Speech Therapy Just for Kids

Therapy that’s fun—With young children, speech-language pathologists use games and pictures to build communication skills. Here, 4-year-old Giuseppe (Joey) from Tatamy works with speech-language pathologist Carrie Ann Kuklinski of the Lehigh Valley Health Center—Saucon Valley.

Legend has it that the young Albert Einstein didn’t speak for years because he had nothing to say. If he were a toddler today, he’d probably be referred to a speech-language pathologist—and who knows what brilliant insights he might share?

Problems that interfere with a child’s ability to communicate can stem from many causes that have nothing to do with intelligence. Some youngsters are slow to develop language, stutter, or have trouble expressing themselves or producing sounds clearly. Others have a physical disorder such as autism, cerebral palsy or cleft palate.

“Regardless of the cause, it’s important to identify speech problems early,” says Anne Helwig, M.D., pediatrician at Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network. Physicians evaluate a child’s communication ability from birth, and look for various milestones at each well-child exam. Children often clam up during exams, though, so tell your doctor if your child seems to be a poor communicator.

“Most children are speaking in sentences by age 3,” Helwig says. “If your child has any unusual patterns of speech, play or social behavior, doesn’t seem to understand you, or regresses at any stage, she should be evaluated.”

Your doctor can refer you to a speechlanguage pathologist, who will tailor your child’s treatment to his age and development. “Therapy with young children is based in play,” says Helwig’s colleague, speech-language pathologist Gail Ehrens. “We help them use words and gestures to communicate. As they grow older and more verbal, we focus on improving listening, understanding, vocabulary and sound production.”

Educating the family is a big part of therapy. For example, if your child stutters, you’ll be urged not to correct her or call attention to it. “How parents, babysitters and others respond to a child’s stuttering can affect the outcome,” Ehrens says.

Many children have speech errors when they’re young, and not all of them need speech therapy. But if you suspect your child would benefit from a professional evaluation, don’t put it off, Ehrens says: “Good speech and language skills help children succeed in all areas of life.”

Want to Know More? For a list of milestones in speech and language development and condition-specific resources, call 610-402-CARE.

Published from Healthy You Magazine, January-February 2008

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