Twin Mania: Speech Therapy

Every child develops language skills at different speeds. Children who show signs of speech impediments should be helped as soon as possible because speech is critical for their learning, communication and social development.

Parents may not be aware of their child's problem because parents are accustomed to their child's voice. Common speech patterns in a child such as, frequency of using language, fluency of speech and pronunciation of words, should be monitored by parents. About 10 percent of children have communication problems including speech and hearing disorders. Early remediation is more effective and it can avoid the situation that a child's speech becomes the amusement object for others. Possible hearing dysfunction, voice problem and aphasia could be diagnosed earlier based on daily interaction between a child and his/her parents. Articulation, language receptive and expressive problems may be noticed at preschool ages.

If a child is difficult to understand by others and frustrated in oral communication, he/she could benefit from speech therapy program. If child's speech is improving quarterly, she/he likely catches the standard speech over time. Here are some sensible steps to figure out if additional speech therapy program is needed for your child.

List your own observations on your child's speech development.

a.The sounds he/she has problems with.
b.The position of the sounds in a word (initial, medial or final).
c. The frequency of mispronunciation.
d. Can the child understand parents' language?
e. Can the child make sentences appropriately?
f. Is stuttering a problem (fluency disorders) affecting the child?

Obtain feedback and documentation from teacher regarding the child's communication and language skills at school.
Go over your and teacher's documents with your child's pediatrician. Discuss with your child's pediatrician to decide if speech therapy is appropriate.
An oral examination can identify possible irregularities in the structure of the child's mouth.
Hearing evaluation performed by an audiologist.
Ask for referrals of speech therapists (certificated) from the pediatrician.

The qualification of speech-language pathologists (or therapists)(Bureau of Labor). The private health insurers generally require therapists to be licensed to qualify for reimbursement.