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"Will my toddler outgrow these speech and language difficulties?"
Of
children who exhibit use of fewer than 50 words at age 2 years:
- 83%
persist in having a language delay at age 3 years.
Of
children who remain delayed at age 3 years:
- 41%
remain delayed in expressive language
- 55%
show receptive deficits (language understanding) as well
- 73%
score below age level in socialization skills
- 93%
fall below the 50th percentile in speech sound production
- 56%
fall below the 10th percentile in speech sound production
These
findings suggest the following predictions about toddlers
with small expressive vocabularies:
- They are at substantial risk for continued delay in
language development
- They are at high risk for delays in speech sound proficiency
- They have a high probability of showing social immaturity
- They may have subtle nonverbal cognitive deficits
These
findings have important clinical implications both for assessment
and treatment of "late-talking" toddlers:
- Children who at 24-30 months produce fewer than 50
words should be seen for further evaluation of language
function.
- When parents are advised to "wait and see," only 25%
of communication difficulties and learning difficulties
are detected by the age of five. Because a majority of these
children will not grow out of their delay, intervention,
or at least continued monitoring of progress, is justified.
- Because deficits in socialization very frequently
accompany language delay in this population, pragmatic approaches
to intervention that focus on using language to attain social
goals are an extremely important part of the management
program.
- Because speech sound deficits are also very frequent,
even when expressive language improves significantly, phonological
development should be included in the management plan.
If you know two-year-old children who are not developing
a 250-word vocabulary, they should be referred
to a speech pathologist for evaluation, intervention and/or
monitoring.
Go to
Early Intervention Clinics.
Results
of research by Rhea Paul, Portland State University, 1989
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