Some children reach the milestone of speaking at an early age, but not all do. For some children, communication is exceptionally difficult. A child may be born with low muscle tone or other developmental issues that cause a delay in speech. Just because a child is unable to speak at a certain age does not mean they will be silent forever. However, they may need to receive services from a professionally trained speech pathologist. The speech pathology sessions are customized for each patient and will depend on the different speech goals set for that individual.
Setting Goals Based on Speech Needs
After the initial evaluation of a child who needs speech therapy, the speech pathologist will set goals for that child based on their needs. Some children struggle with enunciation and some struggle with pronunciation. When a child has trouble with pronunciation, they may need to practice making letter sounds while eventually working on putting those letter sounds together to create words. As the pronunciation gets better, there may be more of a focus on getting the child to properly enunciate the words so that everyone can understand what they are saying. The speech pathologist will always set age-appropriate goals and start off simple before moving ahead with tasks that are more challenging for a child with a speech day.
Using Fun Images and Games to Encourage Children
Speech pathologists understand that sometimes children get frustrated with their inability to speak as clear as their peers. They know that they might lose interest in trying to say the words when they are struggling, but that is why the speech pathologists work hard to make each speech pathology session as fun as possible. These professionals will often use fun images and assorted games to encourage children to work on letter sounds and words. If children are having a good time and feel like the experience is an enjoyable one, they will often stay more motivated, and that helps out a lot when it comes to getting those children to speak better.
Some children struggle with speech delays, which can occur for various reasons. When a child is not reaching speech milestones, a speech-language pathologist can step in and provide services to help. The pathologist will usually need to evaluate the child before getting started to see where they are currently at with their vocabulary and will then create a custom speech plan for them. When a child continues to receive speech pathology services for months or years, they may end up catching up with their peers and speaking clearly with no problem.
Contact a clinic like Eastern Carolina Ear Nose & Throat-Head to learn more.
Share5 October 2020
When my mother fell at home and broke her hip, we all thought that we were going to have no choice to put her in a nursing home when she got out of the hospital. My mother had always asked us kids to avoid putting her in any kind of home, but we didn’t know what else we could do. None of us were capable of giving her the kind of rehabilitation and care that she needed. Then her doctor suggested that we find out if her insurance covered in-home care. I didn’t even know that that was an option. I was pleased to discover that in-home care was covered by her plan. Now she gets great care from nurses and nurse assistants that come right to her in her home, where she wants to be. It’s a great option, and I’m so glad we have it.
