Understanding Your Child's Speech and Language Development
Every child is different, so knowing if your child’s speech and language development is on track can be really tricky! That’s why our speech pathologists offer preschool speech and language screeners for parents who are concerned about their child’s progress reaching speech and language milestones before starting school.
Did you know that 20% of children start school with developmental vulnerabilities that can affect their learning into the future? Two of the key areas that contribute to this are language and communication – crucial skills that children need to understand and follow instructions, build foundation reading and literacy skills and participate fully in the classroom.
That’s why Learning Links is dedicated to helping parents identify areas of difficulty with speech and language in the preschool years, so children receive the vital support they need before they enter the classroom in ‘big school’.
Who Can Access a Preschool Speech and Language Screener?
Screeners are suitable for preschool-aged children around 3-6 years old, as by this age, children should be able to make most speech sounds and use language effectively. In some cases, our speech pathologists may offer screeners to children aged from 2 years.
What Does a Speech and Language Screener Assess?
A screener only takes around 30 minutes and aims to identify whether your child’s communication development is on track for school or if they need additional support in some areas.
During the screener, your child will complete a few different activities to demonstrate their skills in the identified concern areas. This may include:
- Comprehension
- Grammar
- Narrative (story telling)
- Phonological awareness
- Speech (including stuttering and voice quality)
What Happens After a Screener?
After completing a speech and language screener, the speech pathologist will provide immediate feedback about your child’s progress. If your child needs additional support, you will be referred for further assessment or a block of speech therapy sessions. You will also receive a one-page report with specific feedback and recommendations.
Where Are Screeners Available?
Speech and language screeners are offered at Learning Links centres and can also be conducted online (subject to availability).
Our speech pathologists can also visit early childhood education settings to complete screeners with groups of children.
Pricing
Preschool speech and language screeners are $99.
This includes a 30-minute session with a qualified speech pathologist and a one-page report with results and recommendations.
