Kids with language disorders might take a speech test. It isn’t like a school exam that impacts their report card—it helps the therapist figure out what kind of treatment is best.
Kids who participate in their kids speech therapy Adelaide and practice at home see the most lasting results. The SLP will offer tools and resources for parents to use with their children.
Social Skills
In addition to helping kids learn to communicate, speech-language pathologists also work with kids on social skills. These include the ability to understand and follow rules, use appropriate body language, take turns during conversation and use empathy to see things from another person’s point of view. Kids with a variety of conditions, including Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, and Asperger’s Syndrome, often have trouble with social communication.
Depending on the child’s needs, speech-language pathologists may also work with children to improve their articulation or decrease stuttering. In these instances, they’re looking to help children produce the correct sounds and syllables in words through repetition exercises or sound games. They might even show them how to move their tongue when pronouncing certain letters and words, such as “r.”
Kids may attend group therapy sessions with other kids who have similar communication issues, or they might have private sessions with a therapist on their own. In either case, parents are encouraged to join their kids in therapy sessions to model correct communication behaviour. They can also ask their therapists for specific suggestions on how to practice the new skills at home. Many families find that practising the strategies between appointments is what really creates lasting change.
Communication Skills
The development of speech and language skills is an ongoing process that begins before a child’s first birthday. It is normal for children to develop at different rates. For example, most kids crawl between 6 and 10 months, become accomplished walkers by 15 months, and begin talking by age 3. If your child isn’t developing at a typical rate, it’s time to see the kids speech therapy Adelaide.
The goal of speech therapy is to help kids learn to communicate. It may involve teaching them new words and phrases and how to fashion sentences. It could also include helping them use gestures and body language to express their needs and wants. In addition to improving expressive and receptive communication, SLPs often treat articulation and phonological disorders, stuttering, and voice disorders in children and adults of all ages.
Self-Regulation
For kids with articulation or fluency disorders (such as stuttering), speech-language pathologists help them to use more fluent speech. They might teach articulation exercises, like saying “b” over and over again or using a whistle to blow. They might also give children exercises to improve their voice quality and reduce slurring or humming.
A therapist might show kids how to label objects and actions during routines. They might even get the kids to coach them during online sessions to keep the therapy fun and engaging.
Children with receptive language disorders often find it easier to learn new words through kids speech therapy Adelaide than kids with expressive language challenges. However, they must have adequate self-regulatory skills, which include the ability to calm themselves when needed. For example, they must be able to regulate their emotions and impulses, such as when they are overreactive to certain sensations, such as hearing their name called or being touched.
A child who struggles with self-regulation might be easily frustrated or prone to tantrums. Or, they might appear lazy and disinterested in social situations. They might struggle to understand and follow instructions given to them by adults. And they might have trouble storing and manipulating the information required for tasks such as reading or writing. All of these difficulties can have a direct impact on how they communicate and interact with the world around them.