Speech delay in toddlers - 3 Ways you can help now!
Worrying about speech delay in toddlers seems to be a built-in part of parenting! We polled over 2000 parents of toddlers and found that over 80% were concerned about their toddlers speech and language milestones.
First, what is a speech delay?
Speech delay is a widely used term to describe toddlers who are not meeting their speech and language milestones. It’s an umbrella term you’ll hear parents and friends say in conversation about their kids.
It’s worth mentioning that speech delay isn’t a term that’s used as often by speech therapists; that’s because we have a lot of other more specific terms we use to describe a child’s communication development. It’s important to be more specific so we can create goals and activities for each individual child based on their needs and because your insurance will want to know the details before they pay for speech therapy.
In this post, we will be talking about speech delay in the broader sense. I am going to share 3 strategies you can use at home that will be supportive for any toddler regardless of which milestone they are working towards 👌
How to help if you think your toddler may have a speech delay?
The best way to help your toddler is to find little ways to incorporate learning new speech and language skills into things you already doing. We will explain why this is SO important in a little bit.
First, I want to show you how to make sure you are focusing on the right speech and language skills for your toddler and their unique developmental path.
Focusing on what matters
If you have concerns about speech delay, I’m sure you’ve seen and read lots of things online that shape your perception of what your child should be doing based on their age. This can make it challenging to know what speech and language skills to support at home; and lots of parents focus at first on saying words which can be frustrating if your child doesn’t start talking.
We find it’s best to take a few steps back to strengthen skills your child can already do; then slowly build their communication skills one step at a time. We created the Toddler Talk Assessment to help you find the communication skills to work on that will meet your child where they’re at!
Slow and steady practice wins the race
If your toddler has a speech delay or you are looking to support their communication development at home, one of the best things that you can do is set aside dedicated time to practice each day. When it comes to learning to talk, toddlers benefit most from consistent practice, a little bit each day. Pick 1-3 activities (like brushing your teeth, or putting on your shoes) during which you can commit to practicing every day.
Having dedicated practice time to support speech delay will help: Prevent burnout, for both you and your child Dedicated time means better focus and better quality to help toddlers learn faster Targeted practice is more effective because it’s easier for your child to learn a few words at a time.
It won’t work unless you’re having fun!
When you are teaching your toddler to talk one of the most important things is to make sure your at home practice is FUN! When toddlers are having fun they pay attention longer and are more actively engaged, which all translates into faster learning.
Picking activities that your toddler enjoys (and hopefully activities you enjoy too) will help you stick to your at home practice routine, which is one of the biggest keys to success!
Ready to get started?
Take the Toddler Talk Assessment to get personalized findings and suggestions for at home speech and language activities for your toddler!
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Written By: Stephanie Keffer, MS CCC-SLP
© 2020-2023. Stephanie Keffer, MS CCC-SLP. All Rights Reserved.
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