Language is used to communicate and convey meaning from one person to another. It can be spoken, written or signed. Difficulties with language can affect children of all ages. Very young children with a language disorder may have difficulties following directions, identifying and naming objects, asking questions or in using correct pronouns such as ‘he’ and ‘she’. Rebecca is trained in Hanen: It Takes Two To Talk, which is a program that provides parents with skills and strategies to successfully stimulate their child’s language development.

Older school-age children with a language disorder may have difficulties comprehending key points in classroom discussions, misinterpret assignment or test questions, and have difficulty drawing inferences from written text. The best approach to helping older children develop their language is to link therapy to classroom topics or areas of personal interest, to ensure it is motivating and relevant for them.

There are 2 areas of language we will assess:

Receptive Language

A receptive language disorder means that a child has difficulties understanding what is said to them. There is no standard set of features that indicate a receptive language disorder, as all children are different. However, symptoms may include:

  • Not seeming to listen when spoken to,
  • Parroting words and phrases,
  • Unable to follow spoken instructions,
  • Appearing to lack interest in storybooks read to them

Expressive Language

An expressive language disorder means a child has difficulty using words to get their message across. Symptoms of an expressive language disorder may include:

  • Making grammatical errors when talking,
  • Using shorter, simpler sentences than children their own age,
  • Being unable to ‘come to the point’,
  • Having difficulty retelling stories in an organised way,
  • Finding it hard to maintain conversations

A clinical assessment of language will help pinpoint the specific areas of language that your child is struggling with, in order that we can best support them in these areas.