Difficulty in learning to talk

Some kids start stringing words together at 18 months, others have only mastered a few words by then. By their third birthday, some children chatter constantly and have started to use a complex variety of tenses and vocabulary, while others occasionally stutter or struggle to put sentences together.

Addressing speech and language difficulties
With so much variation, it can be hard to know whether your child's speech and language development falls within the norm.
But if there are major problems, it's important to get help as early as possible to resolve the problem before the child starts school. If you're worried in any way about your child's speech and language development, contact your paediatric centre or a speech therapist.

Four different types of speech disorders
Broadly speaking, there are four different types of speech disorders to look out for:
• Children who are late talkers and can't say as much as is typical by a certain age.
• Children who have problems with their language, either in form or in use.
• Children whose main problem isn't with language, but with forming words and sounds.
• Children aged two to four who start to stammer. This is more commonly found in boys, and the problems generally disappear naturally before the child starts school. If your child has a stammer, they can get help.

Teachers who specialise in speech therapy
These days, at least one pupil in every class has some form of speech or language disorder. Teachers specialising in speech therapy provide important assistance for these children, to give them the same opportunities as other children. If your child does not get help, this could hamper their development and they may do less well at school.

Teachers specialising in speech therapy always work together with the class or nursery teacher, parents and special teachers. A large part of their work is about mentoring others so that they can support the child when working and in terms of language development. Many are also trained special needs educators. Teachers specialising in speech therapy also work with a speech therapist.

Speech therapists
Speech therapists work with communication aspects relating to the voice, speech and language. They investigate, diagnose and treat communication problems in both children and adults who have various forms of voice, speech and language disorders.

These could include delayed speech development in children, stammering, palate defects or aphasia or an inability to speak or understand speech after an acquired brain injury.
Speech therapists also work with eating and swallowing-related problems and other so-called oral motor skills difficulties, as well as investigating and treating reading and writing disorders.
Further reading: Learning to talk