Six Reasons Not to Wait to Treat Your Child's Speech Errors

Did you know that you can start working on correcting speech errors with kids as young as ages 2 and 3? In fact, outcomes are better for kids that start treating some of those pesky speech errors earlier, rather than waiting.

Does this mean you should start correcting your 2-year-old as they are learning to talk? Nope! Continue to model and reinforce whatever they say in the correct way. For example, child calls dogs "goggies". You could say, "Yes, it is a doggie!" Or "I see the doggie too!" We would NOT tell them they're saying it wrong.

Especially with new talkers you want to keep talking fun, positive and play based (in therapy). We want to promote positive communication interactions, people. A qualified speech therapist will know which sounds can reasonably be targeted.

When initially working as a school based SLP (that stands for speech-language pathologist), it wasn't that uncommon to get kids in 2nd and 3rd grade that were flagged for the first time for their speech errors. This is really later than ideal and making it harder for that child.

If you have a child that age with several speech errors that is not in speech therapy, don't guilt yourself! They can still make progress! Consider this a good time to reach out to a local speech therapist or contact your child's school about how to get treatment. Check out this post for ways to navigate the school process.

And if you're still on the fence...

Here are Six Reasons Not to Wait to Treat Your Child's Speech Errors

*If you notice any of these in your child, it's a good time to seek out treatment.

1. The errors are impacting your child’s ability to be understood by others.

   1. If you notice your preschool/kindergartener/1st/2nd grader is getting the "Deer in the Headlights" look by others when talking most of the time, it's time to contact a speech therapist.

2. The older the child, the more talking time they have had, which means more time reinforcing the same incorrect speech pattern.

   1. For example: A child age 7 or 8 has been speaking for roughly 5-6 years. That's a lot of speaking time reinforcing their speech error.

3. Persistent errors in speech put a child more at risk for bullying and less enjoyment of school overall (see study referenced in next reason).

   1. While I wish this wasn't the case, it happens. Pursuing speech therapy is one thing you can actively do to support your child.

4. It's impacting their reading and spelling.

   1. In one study, "Persistent speech difficulties during the school years (led to) an increased risk of slower progression with reading, writing and overall school achievement"

5. Friends are starting to point out the child's errors to them.

6. Your child is starting to feel frustrated that people don't understand what they are trying to say.

You may be wondering if your child will grow out of their speech errors, because you have known other kids to, or other parents keep reassuring you that things are "fine". The reality is, some kids do outgrow errors and some kids require intervention. But trying to predict who will and who won't often leads to missed therapy opportunities. Why wait, when they might not?

I'll be the first to admit how adorable it is listening to new talkers as they acquire different sounds and learn to communicate. Later it can feel a little bittersweet as their speech skills advance and certain words or sounds they use to mispronounce begin to resolve as their abilities advance.

When my 2-year-old went from calling her older sister Nunnun (her name is London), to one day calling her Wondon, my heart squeezed a little. Even though she still can't say L sounds (which is a later developing sound) she shifted to a more advanced pattern.

If you have concerns about your child's speech, rather than "Wait and See", talk to your child's teacher or seek out a local speech-language pathologist in your area.

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