What Are You Trying To Tell Me?

Do you find your young child’s speech difficult to understand?  Is it causing frustration for both you and your child; not to mention grandparents, childcare providers, and others who interact with your child?  Although it can be frustrating, some difficulty understanding your child’s speech is normal during speech development.  A 2-year-old is typically understood only 50% of the time with that amount increasing to about 75% of the time by age 3. Your 4-year-old should be understood at least 90% of the time, although they may still have some speech sound errors.

Speech sound errors are not the only consideration when thinking about speech clarity.  A Speech-Language Pathologist will also consider whether your child’s voice is too loud or too soft, too fast or too slow, and how the situation, gestures, and facial expressions support what your child is saying.  A great resource for monitoring your child’s speech skills yourself is the Speech Sound Checklist from Talk Box Alberta http://www.humanservices.alberta.ca/documents/talk-box-speech-sounds-checklist.pdf.

Are you still concerned?  Book an in-person or virtual consultation with me through our online portal https://www.lethbridgetherapycentre.com/contact or send me an email with your questions to brie@lethbridgetherapycentre.com.

Brie Schindel

Registered Speech-Language Pathologist