Communicating with your child is a great joy, but what if you are finding it difficult? Could it be that they have a language disorder? How can you tell?
Signs of a Language Disorder:
- Lack of a smile or direct interaction with others (birth & older)
- No presence of babbling (4-6 months)
- Limited sound productions or use of gestures (7-9 months)
- Limited vocabulary (19 months-2 years)
- Not putting words together to make sentences (19 months-3 years)
- Not easily understood by others (3-4 years)
- Difficulties with early reading skills or acknowledging the front of a book (4-5 years)
What can a caregiver do:
- Interact with your child by listening & responding to them
- Engage in talk, reading, and play with your child
- Use language that you are most comfortable using with your child (native language)
- Talk about what you are doing! Essentially narrate your day!
- Increase your language complexity as your child gets older
- Encourage your child play and interact with other children
- If have concerns, schedule a speech and language assessment