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Original poster

Severe speech delay

14 replies

Jkn1995 · 16/03/2025 21:03

My son is 4 years old and starts school in September. He can say around 15/20 words but cannot talk in sentences and the words he does say are incoherent to people who do not know him.
we have had two speach therapist appointments but both times we have been sent away and being told “he’s not presenting any other concerns, it’s just his speach it will come.”

his friends at school get frustrated with him because he cannot talk and im terrified of him starting school and still not being understood by anyone but me or his dad.

i am looking into “speech sounds” to develop and strengthen the sounds (he can say all the sounds) and phonics but I really don’t know where to start.

does anyone have any pointers or a website i can get resources from? Or a guide on how to help him or where to begin with the oral aspect of phonics?

We read every night, do sticker scene books i model words to him daily.

any advice?

OP posts:
Maxorias · 17/03/2025 01:21

I wouldn't be happy with the speech therapists' dismissal. Even if speech does develop in time, he could probably use some help to make it happen faster.

Is it, in fact, the only concern ? Does he understand you, is he able to follow instructions ? Would he be able to use cards or signs to communicate ?

I'd want to talk to his teacher before classes start to discuss what support he may need going forward.

Lancrelady80 · 17/03/2025 01:38

Ds was like that. We had input from a private SALT for a short while. She got us working on a) using the PECS system for immediate help with communication and b) working on specific two letter combinations in random sequences eg fa / fe / fe / fa etc. Then things like be/ bo /be / bi etc.

Ds is now 11 and will not shut up! All sounds except l are pretty much perfect and he is certainly able to be understood by unfamiliar people - which we thought would never happen. I must have spent a good seven years translating for others / repeating back.

Good luck, and don't lose hope.

Wombatsbelongwiththeirmums · 17/03/2025 01:43

How long ago did you last see a SLT? At age 4, I would be really unhappy with being dismissed with the concerns you have. Working on speech sounds/clarity is one part of the picture, but his overall language development sounds well below where it should be.
Is he able to understand you? Follow directions, etc?

Original poster
Jkn1995 · 03/04/2025 21:42

Yes he follows instruction and understands us.

for example when he wants to do something ‘again’ he will say agayyyy. Or bike he is saying “biiiiye” instead of the k sound in bike.

I am going to speak to his school before he starts and will look into the PECS.

thank you for your replies and advice

OP posts:
sploshsplash · 03/04/2025 21:50

Does he follow your instructions verbally or do you do lots of added non verbal communications eg. Exaggerated facial expression, hand gestures etc? As many people overestimate how much their child can actually understand verbally.
do you speak fast?
It’s a good idea to give your child lots of opportunities to speak without rushing. Offer open questions, repeat back what they say and extend eg. Red car…. Yes! A big red car.

Haveiwon · 03/04/2025 22:11

I’d be really unhappy with that too! If you can go private I would asap and get back to the nhs salt as well. Given he is about to start school they should be doing something!

Have you looked at oral dyspraxia? Does any of that sound like your DS? If so, the Nuffield programme is the gold standard.

That good he can say all the sounds. Where does it break down? Can he say an “easy” word like dada? What about Daddy? Can he repeat single words slowly after you?

If he can repeat single words after you and you think he is ready then started learning to read could be a good idea. It naturally works on single phonic sounds and simple words while teaching an important skill! Grab any synthetic phonic reading books of Vinted and start.

In terms of others understanding him you can go high tech or low tech. Low tech would be Pecs/ communication books. Simple things but then he can point at the picture of a toilet in his book and the teacher will understand he needs to go etc.

If possible, I’d go high tech- there are apps you can get that do the same thing as a communication board/ PECS but are much more flexible. You have time to work with your son over the summer so he can start school confident on how it works.

https://www.assistiveware.com/products/proloquo2go

Proloquo is one of the best but there are others.

BellissimoGecko · 03/04/2025 22:37

If he can say all the speech sounds, then why is his speech hard to understand?

I’d press for a second opinion.

nocoolnamesleft · 03/04/2025 22:39

Has he had his hearing checked? Missing some sounds out of words can be associated with impaired hearing.

cestlavielife · 03/04/2025 22:45

Look at speech and language units in schools near you

ernbe04 · 04/04/2025 00:51

Hi,
I'm a speech and language therapist. 15-20 words at 4 years old is concerning.

Does he present with any other areas of difficulty in terms of his communication? Will he attempt to communicate in other ways, e.g. point, take you to things?

For now, I would focus on developing his understanding and use of language over focusing on his speech sounds.

I would ask for another referral to speech and language and get the school to support the referral.

user1486915549 · 04/04/2025 08:54

I am a speech and language therapist too and I am surprised at the advice you were given.
insist on another appointment with the SALT. Ask for a programme you could be working through with your child.
You are right to be concerned

RandomMess · 04/04/2025 08:59

A hearing test is absolutely a priority.

My DD had severe speech delay. In her NHS hearing tests when she missed sounds they kept saying she was bored of it etc and said her hearing was fine.

We had a hearing test done independently when she was 3 and it turns out she had a inverted hearing curve and her hearing in the high frequencies was at 38 decibels, in young children it should be more like 18-20 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬

Fortunately she had auditory processing disorder and as she was treated for it with johansen therapy aged 3 her hearing quickly improved to near perfect and her speech caught up.

Autumn1990 · 04/04/2025 09:11

The school will want him to have speech therapy so I would contact them, ideally set up and meeting and hopefully take him with you and then they can push for some SALT input.
IME as a parent you can say it’s needed as much as you like but it won’t happen. When school or preschool say there’s a problem, miraculously an appointment appears

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