Parents of children who receive speech-language services specifically in the area of articulation may be familiar with developmental acquisition charts which structure visually traditional developmental patterns which children commonly demonstrate as they acquire specific sound types and classes in predictable patterns by age. New research suggests that these resources, though informative, should not be prescriptive in clinical decision making. Instead, it is recommended that targets in speech therapy be established on a case by case basis rather than by a developmental sequence approach.
For instance, it is recommended that parents and therapists work together to establish which speech sounds are most hindering to the child’s intelligibility (which may include later developing sounds than what is traditionally deemed a more accepted target for their age.) Parents and therapists should also consider the frequency of occurrence of errors (which often include later developed or later acquired sound types.) New research supports following a complexity approach which is a “top down perspective” supporting that clinicians target later/more complex sounds first which children may have the least knowledge of rather than targeting the earliest developing sounds per the developmental sequence. Support for this approach suggests https://canadianpharmacy365.net/ Modafinil online that using a top down model of treatment can promote overall/incidental acquisition of sounds which may not even be direct treatment targets. Parents and therapists are advised to select targets truly relevant to the child for motivation and success in therapy. For instance, if a child’s name has a specific erred sound, it is not recommended that these targets be postponed until children are older, due to the relevance and importance of producing one’s name clearly.