Description of Services
Deciding what services your child needs can be confusing. While I have described in detail the most common services below, an evaluation is a critical step for developing your child's therapy plan. Services provided are not limited to this list - reach out if you have any questions or want further information.
Spoken and Written Communication Development
Semantics, Morphology, Syntax
Children with difficulty understanding and using spoken and/or written language may benefit from a speech-language evaluation and treatment. Their plan of therapy may target strengthening skills in the areas of vocabulary (semantics) and grammar (morphosyntax).
Speech Production
Speech Motor Planning and Execution, Articulation, Phonological
Most children can say almost all speech sounds correctly by 4 years old. If your child’s speech is difficult to understand, she or he may require treatment for a speech sound disorder. Other terms used to describe this include “articulation disorder” or “phonological disorder.” Some children may have difficulty speaking due to a motor speech disorder such as childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) or dysarthria. CAS involves difficulty in planning, sequencing, and/or coordinating relevant muscles or muscle groups for speech production. Dysarthria involves a disturbance in muscle control that results in weakness, slowness, and/or incoordination in speech production.
Feeding and Swallowing Therapy
Oral Motor Skill Development
Some children have difficulty consuming an age-expected variety and quantity of foods to meet their nutritional needs. This may be due to an underlying medical condition or related to oral motor skill deficits. A feeding evaluation and treatment can provide family education and training, help a child develop their oral motor skills, or determine if a referral to a related professional is needed (ENT, GI, RDN, etc.).