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What A Speech Therapist Does
Read this section to find out what a speech therapist does.
What are the main things an SLP will do with my child?
A speech therapist will spend time with your child to learn about her speech and language. Then, she
can help her in four main areas:
- The sound of her speech. This also means how clear her speech is to other people.
- Using language to make herself understood.
- Using the right words at the right time.
- Making the right movements with her mouth and tongue.
What is the difference between 'speech and 'language'?
A speech and language pathologist teaches speech AND language. There are important differences between
these two words.
- Speech is the word that describes the sounds that come out of your mouth. Speech skills are
things like making sounds, understanding sounds and putting sounds together to make words. Here
are some examples of speech:
- Making a sound: Say 'ch'.
- Understanding sound: Know the sound 'ch' when you hear it.
- Using sounds to make words: Say several sounds together to make a word or words like 'ch-ick-en'.
- Language means more than just speech. It is how you communicate with other people. Language does not
have to be words. Language can also be the way you look at someone or the way you move your body.
Here are some examples of language:
- When someone looks at you with his eyes and mouth opened wide.
- When someone stares at you with his hands on his hips and taps his foot.
- When a teacher raises his voice while teaching a class.
What is pragmatics?
Besides teaching speech and language, an SLP may teach pragmatics. Pragmatics means the right way to
act when talking or signing.
An example of good pragmatics:
Looking at someone and nodding when they are talking.
An example of bad pragmatics:
Walking past someone in the hallway you know and not saying hello.
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How do you teach pragmatics?
SLPs teach pragmatics by acting things out or role-playing. Role-playing is when you pretend to do
something. A teacher may put two students together and tell them to pretend that they are angry with
each other. The students need to decide how they should act and what they should say.
Teaching pragmatics is important because:
- You can tell how people feel by looking at them carefully.
- It helps communicate better with people who aren't deaf.
- You need to do a lot of talking when you have a problem.
- You need to explain how you feel and why by using:
- Words
- Sign Language
- Actions
How do you teach Lip reading?
Learning to lip read can be very hard. Many people think that either you can do it well or
you can't. People say the same for sports or spelling. Some children have more ability to lip read.
When an SLP teaches lip reading, he may:
- Start with teaching sounds that are easier to see like 'mm', 'ba' and 'pa'.
- Show her how to pay close attention to the movements of the mouth, tongue and jaw of the person speaking.
- Tell her to pay attention to the person's expressions. You can learn a lot about the person's feelings
by noticing their expressions.
Can all deaf and hard of hearing children be taught how to speak well?
Voicing is a word some people use when describing how deaf people speak. If your child has better
hearing, then she has a better chance of learning speech.
- Without some hearing and a hearing aid (or other amplification) it is very difficult for deaf and
hard of hearing children to learn to use their voice well.
- To learn to speak, she must use her other senses to help make the sounds she produces understood.
"She should be encouraged to use her voice even if it's not easy to understand her. It's sending a
signal that she is trying to communicate. Even for safety, if a child can voice to get
someone's attention, then that is very helpful."
— Carla, Speech and Language Pathologist
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What can the SLP do if your Child is Learning Disabled?
If your child is deaf or hard of hearing and has a learning disability, she may have more problems
learning speech and language. However, the goal of speech therapy will be the same. She needs to l
earn how to communicate. When working with her, a speech therapist:
- May not explain ideas and concepts at first. He may explain things that are easier to
understand like people and places.
- Will explain things in a simple way. Sometimes big ideas are hard for children with
learning disabilities to understand.
- Will explain things by showing them. An SLP may show your child pictures or toys to teach.
- Repeat the lesson. Sometimes it takes a child with a learning disability longer to learn
something, The SLP may need to show her how to do something again and again before she can repeat or
remember it.
Next: How You Can Help Your Child's Speech Therapist
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