speech delay

[noko]

my Ds is 3 yrs 8 months and isstruggling with his speech. he understands everything you are telling him but find it difficult to answer in full sentences. it feel like he has his own languages. he can count to 100, knowns the alphabet. We are waiting for an appointment with speech therapy for 6 months now and i worry that if this problem continue,he will struggle when he start reception in sept 2011. is someone are there with the same problem?

Both my DSs (6 & 8) have had speech problems and have had programmes with a speech and language therapist. DS1 made huge improvements doing intensive speech therapy in year 1 and DS2 has made gradual but steady improvements in the last 2 years. As I understand it, the children have to be at least reception age for them to start a programme.

It is hard watching them struggle to be understood especially when they start school. DS1s reception teacher said to me once "He understands a lot more than we thought he did!" I just replied that I'd never had any questions about his comprehension, just because he couldn't express himself, doesn't mean he didn't understand everything that was being said to him. With DS2, we devised our own system of sign language to ease his frustration but it was crushing to see him trying over and over to make himself understood to people and then just giving up when they didn't get it.

Maybe make a call and see how close you are to getting an assesment and if there is any information they can send you in the meantime. HTH.

thank you very much. i think i will call them again and find out. he goes to a private nursery because i'm studying at university and sometime when i pick him up , they always put him with the little ones ( 2 yrs) instead of being with his own age group and the nursery said that they do not want to disturb the one who are advanced.

Oh dear .. that doesn't sound right to me - putting him with younger age group?? . I would seriously question this and ask them to stop this practice. Just because he has a speech or language delay, does not mean he is delayed in other areas of his development. He should be with children his own age as this can actually help bring his speech on. 'We' learn to talk by listening and mimicking sounds and he won't be able to do this effectively if they've put him in with children who are also developing their speech. Also, assuming you pay for private nursery .. could you get him a session or two with a private SALT (around £50/hour if you are in the UK) who can help to put your mind at rest and advise what you can start doing now to help him - meanwhile staying on the waiting list for state assessment. My ds2 had moderate speech and language delay and now aged 7, still sounds a bit 'young' for his age, but he's getting there. We had 7 sessions with private SALT and her input was invaluable. He wasn't deemed severe enough to continue any NHS therapy after his initial assessment. Good luck

I would seriously question the nursery on where they are placing him.

My DS is 3 in a week and has already been under SALT for a year. He has severe language delay - has about 10/15 words but understands EVERYTHING! And you can tell him something once and he remembers it. They are stumped by him to be honest. He is due to start another salt course in the next few weeks and this will hopefully be more intense.

It is heartbreaking to watch them try to get themselves across to strangers

I can't really spare some cash at the moment for the private SALT because i'am using my student loans to pay for his childcare And it is really difficult to find another nursery close to the university where i goes. some one of them only receive children residing in that borough.
Maybe i'll ask them not to separate him form his group so he could learn.

Get the book "BabyTalk" by Dr Sally Ward. It's wonderful, it describes a home based programme to treat speech delay. Sally Ward was the speech therapist for Greater Manchester, and the book is widely available from libraries and bookshops including Amazon.

There's a summary of the programme here:

tinyurl.com/p98hcp

HTH

I have that book I think if you want it? Not done anything for me but there you go! Think it depends what the issue is i suppose.

We don't have private salt either, no way could we afford it. DS is under NHS. Guess we were lucky.

By the way, SALT are still looking along the lines of speech dyspraxia for my son.

How long did you wait to be seen by your SALT maxybrown? if you really think that you are not going to use it again. I just want to feel like i am doing something to help him.

Sure, will dig it out for you email me [email protected]

Well he was referred last september and we were first seen in November - so pretty amazing really!

He is due to go to a speech unit for his nursery foundation year starting NEXT September, where there will only be 10 children

that's really amazing. mine was referred by his nursery in april and the last time i called to check they said that he's still on the waiting list because they were short of therapist at that time.

I'm happy today because i just received a call to go for an initial assessment on 22 sept.

Yay, that's great news.

Just found this thread while going through the archives- Noko if you're still out there how did you get on? My DS has an assessment with SALT on 3rd Dec and is 3.3 and sounds exactly like your son.

hi ladies, been busy with uni for the past months.
after the initial assessment in sept, we had to wait until january to have a one to one session with the therapist. it lasted two months. he is still struggling with his sentences but he does make eye contact more often when you're playing together something he didn't like to do before.
the problem is the one to one session were only for two months and now we are waiting again to be put in group therapy. i keep dong the exercise at home but worry that he would struggle in september when he start reception.

how old is he now?
does he prefer his own company?

he is 4year and 3 month and yes he prefer his own company. if he's around children his ages, he often play alongs them but not with them.