The Speech-language therapists at TherapyWorx are qualified to treat infants, toddlers, children and adolescents with a variety of conditions that affect oral motor development, feeding, speech production, and the ability to express thoughts, needs and wants, the understanding of language and aspects of academic learning. Communication is a broad concept that encompasses all means by which we send and receive information and is a complex higher cognitive process.

A Speech, Language and Auditory Processing assessment will evaluate the extent of difficulties in following areas:

Milestones

Achievement of early speech, language or communication milestones.

Oral Sensory Motor Skills

Such as the structure, functioning and range of movement, speed and strength of the oral musculature which influence saliva control, speech sound production and swallowing and feeding.

Phonological (sound system), reading and spelling skills

which includes the development of letter-sound associations, sight word recognition, the ability to break up words into their smaller syllables and sound building blocks and blend them back together, manipulating sounds for rhyming and alliteration as well as spelling rules and extracting meaning from written text.

Speech Sound Production Skills

The development of speech sound production skills and the organizing of the phonological (speech sound) system such as when a child replaces certain sounds for example ‘tat’ for ‘cat’ or ‘lellow’ for ‘yellow’

Formulating spoken and written language

such as sentence construction, grammar, word retrieval skills, vocabulary development.

Understanding spoken and written language

including taking meaning from the expressed language of others, vocabulary and extracting meaning from text.

Auditory Processing Skills

which include the various skills used to break down and attach meaning to what is heard.

Resonance

such as sounds produced nasally or voice difficulties such as breathy or hoarse voice

Fluency

development and breakdowns in the flow of speech such as stuttering or cluttering.

Medical Conditions

Established medical conditions from birth such as Cleft lip and/or palate or genetic conditions which may affect the way a child produces sounds, expresses or understands language, affects reading and writing development.

Neurological Conditions

caused by trauma at or after birth such as Cerebral Palsy.

Pervasive Developmental Disorders

Pervasive developmental disorders such as Autism spectrum disorders.

Auditory Rehabilitiation

following diagnosis of hearing impairment, hearing aid fitting or cochlear implantation, which can include the implementation of various communication systems, development of speech and language skills.

AAC

Developing and implementing an Alternative or Augmentative Communication system (AAC) if speech alone is not sufficient for efficient communication. AAC which may include no technology (i.e. signing systems), low technology (i.e. communication boards, books or picture symbol exchange) or high technology systems (i.e. computer/tablet or speech output devices).

Humans are typically born pre-wired for communication and communication extends far past spoken words. Due to our social nature, difficulties with producing or understanding spoken language can have a significant impact on many other areas of a child’s life and can cause social, emotional or academic difficulties later in life. During the childhood years, the brain develops significantly and communication skills develop best in a world that is rich with sounds, sights, and consistent exposure to the speech and language of others. If this process is interrupted causing delayed skill development it can cause significant frustration for a child, affecting the way in which they interact with their surroundings, as well as for their parents and families. Identifying and treating any speech and language issues can help to prevent or lessen the impact on later academic skills and behaviour.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us!