For many children here in Orlando, recognizing individual sounds and putting sounds together to form words and sentences is not always easy. Phonological delays present obstacles and affect the way a child communicate with others, how they learn, socialize and make friends.
What is a phonological delay?
Children who have difficulty articulating certain sounds or using them in the appropriate context, can have a phonological delay. This can make it difficult for a child to effectively create words, construct sentences, and interpret language.
According to the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA)
Functional speech sound disorders include those related to the motor production of speech sounds and those related to the linguistic aspects of speech production. Historically, these disorders are referred to as articulation disorders and phonological disorders,
Articulation disorders focus on errors (e.g., distortions and substitutions) in production of individual speech sounds.
Phonological disorders focus on predictable, rule-based errors (e.g., fronting, stopping, and final consonant deletion) that affect more than one sound.
From Sounds to Sentences: The Milestone Journey
There are quite a number of significant benchmarks along the journey from having difficulty saying individual sounds to being able to build words. These benchmarks show the growth a child makes through speech therapy.
Sound Master: teaches a child how to move and position their tongue and appropriately move air to create a separate sound.
Sound Combinations: transitioning between sounds to combine sounds into words and syllables.
Word Formation: combining various sounds to form words and improve their vocabulary.
Sentence Construction: Building words to form sentences to express a child’s ideas and thoughts, using correct syntax and grammar.
Empowering children through speech therapy
Speech therapy helps children overcome their speech and language obstacles so they can flourish in their ability to communicate. At First Words Speech Therapy, we give children the tools they need to navigate their way to confident and clear communication.
We build children’s abilities, knowledge, and confidence in themselves. Enabling them to effectively communicate as they progress through their developmental milestones and connect with the people and the world around them.
