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Rehabilitation: 3 Things Pediatric Speech Therapists Wish Parents Knew

December 15, 2023

Reposted from PenguinSmart's "Heart-to-Heart" expert interview series bringing together pediatric speech therapists, physicians, and special education teachers to share their clinical and teaching experiences with parents.

Today's interview is with Cindy Lu, a pediatric speech therapist. Cindy holds a master's degree in Early Childhood Development Disorders from the University of Texas and previously served as an experienced pediatric speech therapist in Taiwan.

Speech therapy is a highly complex clinical discipline that spans various fields such as medicine, linguistics, neuroscience, psychology, audiology, and statistics, with pediatric speech therapists playing a crucial role in the therapy team.

Pediatric speech therapists will often engage in consulting, assessing, diagnosing, and treating issues related to speech (e.g. pronunciation, voice, fluency), language (e.g. comprehension and expression, auditory skills, speech, reading, and writing), and swallowing functions.

A recent nationwide survey conducted by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) found that among audiologists and speech-language pathologists specializing in children under 5 years old, a majority of respondents have observed a rise in referrals for hearing, speech, and language delays or disorders in the past 24 months. This period coincides with significant changes in the lives of many young children due to the COVID 19 pandemic.

Given the increasing demand for pediatric speech therapy and related services for children, there is a crucial need for parents to be well-informed about the importance of early identification and early childhood intervention for their children. It is essential for parents to familiarize themselves with the indicators of communication disorders within age-appropriate timelines. As primary caregivers in their children's lives, parents should have the most opportunities fo rdaily interaction with their child. Engaging in communicative activities such as talking, singing, playing, and reading books together are simple yet highly effective ways to enhance communication and social skills, actively contributing to the development of the child's brain. While the brain is most malleable from birth to 3 years, these activities remain crucial even beyond.

Three common misconceptions often arise among parents regarding language development in children and the importance of early childhood intervention for children exhibiting signs of language delays.

Misconception #1 - "Why hasn't my child started speaking yet? Is the only issue with my child really the inability to speak?”

When other children the same age have already started talking, one common reason parents bring their child to a pediatric speech therapist for evaluation is due to a delay in speaking. A child not speaking is an easily observable and obvious concern for parents. However, in early childhood intervention, we often find that parents are overly focused on the child's lack of speech, overlooking other factors that could also be influencing the child's inability to speak.

Addressing Hearing and Comprehension

When it comes to language development, it is important to address any underlying hearing or comprehension issues first. Important questions to ask include: does the child have any hearing problems or ear-related issues? Can he or she understand speech? How is their language comprehension ability? Is what they understand too limited? Does the child have sufficient opportunities in daily life to learn and practice oral expression?

Takeaway

Before a child can learn to speak, they must first hear and understand the meaning of the words. Only then will they attempt to learn expression. If a child cannot hear or understand, it is natural that their spoken language may be limited. At this point, addressing the issues of “hearing difficulties” or “language comprehension” takes precedence over the problem of “not speaking.”

Misconception #2 - "Why is my child unable to pronounce clearly?”

After a child starts babbling, parents always hope they start to develop clear pronunciation. “Why do some children speak very clearly from the start, while my child's speech is unclear?” “How do I teach him, and why does he struggle to learn the correct pronunciation?” These are common concerns that often plague parents’ minds during the stage of early childhood intervention.

Development of Speech Muscles

Before a child can correctly pronounce a word, they need to develop first control over their speech muscles, much like how a baby learns to walk by first controlling head and body movements, followed by coordinating muscle actions in the legs and hands to achieve a balanced walking motion. Similarly, the production of speech involves a series of muscle actions.

Before the age of three, children will not have the same mature muscle control and coordination abilities as adults. Therefore, some challenging sounds, such as rolled "r" sounds, may take a longer time to develop. Of course, some children may have inherently better control over speech muscles, and they may exhibit early and accurate pronunciation, but typically developing children generally achieve adult-like pronunciation around the age of four.

Takeaway

As a parent, you should encourage your child in their speech development by prompting them to observe your mouth movements and mimic them, but avoid forcing them to do this every time. Reduce the pressure on children regarding pronunciation. Even if their pronunciation isn't perfect, parents can exaggerate mouth movements, demonstrate, and engage in oral-motor games to help children control these muscles before the age of three. If pronunciation issues persist after four years old, early childhood intervention can be pursued – seek an expert evaluation and guidance on what you can do. 

Misconception #3 - "Leaving it to the experts ensures the best help for the child, right?”

The truth is that the time a child spends with professionals can never match the time spent with parents.

Many parents believe that when they discover issues with their child, engaging in early childhood intervention by handing over the assessment and subsequent treatment to trained language therapy experts will definitely be more effective than aimlessly trying to address the problem themselves.

The Role of Parental Involvement

What is often overlooked, however, is that early childhood intervention is not just confined to the therapy room, but it can and should also be extended to everyday life because that is where we really want the changes to happen. Parents play a crucial role in whether a child can successfully apply the learned skills in real-life situations. Even dedicating 10-15 minutes each day to practice with your child can significantly help them progress and can strengthen the parent-child relationship.

Takeaway

During early childhood intervention, increasing the number of regular professional sessions may not be as effective as parents spending a little time each day purposefully interacting with their child. By coordinating with a language therapist to incorporate suitable home training, your child's learning progress will likely be much faster and longer lasting.

 

The Broader Context of Speech Therapy

Recognizing the broader significance of pediatric speech therapy is imperative for parents, as it extends beyond the surface-level treatment of speech-related challenges. Instead, it plays a pivotal role in shaping a child's comprehensive development. Pediatric speech therapists address a range of issues, targeting not only speech but also cognitive and social-emotional skills—cornerstones crucial for fostering effective communication.

Early childhood intervention involving pediatric speech therapy should be seen as a collaborative venture between professionals and parents. While the therapist shares valuable insights and techniques during sessions, the true changes occur when these strategies are consistently reinforced in the child's home environment. This collaborative effort amplifies the impact of therapy, creating an environment where the child can seamlessly integrate newfound skills into their daily life.

Maintaining open lines of communication with the pediatric speech therapist is essential. Early childhood intervention necessitates regular updates and discussions with the therapist to ensure that parents stay well-informed about their child's progress and evolving needs. This dynamic exchange of information enables parents to tailor home-based activities to align with the specific goals and strategies identified during therapy sessions. By actively participating in this collaborative process, parents become key contributors to the overall success and effectiveness of their child's pediatric speech therapy journey.

Conclusion

In general, SLPs stress the importance of early childhood intervention and of parents cultivating a heightened awareness of the various factors that impact their child's language development. Parents play a pivotal role in early childhood intervention by facilitating an environment that enables their children to attain their utmost potential in language skills. The significance of active parental involvement in early childhood intervention is an indispensable complement to expert services.Parents are positioned as key contributors to the linguistic growth of their children in early childhood intervention, with their involvement serving as a catalyst for unlocking and nurturing their children’s language capabilities. A collaborative approach should be adopted where expert intervention (e.g. guidance from educators or pediatric speech therapists) is tightly integrated into families’ day-to-day interactions and activities. The synergy between professional expertise and parental engagement is a dynamic force that propels a child forward in their language development journey.

 

 

About PenguinSmart

Digital solutions for parent-centered speech and language intervention.

Founded by Harvard & MIT alumni, PenguinSmart combines the latest data sciences with expert insights to empower parents to become a key part of their children's development journey. By helping families effectively integrate communication techniques into daily life, we see children show faster improvement compared to relying on weekly clinical sessions alone (in some cases 2-3x faster). We have already served English & Mandarin-speaking families from over 35 cities around the world. PenguinSmart is an Alchemist Accelerator-backed company and was nominated for the IFAH global "Top 100 Healthcare Visionaries" award.

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Customized Parent Coaching - a comprehensive 12-15 weeks family coaching program that involves customized training plans for how parents engage the child at home to stimulate communication development; caregiver training, 1:1 consultations with SLP and coaching team, on-demand online assistant support and personal progress tracking platform