy soon.”
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As the reaction gained traction, Ms.Rachel responded by sharing more context from her own experience, including the challenges she faced with her son’s speech development.
“My son had a severe speech delay and he’s extremely bright and wonderful – neither one is smarter! He didn’t really talk until 3 years old,” Ms. Rachel wrote in the comments.
She added that she introduced her son to speech therapy and early intervention at 15 months, despite doing all the same things she’s done with her daughter, and actually “more because I didn’t have two kids.”
“This shows that kids are different and you shouldn’t feel bad! I thought everyone knew about my sweet boy struggling with speech,” she added.
Other followers echoed that sentiment, pushing back on the comparisons and reminding parents that early milestones can vary widely.
“For every parent watching feeling like your kid is behind at 12 months- THEY ARE NOT. This is more words than a typical 12 month has. At 12 months if they have even ONE word that is average. And remember- every child is different,” one user wrote.
Others pointed out that Susie’s environment may play a role, joking that she’s getting Ms. Rachel’s lessons “without commercials.”
This story YouTube Star Ms. Rachel Faces Backlash for Showing Off 1-Year-Old Daughter’s Impressive Vocabulary first appeared on InTouch Weekly. Add InTouch Weekly as a Preferred Source by clicking here.