My son, Tarun, is a smart young man who is avid for information on sharks and dinosaurs. Each time he switches on the TV, he makes it a point to run through all the science channels and watches at least one episode on animals – his favourites being aquatic animals and extinct animals. His tiny brain brims with so many facts about animals that he could do an entire Youtube series by himself.
Tarun has, however, been a slow learner of language for many years. Initially, we assumed that he’s just a slow learner and decided to give it some time before doing anything about it. As a child, his pronunciation wasn’t perfect and it continued even when we turned 10 years old – which is when we decided to visit a Speech Therapist.
Ever since we visited the Speech Therapist, Tarun has been going for regular sessions to work on his pronunciation and language. Both, my husband and I, see a gradual and notable difference in his speech.
Here are a few things I learn about speech therapy in these past two years.
What I learnt about Speech Therapy
Speech Therapy can help children with disorders associated with not only the pronunciation of words but also in understanding the elements of language and using it for expression. Speech disorders are caused due to many reasons such as hearing impairment, breathing issues, swallowing issues, weak oral muscles, motor issues, and so on. Therapy can be started for kids as young as 5 years. You need not worry if your child has speech issues and has crossed the age of 5. It’s never too late to go for therapy.
Speech Therapists help kids improve pronunciation by conducting simple exercises and games where the therapist teaches or corrects sounds produced by the child. The therapist will show exactly how the sound is made such as how the tongue should touch the palate to make the sound “r”. The therapist will also use books, games, objects, and other models to better language development.
Speech Therapy at Home
My son’s therapist keeps me posted about the techniques she uses to help him and lets me know what I can do at home to help him too. One of the activities I would conduct at home (Only when he’s up for it, I don’t force it on him) is using flashcards. I see the object on the flashcard and say the word out loud and my son repeats it. The flashcards are age-appropriate and suggested to me by the therapist.
Beating Stigmas on Therapy
Going for therapy or sending your kids for therapy still remains a stigma for some reason. In my opinion, therapy only helps people and there is nothing to be secretive or evasive about.
Tarun loves the sessions with the Speech Therapist so much that he skips along to class without mumbling any complaints (as he does when he has to finish his food or finish up some chores).
As you can tell from my intro to this blog, Tarun is like any other young boy with interests of his own but has this tiny little problem that is not impossible to cure. Children with speech disorders improve quicker and better with therapy and the support of family. So, parents should lend a hand to support children with disorders of any kind.
Did your child have a speech disorder? How did you go about with the treatment? Let me know in the comments.
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