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Rachel May
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| Posted: April 25 2007 at 2:25pm | IP Logged
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For years now, I've felt that Charles' speech is not what it should be. The pediatricians have always said if I can understand 50% of his speech, it is fine, but it's finally gotten to the point where even I have trouble understanding what he says. Also, I feel like his grammar and syntax are "off" and not improving.
We went for a screening through the school district last week, and according to the screener, he is fine although she is willing to listen to a tape I made of him speaking in a more natural setting at home. On May 1 we'll have the hearing about whether he qualfies for services. I'm going, but I'm worried about what to say. If her tests say Charles is within normal limits, should I let it go for now even though he seems outside normal limits to me?
How much do yo trust your own instincts vs. the professionals? How much do you push them to help? What are options outside the system? How often do you ask for more testing? How often can you ask for more testing? Do you have any advice for me as I prepare for the hearing?
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Rachel
Thomas and Anthony (10), Maria (8), Charles (6), Cecilia (5), James (3), and Joseph (1)
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Nina Murphy
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| Posted: April 25 2007 at 2:40pm | IP Logged
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My son Nicholas was very hard to understand. Now he is fine. My son Joey is 4 as well, and hard for others to understand. I can understand most of what he says. Sometimes I have to ask him to repeat it and then really *think* about it!
I am not writing to give you advice, just another friendly mom's experience  , as I have never sought outside help with it. I just figured they'd get it eventually with as much talking and reading as we do around here, and as long as their hearing is OK. Maybe it's naive of me and eventually we will come up against this, but for now: I just don't worry.
I have had a couple of relatives comment on the fact that my 2 year-old on May 9th doesn't speak yet (Mom and No are about it) but he *understands* every single thing so it is no big deal to me. There is such a big variable on when kids pick up speech and I know several children who started LATE but now are totally "normal". But if you truly have concerns about there being some wiring in the brain issue....of course, go with your instincts on it. 
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God bless,
~~Nina
mother of 9 on earth,
and 2 yet-to-be-met
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marysjoys
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| Posted: April 25 2007 at 3:14pm | IP Logged
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Rachel, I wish I had the answers, but speech therapists still have me in awe, it's a pretty technical degree they get, and I am still learning their terminology. However, I agree with Nina that with most delays, lots of talking and reading with family can eventually help our late speakers to blossom. If you want therapy after the school district denies it, you can always hire one privately, which may be covered by your health insurance.
My daughter with Down Syndrome, has just turned 5 and is finally speaking so that non-family members can understand her. She is beginning short sentences, and I am SO relieved! That is always the Down Syndrome child's biggest area of delay, and the struggle to be coherent lasts a lifetime with most of them.
Down Syndrome children have oral motor problems (ie moving the parts of the mouth to form sounds correctly) as their tongues can be larger than average. I've been through three therapists who couldn't motivate Christina to speak. . For this, a apeech therapist is essential, and thanks be to God, we have just had our first effective speech therapist today! Kerri is the mother of three girls, perhaps therein lies her ability to connect with Christy.
I cannot tell you the sense of triumph I felt when Christina went from crying in the corner at the sight of a new "lady with a bag", to coming over to play with her, to becoming engaged with blowing bubbles, to letting her pick her up, to not wanting to say goodbye, all in the first session! I look forward to her going through a 'speech spurt'!
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Mom to three lovely girls, Gabby, 13, Bella, 9, and Christina, 5 who has Down Syndrome.
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Angel
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| Posted: April 25 2007 at 3:41pm | IP Logged
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My oldest was a late talker -- he talked, but not much until he was 3.5. By the age of 4 or so, he was still pretty hard to understand and kept dropping certain sounds from words: /s/, /sh/, /th/... that kind of thing. He also had problems with pronouns. Because I did not entirely trust the school district, I went to his pediatrician, who referred me to an independent pediatric speech/OT/PT dept. at a local children's hospital. When we went through that testing, we discovered that our instincts were pretty bang-on: his receptive language (what he could understand) never hit a ceiling, his expressive language was slightly lower but still okay, and his articulation was WAY low for his age.
Armed with this independent evaluation (which was covered by insurance, because they also look for medical issues that might be affecting speech), we went back to the school district. When we hit the first evaluation, they told us that he was not technically required to say the sounds he was dropping until age 6 or 7. We showed the screener our independent evaluation, and she agreed with us that his articulation did seem low even though the test she'd given him would not recommend him for therapy. We were able to push through a recommendation for further testing, and when the school district did the full battery of tests, he *was* recommended for therapy. Then came the IEP when they only wanted to do 30 minutes a week with him, and I pushed (successfully) for an hour.
The therapy did help him, but we were unable to beat a too-early dismissal from therapy, and he has continued to have some trouble... although i think it is resolving. (He's 10.) The bottom line, I think, is to trust your instincts. This may require going outside the school district for help. When my ds was 2 and not talking, we waited and that was the right thing to do. But at the age of 4, he needed help and we had to push to get it.
--Angela
Three Plus Two
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Rachel May
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| Posted: April 26 2007 at 1:34pm | IP Logged
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Thank you all for the reassurance and good advice. I'm glad to see positive outcomes with and without intervention! I'm comparing this experience of trying to discern about a delay to being a new mother. Everything seems important and overwhelming, and you don't know where to concentrate your energy!
I think I'm fairly laid back like you, Nina(or am I overextended and worn out?), but Charles sounds very similar to Angel's little one. There is some good food for thought for me there, and in Leticia's exciting story about Christina because who gives the therapy is surely as important as getting it. I could see just from the screening (which is done by a special ed teacher, not a speech therapist) that Charles was having a hard time connecting with the screener, and she provides the services. So much to think about!
I am getting Charles' hearing checked through our military medical system because I want to be sure that that is not the source of his problems. I'm not sure what else the military can help with, but I think what I will do is try to be at peace with knowledge that I have at least started the process and wait and see how the county hearing and the audiology tests go. I know the military won't do anything until those results are in. Then I can sit with Bill and see if we think we need to pursue it more actively or wait a bit and see how he progresses naturally in our language rich home. 
Thank you all SO MUCH!
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Rachel
Thomas and Anthony (10), Maria (8), Charles (6), Cecilia (5), James (3), and Joseph (1)
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4Real Forums : Special Blessings
Topic: Discerning Delay
