A Speech Pathology Expert Can Help Your Child’s Speech Problems

The Daily Telegraph reportedchildren starting kindergarten have speech skills of three-year-olds due to too much TV and lack of extended family. A quarter of these kindergarten students have poor language skills whichhamper their ability to learn to read. NSW public school teacher and author of Teach Baby To Talk Sandra Smith said six to eight out of 30 children in each kindergarten have speech problems. They speak in sentence structures of three-year-olds instead of five-year-olds. According to the “Growing Up In Australia” study in 2010, 28% of boys and 19% of girls, aged eight to nine, were considered below average in language and literacy skills. The Speech Pathology Association of Australia reported 20% of four- to five-year-old Australian children had speech difficulties.ProfessorSharynne McLeod from Charles Sturt University, specialist in speech and language acquisition, said students with speech problems were likely to be bullied and not enjoy school. So if you noticeyour children exhibiting some speech difficulties or problems, seek a speech pathology professional to help your children cope with the developmental skills needed.Early intervention is the most efficient time for therapy and will provide the best outcome for these types of problems. Child First Paediatric Therapy, a speech pathology, occupational therapy andphysiotherapy centre in Pymble, has the latest assessment tools and quality programs tohelp meet your child’s goals.Their therapists are dedicated in helping your child’s physical, cognitive and social development.Together with their team of professionals, your child will enjoy their therapy and you will feel supported. Speech and Language Disorders to Look Out For Below are some of the speech and language disorders you may want to remember as you observe your child’s speech and language development. When you see some signs, it’s better if you take your child to a therapist for a professional opinion or diagnosis. - Speech disorders – when a child is unable to produce speech sounds correctly and fluently or has problems with his or her voice - Articulation disorders – the child has difficulties in producing sounds,in syllables or saying words correctly. Listeners thereforecan't or struggleunderstand what's being saidrn - Fluency disorders – the child has problems such as stuttering, in which the flow of speech is interrupted by abnormal stoppages: repetitions (st-st-stuttering) or prolonging sounds and syllables (ssssstuttering) - Resonance or voice disorders – the child has problems with the pitch, volume, or quality of his or her voice that distract listeners from what's being saidrn - Dysphagia or oral feeding disorders – the child has difficulties with drooling, eating, andorswallowing - Language disorders – when a child has trouble understanding others or sharing his or her thoughts and ideas - Receptive disorders – the child has difficulties: - understanding or processing languagern - understanding what is being said to themrn - Expressive disorders – the child has: - difficulties putting words togetherrn - limited vocabularyrn - inability to use language in a socially appropriate wayrn - difficulties with verbal and written expression of languagern - problems producing sentencesrn - trouble recalling words and vocabulary To ensure that your child’s speech problems are addressed properly and immediately, seek the help of a speech pathology professional, who can diagnose, manage and treat your child’s difficulties.