As parents, we all want our children to thrive in their development, especially when it comes to communicating with others. But what happens when your child struggles with speech or language skills? Should you wait and see if they grow out of it?
My name is Jessica Abawag, and I’m the owner and Speech-Language Pathologist at Fluens Children’s Therapy. We provide speech and occupational therapy for kids in Tacoma, Washington, and Columbia, Tennessee. Today we’re going to talk about why early intervention is vital for a child’s speech and language.
The Sooner a Child Starts Speech Therapy, the Better
We always tell families that the sooner a child starts speech therapy, the better. There are a few reasons for this.
Speech and Language Delays Are Frustrating for Your Child, Too
One reason to seek early intervention is that we don’t want our children to become more frustrated. The more challenging it is for them to communicate, whether they’re having a hard time understanding what you’re saying or expressing to you what they’re trying to say, the more often we can see negative behaviors such as tantrums, screaming, hitting, and biting.
A lot of these behaviors may be eliminated or at least lessened if they have the proper support to be able to communicate with others through speech therapy.
It’s Easier to Correct Speech Sound Production When it’s Handled Early
Another reason early intervention is important is that, if your child is having a hard time pronouncing certain sounds beyond the point developmentally where they should be producing those sounds, the harder it can be for them to learn the proper pronunciation.
For instance, if a child is saying a W instead of an R (like saying “wabbit” instead of “rabbit”), and they’ve been saying that R sound like a W for so many years, that it’s going to take a lot longer to break that habit and teach them the correct way to say it than it would if they got started at maybe five or six years old.
Those are some of the reasons why we really encourage parents to not wait and see and hope that kids will grow out of it, but to really seek early intervention sooner than later. And that means just getting an assessment done to see if your child is within typical developmental range, or if they might need some support through speech therapy.
Common Signs of a Speech and Language Challenge
There are some general signs that we encourage families to look for to see if their child may be struggling with speech and language.
A Big Gap Between Understanding and Expressing Language
One of the signs is if there is a big gap or a big difference between how much your child understands (what we call receptive language) versus how much your child is saying or expressing to others (what we call expressive language).
If your child understands, follows directions, is catching on to everything that you’re saying, but they’re not able to communicate (talk, use gestures, words, sentences, things like that), that’s a big gap. We usually say that is a reason to seek out some support from a speech therapist.
A Regression in Speech or Language Skills Over Time
Another thing that we ask families to look out for is if there’s been any regression in their child’s speech and language development. Maybe they used to be using single words, they used to be using lots of gestures, or they used to play with other kids.
Then, either all of a sudden or gradually over time, those skills have either disappeared or gotten less frequent. That would be a great sign to look out for in order to determine if your child might need some support from a speech therapist.
Others Can’t Easily Understand What Your Child Is Trying to Say
Lastly, if your child is a little bit older, say maybe five to seven years old, and other people they interact with (aside from you) are having a hard time understanding what they’re saying, that’s a sign they may need speech therapy.
At that age, they should be able to be understood by everybody. Even if their speech sounds aren’t a hundred percent accurate, most other people should be able to understand what they’re saying. So, if your child is about five years old and others can’t understand them, we would encourage you to come in for a speech therapy evaluation to see if intervention is necessary.
You Know Your Child Best, So Listen to Your Instincts
At the end of the day, you are their parent. You are the expert on your child, and you know what’s best. We always encourage families to really trust your gut and go with your instincts regardless if your pediatrician is telling you to wait and see, or if your teacher’s saying there’s nothing to worry about. Just give yourself some peace of mind and schedule an evaluation.
If we can help here at Fluens Children’s Therapy, give us a call and we’ll be happy to see how we could support you on this journey.
About Jessica
Jessica Abawag graduated from San Jose State University in 2012 with a Master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology. She is certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and has a teaching credential in Special Education. Jessica has served hundreds of children and their families since 2016 when she founded Fluens Children’s Therapy. When she’s not working, she enjoys spending time with her family and traveling to new places.