SPEECH
Kids thrive when they are able to communicate efficiently and successfully, with as few barriers as possible.  Removing barriers, like difficulty pronouncing certain speech sounds, improves confidence and self-esteem so they can achieve as much as they want.

Speech Therapy

About Speech Sound Disorders
Children may say some sounds the wrong way as they learn to talk. They learn some sounds earlier, like p, m, or w. Other sounds take longer to learn, like z, v, r, or th.  Most children can say almost all speech sounds correctly by 4 years old. A child who does not say sounds by the expected ages may have a speech sound disorder. You may hear the terms "articulation disorder" and "phonological disorder" to describe speech sound disorders like this.

Signs and Symptoms
Your child may substitute one sound for another, leave sounds out, add sounds, or change a sound. It can be hard for others to understand him.  It is normal for young children to say the wrong sounds sometimes. For example, your child may make a "w" sound for an "r" and say "wabbit" for "rabbit." She may leave sounds out of words, such as "nana" for "banana." This is okay when she is young. It may be a problem if she keeps making these mistakes as she gets older.

By 3 years
  • Says m, n, h, w, p, b, t, d, k, g, and f in words
  • Familiar people understand the child's speech

By 4 years
  • Says y and v in words
  • May still make mistakes on the s, sh, ch, j, ng, th, z, l, and r sounds
  • Most people understand the child’s speech

​Causes
Many children learn to say speech sounds over time, but some do not.  You may not know why your child has problems speaking.  Most children who have trouble pronouncing sounds are just a little behind with their development and need some guidance to learn how to produce sounds correctly.  Some children have speech problems because the brain has trouble sending messages to the speech muscles telling them how and when to move. This is called apraxia. Childhood apraxia of speech is not common but will cause speech problems.  Some children have speech problems because the muscles needed to make speech sounds are weak. This is called dysarthria.  

Speech Therapy for Organic or Functional Speech Sound Disorders includes:
  • Learning the correct way to make sounds
  • Learning to tell when sounds are right or wrong
  • Practicing sounds in different words
  • Practicing sounds in longer sentences

At Thrive Kids, Becky looks for windows of readiness to determine if a child is a good candidate for direct speech therapy right now, or could use a little time and encouragement from family members before being ready.  An evaluation session prior to any treatment will be conducted to determine areas of need as well as readiness.

Path to Speech Success

  • ​Sound Isolation
  • Sound in Syllables
  • Sound in Words
  • Sound in Phrases
  • Sound in Sentences
  • Sound in Stories
  • Sound in Conversation
  • Generalization/Carryover to Spontaneous Speech