Welcome to Speech and Language!
As Speech-Language Pathologists (SLP), we work with children in the following areas of communication.
Articulation Disorder/Delay
Characterized by the inability to produce individual speech sounds clearly and difficulty combining sounds correctly for words. Speech sounds may be incorrectly substituted (tun for sun), omitted (ool for school), or distorted (shlun for sun).
When to refer:
* Doesn't use consonant sounds/ uses mostly vowel sounds and gestures to communicate
* Omits/Substitutes /Distorts sounds in words
* Speech is difficult to understand/ unintelligible.
* Not using one or more of the sounds expected at their age
***Consonants p, b, m, d, t, k, g, f, w, n, y and vowels well established by age 4-5
***Consonants p, b, m, d, t, k, g, f, w, n, y, ng, h and vowels well established by age 5-6
***Speech should be intelligible yet some sounds may not yet be mastered: s, z, l, r, ch, sh, dj, v, zh, voiced and voiceless th
***Speech is intelligible and all sounds should be mastered
Language Disorder
Characterized by difficulty understanding language or following directions, or the inability to choose appropriate words and combine them correctly for sentences. The individual lacks age appropriate language comprehension and expressive abilities.
When to refer:
* Difficulty answering and asking questions
* Difficulty following simple and multi-step directions; comprehension of basic concepts
* Difficulty retelling a story or talking about an event
* Difficulty remembering information presented verbally
* Expressing ideas with a variety of complete and grammatically correct sentences
* Difficulty with vocabulary naming and classification
* Difficulty listening and drawing conclusions; making inferences; summarizing main points during learning activities
* Difficulty with problem solving
Fluency Disorder
Characterized by an abnormal amount of involuntary repetitions, hesitations, prolongations, blocks or disruptions in the natural flow of rate and rhythm of speech.
When to refer:
* Student physically struggles to initiate and complete utterances.
* Student has an abnormal number of repetitions (repeat sounds, syllables, words, phrases), hesitations, prolongations, blocks (can't get words out) or disruptions in natural flow of speech.
* Student exhibits tension or abnormal movements during speech.
* Student avoids speaking due to fear of stuttering or is embarrassed by his/her speech.
* Student's rate of speech is too fast making him/her difficult to understand.
Voice Disorder
Characterized by abnormal vocal pitch, loudness, quality, or resonance.
When to refer:
* Voice is chronically hoarse, harsh, breathy or of poor quality
* Voice is always too loud or soft
* Pitch is inappropriate for the student's age or sex or has frequent pitch breaks
* Voice is hyponasal (absence of nasal resonance in the voice) or hypernasal (sounds like "too much nose" in the voice)
Pragmatic Disorder
Pragmatics refers to the appropriate use of language in social situations. For example, knowing what to say, how to say it, when to say it and generally how to "act" around other people during conversation. There are many children who have large vocabularies and are able to speak in full sentences that are clearly articulated, however, they may still have difficulty using language in various social situations.
When to refer:
* Difficulty following a simple conversation; participating appropriately in a conversation; starting a conversation; opening and closing a conversation
* Difficulty participating appropriately in conversation
* Difficulty initiating and maintaining topic
* Difficulty taking turns during conversation
* Difficulty maintaining eye contact
* Difficulty understanding other people's perspectives
* Difficulty understanding humor and sarcasm
Speedy Speech
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Summer Break Message
We are so proud of all of our speech-language students and the progress they have made throughout the year! To ensure your child continues to maintain his or her learned skills and strategies, we encourage you to complete the given summer homework and visit the sites listed below for additional practice. By setting a time to focus on your child's goals, he or she will enter school next year ready to continue right where we left off. These activities are signed to be brief and enjoyable. Have a WONDERFUL summer break!
Articulation Program Homework and Calendars
Language Program Homework and Calendars
Voice Program Homework and Calendars
Websites for speech and language enrichment
There are so many games and websites online to have fun playing! Here are a few to start…
Starfall
(letter sounds, stories for all target sounds)
Quia
Search for games on this page that include your sound. Which game is your favorite to play? Is there one you can share with a friend?
Storyline Online
Listen to fantastic stories read aloud by famous actors. Choose a book to check out from the library…pretend to read it like you are a famous actor. Look for words with your target sound. Can you make a new story using these words?
