If your child has been diagnosed with a speech and/or language impairment, or you suspect that this may be the case, the resources below may be of interest to you.
General Information:
The American Speech and Hearing Association is always a good place to start if you have any questions about speech, language, or hearing. http://www.asha.org/bhsm/resources/
Childhood Apraxia of Speech:
The American Speech and Hearing Association defines Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) as follows: “Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) is a motor speech disorder. Children with CAS have problems saying sounds, syllables, and words. This is not because of muscle weakness or paralysis. The brain has problems planning to move the body parts (e.g., lips, jaw, tongue) needed for speech. The child knows what he or she wants to say, but his/her brain has difficulty coordinating the muscle movements necessary to say those words.” (http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/childhoodapraxia/#sthash.0uDCNici.dpuf) See the links below to learn more about this condition.
Speech Sound Disorders:
The American Speech and Hearing Association defines speech sound disorders as follows: “Most children make some mistakes as they learn to say new words. A speech sound disorder occurs when mistakes continue past a certain age. Every sound has a different range of ages when the child should make the sound correctly. Speech sound disorders include problems with articulation (making sounds) and phonological processes (sound patterns).” (http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/speechsounddisorders/#sthash.WVpzoC19.dpuf) See the link below to learn more about Speech Sound Disorders.
Language Impairment and Language-Based Learning Disabilities:
Some children present with developmental language impairments that impact their abilities to understand and/or produce language. When a child has difficulty understanding language, he/she is said to have a “receptive” language impairment, and when a child has difficulty with using language to communicate, the child is said to have “expressive” language impairment. A child might present with difficulty in one or both of these areas.
The linguistic areas that may be impacted in a child with a language impairment include semantics (word meaning), syntax (sentence structure), morphology (parts of words that influence meaning), pragmatics (use of language in social skills), phonology (sound structure of language, as it applies to both spoken and written language), and linguistic executive functioning skills (including planning, sequencing, and organization skills). See the links below for more information.
Fluency Disorders/Stuttering:
According to the Stuttering Foundation, “Stuttering is a communication disorder in which the flow of speech is broken by repetitions (li-li-like this), prolongations (lllllike this), or abnormal stoppages (no sound) of sounds and syllables. There may also be unusual facial and body movements associated with the effort to speak.” For more information about stuttering, see the links below.
If your child has been diagnosed with any of these conditions, or if you suspect that your child may have a speech or language impairment, please do not hesitate to contact me for a consultation, as I may be able to help.
