Frequently Asked Questions
- My child cannot produce his
- I think my child meets the above criteria. What do I need to do?
- What can we do at home to support my child's progress in speech?
- What skills are addressed in speech therapy at Smith?
- I have concerns about my child's speech/language development. Where can I find answers to questions not addressed here?
- What sounds should my child have mastered by this age?
- What types of speech and language disorders affect school-age children?
My child cannot produce his
Articulation errors, such as substituting a "W" for an "R" sound
are addressed through speech therapy. However, a child must meet
two main criteria prior to considering a student for speech
services at school:
First: In order to receive speech therapy through Atlanta Public
Schools, a student's speech or language skills must be delayed
according to developmental norms.
For example, some speech sounds like "R" or "S," are not expected
to be fully mastered until a child is 7 years old. According to
research, 90% of children sampled nationwide have mastered those
sounds by 7 years old. Therefore, replacing an /r/ with a /w/ is
not technically a speech delay until a child
is over 7 years old. Sometimes children naturally develop those
sounds later.
Speech pathologists working in Altanta
Public Schools are unable to work with students who have speech
errors that are considered "developmental." Students need time
to "grow out" of the errored sound naturally, before we can
consider pulling the student from their academic day to address
speech. For a list of developmental norms, please click on
my "links" page and got to the ASHA link.
Second: The speech delay/disorder must have a negative academic
impact. If you feel that your child's speech or language
weaknesses are impeding his or her ability to succeed in the
classroom, please contact your child's teacher and/or Ms.
Elliot. If your child is performing well in class, and their
speech or language weakness is not impacting their daily academic
performance, it may be more appropriate to consider private
speech services outside of your child's school day.
Further, an outside or private speech evaluation report may
recommend speech services. However, we may honor those
recommendations through the public school system only if the
above criteria are met. Speech services through APS are provided
according to an educational model, while private speech providers
typically operate within a medical or clinical model. APS speech
services are delivered under the umbrella of "special education"
and so specific guidelines must be followed.
If you feel your child is experiencing a speech or language
delay/disorder that meets these criteria, please contact Ms.
Elliot and/or your child's teacher so that we may begin to
monitor.
I think my child meets the above criteria. What do I need to do?
There are several steps to take toward speech therapy at Smith.
The first step is to speak with your child's teacher to discuss
your concern. Ask the teacher about what he or she is seeing in
class and what academic impacts the speech or language weaknesses
might have throughout the school day. The teacher is to begin
monitoring your child with the guidance of the speech pathologist
to determine what supports are needed. Suggestions are provided
to the teacher for addressing speech & language skills within the
classroom. The Student Support Team (SST) team, including
parents, teacher, an APS rep, and the speech pathologist will
meet to discuss recommendations at that time. Screening,
assessment, and treatment of communication problems will be
arranged according to the student’s needs. Any private speech
evaluation reports you have should also be submitted to your
child's teacher and/or Ms. Elliot.
What can we do at home to support my child's progress in speech?
Most importantly, be aware of what goals are being addressed
through your child's IEP. Any time you are with your child can
be a perfect time to promote speech & language skills. Great
conversation times are during meals and when you are in the car
together. Excellent suggestions for parents are listed on the
ASHA link on my "links" page. Further, specific activities to
address your child's goals will be sent home regularly in a
speech folder.
What skills are addressed in speech therapy at Smith?
The speech-impaired program addresses speech and language
weaknesses that
have a negative academic impact.
Individual and group sessions address communication goals within
the following areas:
articulation (speech sounds)
expressive language (ability to express one's thoughts and ideas)
receptive language (ability to process & appropriately respond to
incoming
messages)
fluency (stuttering)
pragmatic language (social interaction)
voice (vocal pathologies)
I have concerns about my child's speech/language development. Where can I find answers to questions not addressed here?
I am always open to direct communication! Please feel free to e-
mail me at aelliot@atlanta.k12.ga.us for any further questions.
I will be happy to help you in any way I can.
What sounds should my child have mastered by this age?
The following are the average "mastery ages" of each phoneme in
the English language based on current research. This is the age
at which 90% of the population sampled had typically acquired the
sound. Speech pathologists in Atlanta Public Schools address
these sounds when the error persists one year beyond the
chronological age indicated for 3-6 years, and 6 months beyond
the chronological age indicated for 7 & 8 years.
Sounds that should be mastered at each age:
3- m, h, n, b, w, p
4- k, g, d, t, f, y
5- l
6- ng
7- r, ch, sh, j, s
8- z, v, th, er (r-controlled vowels)
For example, an SLP working in Atlanta Public School might
address an errored /f/ phoneme which persists beyond 5 years old
or an errored /r/ phoneme which persists beyond 7.5 years old.
What types of speech and language disorders affect school-age children?
Speech sound disorders - difficulty pronouncing sounds.
Receptive & Expressive language disorders – difficulty
understanding what they hear as well as expressing themselves
with words. These include weaknesses in grammar, vocabulary,
phonological skills, auditory comprehension, and language
processing.
Pragmatic language disorders – weaknesses in social cognition &
interaction skills.
Cognitive-communication disorders – difficulty with thinking
skills including perception, memory, awareness, reasoning, and
judgment.
Stuttering (fluency) disorders – interruption of the flow of
speech that may include hesitations, repetitions, and
prolongations of sounds or words.
Voice disorders – quality of voice that may include hoarseness,
nasality, volume (too loud or soft.)