Understanding your child’s speech can feel like second nature to you as a Language is how we connect with others, learn, and grow. But what happens when language doesn’t come easily? As parents, it can be tough to know if your child’s difficulties will resolve with time, or if they need a little extra support to master their language skills.
I am JP Alters, I’m the Director of Speech Therapy here at Rebound Physical Therapy. Today, I want to talk to you about language disorders and what you should do if you think your child might be struggling with language.
What Is a Language Disorder?
Did you know that there are two types of language? One is receptive language, and one is expressive language.
Receptive language is understanding incoming information. It’s how you process information that you hear, read, or see. This can be someone else’s speech, words that you read in a book, or even body language and facial expressions.
Expressive language is outgoing information. It’s how you share your thoughts, feelings, and ideas with others. This can be through your own speech, words that you write down, or your own body language and facial expressions. It’s any way that you convey your wants, needs, and desires.
Signs of a Receptive Language Disorder
What are some signs of a receptive language disorder? Remember that a receptive language disorder has to do with understanding. So you might see someone struggling to understand vocabulary. They might have difficulty following basic directions. They might also have difficulty understanding basic concepts.
These deficits can be very frustrating sometimes to a parent or even an educator. When a child is unable to comply with reasonable requests, he or she may be negatively labeled. He or she does not understand the information being presented by the communication partner.
Over time, as this child becomes more aware of the deficits, their self-esteem and confidence may also be impacted. So that’s why having a speech therapist to be able to identify some of those deficits is very important.
Signs of an Expressive Language Disorder
What are some signs of an expressive language disorder? This would be any difficulty formulating ideas to convey meaning to listeners. These deficits might include using simple sentences or short phrases when compared to peers of the same age.
It can also mean leaving words out of a sentence. One of the signs I see frequently is that a child will say, “he running,” instead of using that progressive verbing, “he is running.” Another sign is difficulty using vocabulary accurately or using a lot of filler words. And then another one would be speaking quietly, maybe because they have an awareness of their deficit.
When to See a Speech Therapist to Support Your Child’s Language Development
Truth be told, if you have any concerns, early intervention is key to identifying and remediating deficits. At Rebound, we desire to partner with you for the benefit of your child and the benefit of your family.
If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to us for a free speech screening. Give us a call at (785) 271-5533, and we’ll be happy to help.
