DS and speech

[sweetmama3]

Hi, I need some advice. DS is 5 years old, and well, he speaks like he is 3. Actually my 3 year old speaks better than him most times. He knows many words, but still gets alot of words mixed up, like saying "Them" for "they" as in, "them went to the park", and "Her" instead of "she", things like that.
When he tries to explain himself, like this morning he had a dream, and was trying to share it with me, it just is all soo jumbled, that I have such a hard time trying to make out what he is trying to say.
I ask him questions in homeschool, about storied we have just read, the difference between a triangle, and a quadrilateral, for instance, and he looks at me like he is embarrassed, and it takes him forever to answer, if he does at all. I dont really know how to describe it. He did a year of preschool when he was 4, and I saw great improvement then, now, it seems like he is at a standstill, and I am not sure if I should have him evaluated for speech therapy (he was in speech Briefly in preschool). I just dont want him to have that label on him forever, if it is really not needed. Also, I am afraid, since he is at such a standstill with it, that I am doing him a disservice by homeschooling him. He seemed to thrive in preschool. ....What should I do?

[SundayCrepes]

I just read a book called Overcoming Dyslexia. Dyslexia is not about backwards letters. It's about the brain's inability to recognize sounds. This applies both to reading and talking. It is not a cognition thing. It is a sound thing. (And I don't mean hearing.) My daughter is 2 and has a speech delay. Her delay could indicate dyslexia. I'd have your child evaluated by a speech therapist. I'm also reading a book called Reading Disabilities:Beating the Odds. I just started reading it but it will talk about how to get your child evaluated. I think a psychologist of some sort evaluates for disabilities.

I am getting as educated as I can now in case my child has reading problems. I think the schools are required to offer services to all kids free of charge. I would assume that even homeschooled kids can receive these services. I know when my daughter turns 3 her speech therapy will be provided by the school and not early intervention. Typically they do the therapy at a school run preschool. My daughter will only go for the therapy and not the preschool. I'd think you could do the same with school aged kids, but I don't know.

[AAK]

Originally Posted by SundayCrepes

I just read a book called Overcoming Dyslexia. Dyslexia is not about backwards letters.

I was going to suggest this book too. I wish I had it when my dd was 4 or 5. I think I could have save her some of her current struggle. There really are a lot of early signs that we tend to brush off as basic variablity in children.

Of course, children do learn and grow at different rates, and this may simply be the case with your child. But, the book isn't meant to label, but to give you a better chance of helping your child succeed.

Regarding speech: if he isn't having difficulty with the actual articulation of sounds, but rather with the process and recall and speed to get thought to speech, I wouldn't bother with an eval. If he is still struggling with forming the sounds, I would take him in for an eval. If you liked your previous speech therapist, go back. If not, find a new one. My dd loved speech and never thought of it as a "label", rather a fun place she got to go to that would help her say things more clearly. At that point, she was really frustrated that people couldn't understand her. And, it was all fun and games.

Amy

[yllek]

At five, peers will begin to notice that it is difficult to understand your ds' speech. Speech therapy will not create a label for your son, but sadly, sometimes other children may start to do so.

We pay for speech therapy privately. My son is not dyslexic (extensive testing by a neuropsychologist revealed no phonological processing issues), but he does have an expressive language processing disorder. His articulation issues are minor, but he sometimes mumbles. Speech and language therapy covers much, much more than articulation (forming the correct sounds). My ds sometimes has difficulty retrieving the names of objects when he asked a direct question. Even simple questions, like the names of long-time friends or the a name of a color, can stump him. He uses a lot of filler words to stall for time as he organizes his thoughts -- "Well... um... excuse me..." Sometimes he does not register that he has started a story without reference points or that his ideas are too complex and that they have all come out in a jumble. And yet, his speech and language therapist said there were some aspects of language -- phonological awareness, vocabulary, and others -- where my 6yo was scoring where 12yo are expected to be.

Ds' ST recommended this book to me. Even though ds' issues are not auditory in origin (not CAPD, for example, but expressive), many of the teaching strategies in this book will help a kid with expressive language disorders.

You might also consider having an OT eval as well. Kids with processing disorders in one area tend to have a cluster of processing issues.

Hugs, mama. I remember how I felt as I starting unraveling ds' learning issues. I felt so worried and confused about why my bright little boy had such difficulty with seemingly simple things. Trust me, the more you find out, the less worried you'll feel. You'll learn about different ways to teach your ds to make the most of his strengths. And getting him the therapies he needs means that he will likely overcome these issues early -- well before most ps kids get identified for services.

Good luck to you guys!

[Mittsy]

I found this a while back and am looking into using it for DS(3.5yrs) who has some articulation issues. HTH!

[AAK]

Originally Posted by yllek

Speech and language therapy covers much, much more than articulation (forming the correct sounds). My ds sometimes has difficulty retrieving the names of objects when he asked a direct question. Even simple questions, like the names of long-time friends or the a name of a color, can stump him. He uses a lot of filler words to stall for time as he organizes his thoughts -- "Well... um... excuse me..." Sometimes he does not register that he has started a story without reference points or that his ideas are too complex and that they have all come out in a jumble. And yet, his speech and language therapist said there were some aspects of language -- phonological awareness, vocabulary, and others -- where my 6yo was scoring where 12yo are expected to be.

Maybe that is the benefit with going private. Our ST never went beyond articulation. I don't know why, maybe she didn't think dd needed more. I will be looking up the book you rec. as well.

Amy