If your child is struggling with their communication, whether speech, language, reading, writing, or social interaction skills, we are here to help. Give us a call at (225) 767-5032 to schedule an evaluation or send us a message online to get started.
What Is a Speech or Language Delay?
A speech or language delay is when a child is not achieving the expected speech or language skills for their age group. Untreated speech and language delays can have lasting effects on a child’s overall development and lead to academic challenges, social difficulties, and lowered self-esteem. Identifying and addressing these delays early on empowers children to overcome these challenges and build a strong foundation for successful communication.
- Speech skills involve the physical ability to produce sounds and articulate words. It encompasses pronunciation, fluency, and voice quality.
- Language skills involve the ability to understand and use words in context, including vocabulary, grammar, and sentence structure.
What Are the Signs That My Child Might Need Language Therapy?
- Understanding information that he hears
- Retelling personal stories
- Generating personal stories
- Recalling information
- Thinking of the right word to communicate a message
- Putting his thoughts onto paper
- Using and/or remembering age appropriate and specific vocabulary
- Understanding and recalling things that he has read
- Inferencing or reading between the lines
- Using past experiences and current information to predict what might happen next
- Navigating social situations
- Accurately interpreting nonverbal communication, facial expressions, and tone of voice
- Using age appropriate verb tenses and other grammatical markers in written and expressive language
- Sharing or understanding ideas with others
- Expressing ideas and thoughts onto paper (written expression)
- Spelling words beyond the practiced weekly spelling list (encoding)
- Reading fluency and sounding out words (decoding)
What Are the Signs That My Child Might Need Speech Therapy?
- Producing sounds in speech clearly without substitution, omission, or distortions
- Oral motor control (Tends to have a wet shirt, mouths objects, and/or drools)
- Eating or drinking easily
- Speaking fluently (stuttering, cluttering, or other fluency disorders)
- Confidence in speaking to others
- Voice quality, loudness, or varying pitch when speaking
- Speaking in a way others can easily understand
- Expressing their ideas to others
- Babbling or vocalizing in infancy
- Moving his tongue (tongue restriction/tongue-tie) for speech sounds or eating
Speech-Language Screener
Our screener can help you identify if your child’s speech and language development is on track with his/her age.
How Are Speech and Language Delays Diagnosed?
Speech and language delays can be diagnosed by our expert speech-language pathologists after a comprehensive evaluation. This evaluation includes various assessments and a review of your child’s medical history to understand their unique speech and language struggles. With this information, our experts will be able to determine the exact type of delay and develop a therapy plan to address your child’s specific needs. To learn more about speech and language therapy or to schedule a comprehensive evaluation, please contact our office.
What Is the Treatment for Speech and Language Delays?
Your child’s treatment will be determined after their comprehensive evaluation to ensure we address their unique challenges. In general, treatment for speech and language delays can include:
- Playing with sounds in words (phonemic awareness)
- Interactions with story books for vocabulary and comprehension tasks
- Using engaging pictures for sentence structure and grammar tasks
- Reading out loud to improve language comprehension
- Playing pretend to practice speech and language skills in different social situations
- Games that involve following directions
- Using Augmentative and Alternative Communication devices
- Breathing exercises to improve speech speed and clarity
- Memory games to strengthen cognitive skills
- Oral motor exercises to build strength and practice speech sounds
- Home-based activities to continue practicing speech and language skills between therapy sessions
Is My Child Old Enough for Speech or Language Therapy?
Schedule An Evaluation Today
If you suspect your child has a speech or language delay, or if you need guidance on their treatment, our team at Dynamic Therapy Specialists is here to help. We will work with you and your child to improve their speech and language skills in a fun and supportive environment. Call us at (225) 767-5032 or fill out the form below, to schedule a personalized evaluation and take the first step to set your child up for success in life.