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What do Speech Language Pathologists do?

Speech language pathologists or speech therapists are healthcare professionals who are qualified to assess and treat a wide range of communication delays and disorders.

  • SpeechArticulation and phonological skills describe how we make and combine sounds. Difficulties in this area are referred to as articulation or phonological disorders, apraxia of speech or dysarthria.
  • Language Language skills encompass how well we understand what we hear or read and how well we use words to share information about what we are thinking with others.
  • FluencyDysfluency is often referred to as stuttering and it references how our speech flows. Individuals who stutter may repeat sounds, use pauses or fillers and/or have difficulty getting sounds out. Many children experience a period of dysfluency in their childhood.
  • Cognitive-Communicative Cognitive-communicative skills describe how our mind works to support our communication. These skills include memory, attention, problem solving and organization.
  • Preliteracy & Literacy SkillsPreliteracy skills, including phonological and phonemic awareness, is a term that describes the skills necessary to support efficient reading and writing. These skills include hearing, identifying, and processing different sounds in words, rhyming, segmenting, blending, and manipulating sounds within words and sentences.
  • Speech language Pathologists Speech language Pathologists are also qualified to support swallowing, feeding, and acquired communication (traumatic brain injury, dementia, etc.) disorders, however these are outside the chosen scope of practice for CommuniKate.

CommuniKate Services

Speech Assessment

Language Assessment

Pre-Literacy & School Preparation Assessment

Speech Intervention

Language Intervention

Pre-Literacy & School Preparation Intervention

Speech & Language Milestones

Kid playing with leaves

By Age 3

-Has a word for almost everything

-Uses 2-3 word phrases to request items or comment

-Speech is understood by familiar people the majority of the time

-Follows 2-step directions “Go get your coat and put it on the chair”

-Is able to use p, b, t, d, m, n, h, w

Child on pretend phon

By Age 4

-Understands Who, What, Where or Why questions

-Talks about things that happened at daycare or a friend’s house

-People outside of your home usually understand what your child is saying

-Sentences are frequently 4 words or longer.

-Is using k, g, d, t, ng, f, y, s, z, l, v, sh, ch, j

Child ready to go to class

By Age 5

-Attends to a short story and answers simple questions about it

-Understands most of what is said at daycare and home.

-Speaks in sentences that give detail

-Is able to follow longer directions like “Put on your hat, grab your waterbottle and meet me at the door”

-Is able to produce S-blends (snowman) and L-blends (play)