[adl]

I am not sure if this is the right forum , but I have seen other speech related posts...

DS is nearly 2.5, has very limited words like 5-6...

We have been seeing a speech therapist since June , but regularly since end of August after a false start with a few different therapists ..,they kept leaving but H has been marvelous and he really seems to connect with her and she moved us to smaller weekly sessions at same cost as one long one a fortnight which really was better, she is very good and seems to really relate and be of help..

Now there are no ASD, no SN etc and now as a result of therapy he does concentrate and does follow instructions so comprehension is all fineand it's more verbalising now which has vastly improved..... Although its babble most of the time or singing without words


However the therapist believes he is getting to a stage where he will just start with more words etc and he is just a late talker.....

We pay privately and next year I am on mat leave so cost is a factor, not if he really needs it but if its of no real benefit then it would be easier

we have a break till end of Jan... So has anyone just kept going and seen a benefit or is it a case of he has had a push in the right direction and now things will develop?

It's hard to talk at all to others IRL as they all say he is fine and it will come don't worry etc...I would rather get help now not later but we sometimes wonder do we really need to ....

So I guess I am looking to hear of others experience ??

[Riotproof]

I took ds to an open playgroup that was run by an Early Intervention group. What I founded they taught me how to encourage ds to talk,and once he started he really did improve exponentially.
Is there something like that near you?

[BornToLove]

I would keep up with any 'home work' the speech therapist suggests until your next session. I would have at least 1-2 more sessions in the new year just to ensure he is 'on track' and is continuing to improve without formal speech therapy. At that point I would reassess to see if it's still needed.

[lsolaBella]

I am supposing you have had you pr child's hearing checked?

That was the big difference between my boys.

Bother were late talkers. Ds1 had less then 10 words at 24m (at 26m was assessed as having expressive language if a 9 mo and receptive language if an 11 mo). By 2.5 years was starting to put two words together and by three " mummy I think perhaps a train may be coming soon" was the end of my worries for hi,.

Ds2 at 24m had about 15 words so I felt we were doing well. When he finally spoke more around 2.5 yrs it sounded like he was talking underwater. Hearing test showed fluid filled ears and moderate hearing loss. Grommets in just before he turned 3. Unortunately it wasn't until 4 yrs that he finally had a normal hearing test result.

The consequences have been that a very social boy,because he could not communicate effectively with his peers has lost his social skills. He was recommended to repeat 4 yo kinder ( even though was 5 upinAugust) due to his social skills lack. Instead we ave worked intensively on his speech and social skills. The perch bills for the past 7 m will top $6k by the time school starts. We have had measurable results though and major improvement.

In you situation, I would probably see speechless once a fn and get things to work on at home and monitor the situation, as I said though, this is assuming hearing has been checked. My son would follow instructions etc even without good hearing. He had very good coping skills which covered up his hearing loss. As sped hie said to me there were even a particular sound my child could not hear. I woul give until 3 yrs to see how he is going before upping the ante on speech. I would also get a CELF assessment done or other standardised test so you can measure results.

Ds2 in feb was assessed as 85,85,85,87,70 in a test where 85-115 is normal (100 average). Did same type of test in Nov and now is 93 for speaking and 116 for comprehension. So major change. Test is marked to his age, so difference is not increase in age.

[adl]

Hearing has been tested, all fine... he has also seen an ENT, no issues. I am very aware of social skills, reading etc

We had the last session for the year today.

Therapist is recommending language groups because there really is no definitive progress with one on one. She is getting to the point where its just not of any benefit...as he decides whether he wants to play along...

I have no idea how to find a language group, its hard as any community support is not available until after 5 yo.

I am in inner west Sydney.

I am trying to get DH to really push for the childcare at his work, which he has been listed for 3 years, for at least one day thinking a more structured care and with others will force him to start communicating because its like he doesnt need to... but a more social setting will make him. When we had people over yesterday I noticed he was much more communicative....

Currently he goes to family care where most of the time he is the only one...

[lsolaBella]

Social skills speech groups are often run in private practice and places which specialise in the ASD area.

DS2 was the only one in his social skills group this term who did not have a diagnosis.

Talk to you child all day. Make comments over what you are doing. If they moment "car". You expand with big car, Red car etc.

Play games together. Talk about the pictures in the books you read rather then reading the text.


The it takes two to talk is a good book.

Damn auto correct

http://dartproducts.com.au/hanenstore/cate...p?id_category=8

This post has been edited by lsolaBella: 10/12/2012, 12:56 PM

[Riotproof]

I'm not sure what a language group is, but you might try a supported playgroup here http://www.lifestart.org.au/category/lifestart-playgroups/
They are manned by speech pathologists and other professionals but it's a play setting, so very low stress. At the one I went to it covered a range of disabilities and delays.

They gave me a lot of strategies to encourage, and I almost enrolled in a "It takes two to talk" course, but DS was just on the cusp of a massive explosion, so I decided against it.
Even things like giving one or two blueberries or small pieces of food to encourage him to say "more". "More" is a very powerful word because it gives a sense of control. I realised I had been anticipating his needs and not allowing him to have to ask, if that makes sense.

[galba]

Social skills speech groups are often run in private practice and places which specialise in the ASD area.

DS2 was the only one in his social skills group this term who did not have a diagnosis.

Talk to you child all day. Make comments over what you are doing. If they moment "car". You expand with big car, Red car etc.

Play games together. Talk about the pictures in the books you read rather then reading the text.


The it takes two to talk is a good book.

Damn auto correct

http://dartproducts.com.au/hanenstore/cate...p?id_category=8

We used this book too - it helped me to help my DS and in turn his younger siblings when they were starting to talk. It's child led which I loved.

ETA - I got it from the library.



This post has been edited by galba: 10/12/2012, 01:04 PM

[baddmammajamma]

I second "It Takes Two." It is an excellent resource.

The Lizard Centre in Chatswood, where my daughter did her early intervention, has Tuesday afternoon & Saturday day social skills groups for all ages. There are kids of different backgrounds -- some with ASD, some with language delays, some with anxiety, etc. etc. The common thread is that they all need a boost with their social skills. Defnitely worth looking into just to open up some options:
http://www.lizardcentre.com/socialskillsprograms.htm

Lindfield Speech also has an excellent offering for preschoolers. Your son might be a little too young for it now, but if he continues to lag behind in his speech development, you might want to consider it down the line:

http://www.lindfieldspeechpathology.com.au...ills-groups.seo

[mayahlb]

We have had breaks between blocks of speech therapy (this is my eldest who just turned 4, but has been going since 2). Mainly because we only have a public option where I live and they are only suppose to run 10 sessions before having a break (usually 2-3 months). The speechie always gave us stuff to do at home during this time but having a bit of time off did help as I found it would get to the point where he didn't want to do the speech part of the sessions. This has been especially true in the last block (we just finished last week and won't attend again until March) as he just doesn't want to co-operate at the moment.

A normal playgroup might be an option if you can't find a language based one. Also I know you have said he understands really well but has issues with actually talking. Has the speechie looked at the possibility of childhood praxia or speech/speech dyspraxia? I only ask as this is what T ended up being diagnosed as and he was at a similar stage with speech therapy where it didn't seem to be improving it much. The therapy used for this issue is different from standard speech therapy (we used similar technicques to those describes in the It Takes Two to Tall book) and focuses more on the sounds and sound sequences then actual vocab and it is only through following this that we have made a huge amount of progress. Probably more in the last 10 sessions then the previous 4 blocks together. Just a thought.

Oh and lifestart run good playgroup sessions. I have a friend that attends some regularly and she lives in Sydney

This post has been edited by mayahlb: 10/12/2012, 01:13 PM