How long does it take to work with a speech therapist?

Many parents ask this question - how long to study with a speech therapist?

It all depends on the type of speech disorder

Sound production in case of monomorphic dyslalia (in the absence of lesions of the central nervous system, intact innervation of the articulatory apparatus, hearing and with a normal medical history). In this case, one sound can be introduced quite quickly at least 2 months to automate and introduce it into speech There are cases when this can be done faster or slower, but this depends on the individual characteristics of the child, his character, the frequency of visits, daily homework, and the child’s health. With polymorphic dyslalia (in the absence of lesions of the central nervous system, preserved mobility of the articulatory apparatus, hearing and with a normal medical history), in which several groups of sounds are pronounced defectively. The classes will take more time, approximately 6 months, because... the pronunciation of many sounds is impaired, and it is necessary not only to place and automate them in speech, but also to teach how to differentiate them. For neurological disorders, depending on the nature of perinatal brain damage.

For dysarthria, depending on its form, from one to 3 years;
In cases of cerebral palsy in children, the degree of damage to gross, fine motor and articulatory motor skills is taken into account; on average, the work takes from 1 year or more.
With alalia for about 3 years, sometimes more time is required.
For stuttering from 6 months (with biofeedback apparatus) or more, depending on the type of stuttering, age, frequency of visits, diligence, concentration, self-regulation.

In case of organic lesions, caused by defects in the articulatory apparatus (bite, shape and size of the tongue, shape of the palate, lips, hyoid frenulum). Depending on the type of lesion, the duration of the course is selected individually, and in the process of speech correction, the content and duration of the course may change. It should be noted that in some cases, for example, with rhinolalia, surgical intervention is required and then the work on correcting speech becomes quite lengthy. In case of violations of the tempo of speech (bradylalia, tachylalia, batarism, polternium, stuttering). In these cases, for more efficient and faster work, we recommend taking speech correction courses using biofeedback and forbrain devices in addition to the main classes. The duration of classes can take from 6 months or longer. For dyslexia and dysgraphia. Depending on the type of dyslexia and dysgraphia, degree of neglect, medical history, desire of the child, daily homework for 2 years and more. VERY IMPORTANT! It should be noted that all terms for speech correction are written in an average value, each child is individual (his medical history, type of a particular disorder, character, psycho-emotional state, self-regulation, will), in some cases, parallel work with a psychologist, neuropsychologist is required , neurologist, defectologist, exercise therapy specialist, auxiliary devices DENAS, forbrain, biofeedback. Therefore, it is never possible to say exactly how many classes a particular child needs; we can only indicate approximate time frames for work. Also, parents and relatives of the child play a significant role in the work , doing homework every day, practicing correct sound pronunciation, lexical-grammatical and tempo-rhythmic aspects of speech in everyday speech, supporting and encouraging the child in his activities, creating a favorable and fruitful environment for child, “Example” is the correct speech of the parents themselves.

Author of the article: Anastasia Gauk.

When should you visit a speech therapist?

Signs of speech development disorders cannot be ignored under any circumstances. We recommend urgently making an appointment with a speech therapist if:

the child does not pronounce sounds in accordance with the age norm;
“swallows” endings or whole words;
involuntarily replaces one sound with another;
knows very few words and only his relatives can understand him;
at 2-3 years old does not pronounce words correctly;
at 4-5 years old uses soft sounds instead of hard ones (for example, “fir” instead of “ate”);
during speech, the child stumbles, repeats sounds and syllables, stutters;
cannot remember a short poem, retell a simple story, or talk about an event that happened to him;
at 3-4 years old does not speak in phrases, has a poor vocabulary;
changes sounds or syllables in words;
in preschool age he cannot pronounce sounds and has problems mastering written speech.

The child urgently needs to be shown to a neurologist and speech therapist if at 2-3 years old his vocabulary contains only the simplest babbling words, he does not understand spoken speech or prefers to communicate using gestures and facial expressions.

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How does a child's speech develop?

The norms for speech development are described by age, but all children develop differently. The permissible gap from peers is no more than six months. If the delay lasts longer, then you need to visit a speech therapist.

During the first year of life, the child develops his first babble words. By 12 months, he should distinguish between gestures, simple words like “mom”, “give”, and pronounce 3-4 words.
At 2 – 2.5 years old, the vocabulary vocabulary should be at least 50 words. The child speaks in phrases of 2-3 words. The sounds [b], [m], [f], [v], [t], [d], [n], [k], [g] appear.
At the age of 3, children, as a rule, master the grammatical structure of their native language: they freely use case forms, singular and plural, and auxiliary parts of speech. The child speaks in sentences.
At the age of 4, hissing and whistling sounds appear in speech, and sentences become more complex. The child actively communicates with peers and adults.
In the speech of a five-year-old child, the most difficult sonorant sounds appear - [r] and [l]. Children pronounce other sounds well and speak familiar words clearly.

A child can learn a short poem or retell a story using pictures.

Contrary to popular belief that there is no point in going to a speech therapist before the age of 5, it is recommended that you show your child to a specialist at the age of three . This is especially important if

you noticed that there is a lag in speech development, even if slight;
the child does not attend kindergarten;
you have already tried to practice on your own, but without visible results;
the baby’s speech is difficult to understand, and only the mother can communicate with him;
the child has suffered a head injury, severe stress, or severe infection in the past;
the baby is being seen by a neurologist;
The pregnancy was difficult, there was a difficult birth.

Serious deviations, as a rule, already manifest themselves by 3 years. It is extremely important not to waste time and begin correction. The sooner you start studying, the faster your child will be able to catch up with his peers. It’s not too early to start classes with a speech therapist at 3 years old. Three-year-olds are already good at completing tasks, repeating after an adult, and are willing to make contact.

The child does not pronounce the sound “r”: what to do? And 10 more questions for the speech therapist

We know that a speech therapist introduces the sound “r” to children and teaches them to pronounce sibilants. It also reassures parents who are worried that their child cannot cope with pronunciation. Speech therapist, philologist and writer Ksenia Belenkova tells who else needs such a specialist and how he can help.

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Who needs a speech therapist?

Speech therapists who deliver sounds quickly are usually highly regarded. But in fact, the work of these specialists is not limited to pronunciation: this is just the tip of the iceberg. For the harmonious development of a child, as well as for the successful development of writing and reading, it is necessary to develop and correct all aspects of speech.

A speech therapist can help with the following problems and tasks of speech development:

Working with grammatical structure.
For example, so that the child matches words correctly and does not make mistakes like “wolf’s tail.”
Dictionary expansion.
A child’s speech should not be limited to the narrow framework of everyday, everyday expressions - a speech therapist helps make speech richer and more expressive.
Improving coherent speech
and the ability to use detailed statements
.
Formation of phonemic hearing.
It is extremely important for a preschooler to be able to distinguish between similar speech sounds (“ch-sch”, “zh-z”, “s-sh”), as well as to carry out sound analysis and synthesis (find the place of a sound in a word and be able to connect sounds with each other).
Building the syllabic structure of complex words.
Some children have difficulty pronouncing constructions like “TV” and “bicycle.” Instead, they say things like “tevisor” and “lesaped.” A specialist will help you return all the syllables to their places.

Speech therapy errors associated with impaired phonemic hearing or visual perception of letters can affect a child’s learning. And their timely study with a specialist will help him successfully master the Russian language and literary reading program.

When should a child start talking?

The pace of speech development is individual for each child. If we talk about the average norm, then it is believed that by three months the child begins to gurgle - that is, to chant vowel sounds. A six-month-old baby is already babbling - pronouncing the syllables “gu”, “ma”, “pa”, “ba”. By one year, the first words appear, and by two years, phrases appear. And here there is an important clarification! The phrase can be either detailed, for example, “Mom, give me a drink,” or “incorrect,” consisting of a pair of so-called babbling words: “Ma, give me.” Both of these options fit into the age norm. Therefore, do not panic if your child at two years old speaks easier and worse than his peers. There is a high probability that he will soon catch up and overtake them.

Photo: Shutterstock/the24studio

At what age and why should you contact a speech therapist?

It is customary to practice sound pronunciation from the age of 4–5 years. If the only problem is that the child speaks unclearly, you can safely wait until this age. By the age of 5, children are already able to understand and perform all the exercises necessary to quickly and efficiently produce sounds.

Are there reasons to see a speech therapist before a child is 4 or 5 years old? Yes. If by the age of two and a half, even simple and incorrect phrases like “Ma, give” have not appeared in the child’s speech, there is no point in waiting. If a child does not speak, correctional work should begin at the age of 3 in order to solve this problem by school.

Can a non-speaking child speak on his own?

We've all heard stories about children who spoke poorly or didn't speak at all before school, and then suddenly "broke through." Should we believe these stories? Probably not. If a child does not speak at all at 3 years old, this problem cannot be solved without the help of a specialist. In addition, a child with a serious delay in speech development may simply not be accepted into a comprehensive school; he will most likely be offered special education. Plus, if a child does not pronounce the sound “r” by school, without the help of a speech therapist, he risks never learning to do so.

How long does it take to work with a speech therapist to correct a child’s speech?

Based on the results of the first diagnosis, the speech therapist will be able to draw an approximate correction route; it is individual for each child. Working with a specialist can take from several months to several years. The timing depends on how serious the violations are. If we are talking about producing a couple of sounds, then this can be dealt with in a small number of lessons. If a child has problems with various aspects of speech development, then the work will take a long time. Much depends on the motivation and the individual compensatory capabilities of the child. At the same time, sometimes difficult diagnoses are removed quickly, but lungs haunt a person for years.

Photo: Shutterstock / Matej Kastelic

Can a parent make sounds for their child on their own?

Nowadays you can find many sets of speech therapy exercises online, as well as videos with materials on sound production. If the child’s speech is not severely impaired, the parent will be able to cope with the problem on his own if he is patient, meticulous and responsible enough.

But even a speech therapist cannot always professionally and quickly cope with such a task, and severe speech disorders are much more common than mild ones.

Like any craft, speech therapy and sound production are a matter of experience. After the stage of sound production, there follows an equally important period of sound automation. This is a sequential work in which you cannot jump over the necessary steps.

Try working with sounds yourself if it gives quick and high-quality results. Does not work? Do not pester your child with exercises found on the Internet and contact a specialist who will select an individual complex for him.

How to choose a specialist who can help your child?

Focus on his previous experience and reviews. See if contact has been established between him and your child, because during such work the human factor is extremely important. And most importantly, watch the dynamics: the first results of the classes should appear almost immediately!

The specialist recommended trimming the hyoid frenulum. Is this really necessary?

A long (stretched) frenulum is needed to pronounce the sounds of the “upper rise” (“l”, “r”, “sh”, “zh”). The tongue is at the top when we speak them. If the frenulum is short, it pulls the tongue down, and it simply does not reach the palate, and sounds are not produced. In this case, some speech therapists immediately refer the child to trimming (cutting) the frenulum: this measure helps to lengthen it.

If a speech therapist recommended trimming the frenulum of the tongue, but his opinion was not confirmed by an orthodontist or dentist, it is worth consulting with one more, or better yet, a couple of specialists. Not all speech therapists approve of such radical measures. As mentioned above, the hyoid frenulum is trimmed (cut) to lengthen it. But the short frenulum can also be stretched with the help of special articulation exercises.

However, in this case, it is worth preparing for the fact that the period of work with a speech therapist will be extended, and pay due attention to this. But if a parent is expecting quick results and is not ready to devote 10 minutes a day to special exercises with the child, the decision to trim the frenulum may be appropriate. In fact, this operation itself is not complicated - everything heals in just a week, no long recovery is required, and you don’t even need to remove sutures.

Photo: Shutterstock/vitec

At what age is it no longer possible to correct sound pronunciation?

You can teach a person to pronounce sounds correctly at any age. Even an adult can come to a speech therapist to correct one or another defect. A good speech therapist will be able to provide sound to a middle and high school student in one or two lessons. Difficulties will await you later - at the automation stage. When a person has been pronouncing a sound incorrectly all his life and this has already become ingrained in his speech, it will take a lot of work and a lot of self-control to change it.

You can, for example, recite poetry correctly, but in everyday speech, which is accompanied by emotions, a person will be haunted for a long time by a habitual, but incorrectly formed skill. If the child is highly motivated (for example, he has chosen a profession that requires correct speech), he will cope with everything.

When should you teach your child to read?

A child should be taught to read only after his sound pronunciation has been corrected. If a child distorts sounds, then he will read incorrectly, for example, confuse “s” and “sh”, “b” and “p” if he mixes them in speech or does not distinguish them by ear.

How to get rid of confusion? First, pronounce the letters as sounds: “r”, not “er”, “l”, not “el”.

The second rule: you need to read not by letters, but by syllables. And the first skill that should be helped to consolidate a child is the merging of consonant and vowel sounds.

Many people find it easy to master literacy using Nadezhda Zhukova’s “Primer.”

Is early development beneficial for a child?

A child’s sincere desire should always be satisfied! If a child wants to learn letters at 2 years old, and the periodic table at three years old, give him this opportunity. It’s worse when the child wants to play (and play is the leading developmental activity for a preschooler), but the parent insists on teaching him this or that. The child does not yet distinguish sounds by ear, does not know how to pronounce them correctly, and he is already being taught to read, write and speak several languages.

Unfortunately, this only aggravates the problems, and at some point the child runs the risk of not overtaking his peers in terms of development, but of remaining far behind them. Therefore, it is important to be careful about the individual pace of development of the child. Don't overload him, leave him the opportunity to show personal initiative, find motivation, demonstrate interest - and then he will be able to use his potential to the maximum.

Cover photo: RIA Novosti / Alexey Kudenko

What happens during the first lesson?

A full speech therapy examination and diagnosis often requires more than one session. Speech is a very complex process, so diagnostics are always carried out comprehensively.

First, the speech therapist talks with the parents: it is necessary to find out how the child grew and developed, what illnesses and injuries he suffered, how the birth and pregnancy proceeded.
Then the speech therapist examines the baby’s speech organs, assesses the condition of the teeth and the correctness of the bite.
The next step is to assess gross motor skills. The speech therapist asks the child to walk, jump, and perform agility and balance tasks.
Next, the speech therapist determines how many words are in the active and passive dictionary, whether the child can correctly use singular and plural forms, cases, and intonation. The teacher checks whether the pronunciation, tempo, expressiveness of speech, knowledge of the lexical and grammatical structure of the language corresponds to the age norm.

In conclusion, the speech therapist draws up an individual training program. The duration of correction depends on the complexity of the speech defect.