2. Speech & Language Referrals

3. What is speech therapy? Students who receive speech come 1-3 times a week in groups of 1-4 students. They work on specific goals which may include: –speech sounds –vocabulary –speaking in complete, grammatically correct sentences –answering questions/listening skills.

4. Who comes to speech? Children who have been tested for speech and have a speech or language disorder. They also have an Individualized Education Program (IEP) with goals/objectives for speech.

5. What do students work on in speech? Articulation: correct production of age-appropriate speech sounds. Ex. Say “rabbit”, not “wabbit”. --Age Speech Sounds Develop (Norms) Age:2.5all vowels except vowelized /r/. 3/p/, /b/, /m/ 4-5/n/, /ng/, /w/, /h/, /t/, /d/, /k/, /g/ 5-6/f/, /v/, /y/, /th/ /l/ 6+/r/, /s/, /z/, /sh/, /ch/, /j/--all cons. Blends. Language: vocabulary, listening skills, answering questions, following directions, critical thinking skills, speaking in complete, grammatically correct sentences.. Fluency: repeating sounds or words, “getting stuck” when trying to speak. Also referred to as stuttering. Voice: Harsh, hoarse, overly soft vocal quality that makes it difficult for others to understand speech.

6. Things to look for in a child’s speech Lots of sound errors that make his speech hard to understand. Not talking much or talking too loudly or softly. Trouble answering questions or following directions. Not using many words or different kinds of words when talking. Repeating words or parts of words or having trouble getting words out when talking. Not taking turns or using appropriate language with others. Not speaking in complete, grammatically correct sentences.

7. If I think my student needs speech If I think my student needs speech... Contact the parents prior to referring the child. Contact your Speech Therapist or School Psychologist. School Psychologist will give you some documentation forms to complete. Note: If a child has academic issues as well (or the main concern is language skills) we will need to start a full Intervention Team process. Either the Speech Therapist or School Psychologist will contact you to set up a meeting with the parents.