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| Speech-Language Therapy |
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The purpose of speech-language therapy is to enhance intentional communication via
expression of ideas, obtaining desires, sharing information and interpersonal interaction.
Language is the means by which communication is achieved.
Components of language include but are not limited to:
• understanding/verbal expression
• facial/manual gestures
• tone of voice
• body orientation
expression of ideas, obtaining desires, sharing information and interpersonal interaction.
Language is the means by which communication is achieved.
Components of language include but are not limited to:
• understanding/verbal expression
• facial/manual gestures
• tone of voice
• body orientation
| Here is a chart for age appropriate speech development. |
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| Speech Therapy |
In order to use our language knowledge of content (vocabulary, concepts), form (how words are linked into
phrases/sentences) and use (what the child wants to get from using his/her language) is necessary. Therefore, speech
therapy focuses around teaching the child what he or she needs rather than the use of language for communication.
For the child who is not currently using words, language is still possible through other means. A child may be taught to
use various ways of utilizing their language skills to convey meaning. These may consist of gestures/signaling, eye
contact, facial expression, vocalizations or manual tools such as communication pictures/boards/books.
Oral-motor skills are also addressed within speech-language services. Since proper structure and function of the oral
areas is necessary for speech and sound production, intervention to improve coordination, strength, movement and
placement of the lips, tongue, jaw and cheeks (both internally and externally) is required.
What causes speech and language problems?
Developmental speech and language disorder is a common reason for speech/language problems in kids. This is a learning
disability that specifically affects five general areas:
• Spoken language—delays and disorders in listening and speaking
• Written language—problems with reading, writing and spelling
phrases/sentences) and use (what the child wants to get from using his/her language) is necessary. Therefore, speech
therapy focuses around teaching the child what he or she needs rather than the use of language for communication.
For the child who is not currently using words, language is still possible through other means. A child may be taught to
use various ways of utilizing their language skills to convey meaning. These may consist of gestures/signaling, eye
contact, facial expression, vocalizations or manual tools such as communication pictures/boards/books.
Oral-motor skills are also addressed within speech-language services. Since proper structure and function of the oral
areas is necessary for speech and sound production, intervention to improve coordination, strength, movement and
placement of the lips, tongue, jaw and cheeks (both internally and externally) is required.
What causes speech and language problems?
Developmental speech and language disorder is a common reason for speech/language problems in kids. This is a learning
disability that specifically affects five general areas:
• Spoken language—delays and disorders in listening and speaking
• Written language—problems with reading, writing and spelling
• Arithmetic—trouble doing arithmetic or understanding basic concepts
• Reasoning—problems organizing and putting together thoughts
• Memory—problems remembering facts and instructions
These kids may have trouble producing speech sounds, using spoken language to
communicate, or understanding what other people say. Speech and language problems are
often the earliest sign of a learning disability or autism.
• Hearing loss is often overlooked, and easily identified. If your child is speech/language
delayed, their hearing should be tested.
• Mental retardation is described as below-average general intellectual function with
associated deficits in adaptive behavior that occurs before age 18, common cause of speech
and language delay.
• Reasoning—problems organizing and putting together thoughts
• Memory—problems remembering facts and instructions
These kids may have trouble producing speech sounds, using spoken language to
communicate, or understanding what other people say. Speech and language problems are
often the earliest sign of a learning disability or autism.
• Hearing loss is often overlooked, and easily identified. If your child is speech/language
delayed, their hearing should be tested.
• Mental retardation is described as below-average general intellectual function with
associated deficits in adaptive behavior that occurs before age 18, common cause of speech
and language delay.
• Autism, Developmental Disorders such as PDD, Aspergers
The diagnostic category of pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) refers to a group of disorders characterized by
delays in the development of socialization and communication skills. Parents may note symptoms as early as infancy,
although the typical age of onset is before 3 years of age. Symptoms may include problems with using and understanding
language; difficulty relating to people, objects, and events; unusual play with toys and other objects; difficulty with
changes in routine or familiar surroundings, and repetitive body movements or behavior patterns. Autism (a developmental
brain disorder characterized by impaired social interaction and communication skills, and a limited range of activities and
interests) is the most characteristic and best studied PDD. Other types of PDD include Asperger’s Syndrome, Childhood
Disintegrative Disorder, and Rett’s Syndrome. Children with PDD vary widely in abilities, intelligence, and behaviors.
Some children do not speak at all, others speak in limited phrases or conversations, and some have relatively normal
language development. Repetitive play skills and limited social skills are generally evident. Unusual responses to sensory
information, such as loud noises and lights, are also common.
Early Detection of Delayed Speech
Parents of children with autism most often report that the first sign of a problem with their child is either the absence of
language or the loss of language that had begun to develop in the second year of life. Sometimes the initial concern may
be that the child is deaf because they are unresponsive to the voice of others including parents in their environment. In
retrospect, many parents recollect that even during the first 12 months their infants were unresponsive to adult contact,
did not engage in turn-taking games, and failed to develop joint attention. By their first birthday, many infants who later
receive the diagnosis of autism do not respond to their own name and fail to make eye contact. By the end of the second
year, toddlers with autism still have no functional language and are extremely limited in their communication with others,
perhaps only engaging another person to fulfill requests using protoimperative gestures (gestures or vocalizations used to
express needs that one cannot fulfill him/herself). For example pointing to an object one cannot reach.
To some extent, the principal social deficits in autism set the developmental path for deficits in language and
communication there is simply no interest or “appetite” for interacting with others at any level or by any means, including
language.
Nevertheless some children with autism, usually those that are less severely impaired overall, do increase the frequency of
their communicative attempts and begin acquiring language before their fifth birthday. Indeed, acquiring some functional
language by age 5 has been found to be the most powerful predictor of a more positive outcome in autism.
A child’s communication is considered delayed when the child is noticeably behind his or her peers in the acquisition of
speech and/or language skills. Sometimes a child will have greater receptive (understanding) than expressive (speaking)
language skills, but this is not always the case. Because all communication disorders carry the potential to isolate
individuals from their social and educational surroundings, it is essential to find appropriate timely intervention. While
many speech and language patterns can be called “baby talk” and are part of a young child’s normal development, they
can become problems if they are not outgrown as expected. In this way an initial delay in speech and language or an initial
speech pattern can become a disorder that can cause difficulties in learning. Because of the way the brain develops, it is
easier to learn language and communication skills before the age of 5.
The use of sign language to facilitate the communication of children with autism has been a topic of interest for many
years. On the one hand, clinicians who teach sign language to children with autism may argue that the child at least is
provided with a means for communication, even if it may be limited in the extent and complexity of information. Further,
supporters might argue that the use of sign language serves as a mediator for the development of oral communication
skills once the child recognizes the social value of language usage. On the other hand, some clinicians may argue that the
use of sign serves as a communicative sustainer for which the child has little practical use, and that teaching children with
autism to use sign may conflict with the development of functional oral language skills required in the social and
educational environment.
Just as importantly, the critics also argue that there is no factual evidence that sign language improves communication
beyond a one or two word sign structure, as a result limiting the usefulness of sign language skills to a communication
equivalent. Certainly, they would point out that the efficacy of sign language as a remedial program for children with
autism is at best questionable.
• Extreme environmental deprivation can cause speech delay. If a child is neglected or abused and does not hear
others speaking, they will not learn to speak.
• Prematurity can lead to developmental delays, including speech/language problems.
• Auditory Processing Disorder describes a problem with decoding speech sounds. These kids can improve with
speech and language therapy.
• Neurological problems like cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, and traumatic brain injury can affect the muscles
needed for speaking.
• Structural problems like cleft lip or cleft palate can also interfere with normal speech.
• Apraxia of speech is a specific speech disorder in which the child has difficulty in sequencing and executing speech
movements.
• Selective mutes are when a child will not talk at all in certain situations, often school.
How can I tell if my child’s speech and language development is on track? If your child is not on track with the following
speech/language development milestones, you should talk to your pediatrician.
Speech-Language Therapy
Speech-language pathologists assist children who have communication disorders in various ways. They provide individual
therapy for the child; consult with the child’s teacher about the most effective ways to facilitate the child’s
communication in the class setting; and work closely with the family to develop goals and techniques for effective
therapy in class and at home. The speech language pathologist may assist vocational teachers and counselors in
establishing communication goals related to the efforts and strengths of student and suggest strategies that are effective
for the important transitions throughout the child’s life.
Technology can help children whose physical conditions make communication difficult. The use of electronic
communication systems allow non-speaking people and people with severe physical disabilities to engage in the give and
take of shared thought. Vocabulary and concept growth continues during the years children are in school. Reading and
writing are taught and, as students get older, the understanding and use of language becomes more complex.
Communication skills are at the center of the education experience. Speech and/or language therapy may continue
throughout a student’s school years either in the form of direct therapy or on a consultant basis.
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