How can speech therapy help?

Speech language pathologists or speech therapists help to assess and provide intervention for speech, language, swallowing, stuttering and voice problems. Research has shown that children with speech and language delays benefit from early intervention, achieving favourable outcomes to become confident communicators. Speech therapy helps children to become fluent communicators, which in turn enhances skills needed to succeed in life, such as:

• Active involvement in academic activities at school
• Developing healthy friendships and social skills
• Independence to engage in daily activities such as reading directions or writing a note.
• Developing literacy skills to read, write, and speak to successfully function in society.

How long does speech therapy take?
This depends on a number of considerations, including: the severity of the diagnosis, frequency of visits (once a week versus monthly), attention, the ability to remember and generalise what has been learnt. Parental involvement in carrying out home practice is also an important factor. Generally, children with developmental disabilities such as global developmental delay will need to undergo a longer period of intervention.