Why early language learning is vital for your child’s development ?

“They’ll grow out of it…”

“They still have plenty of years in school to learn that...”

“They are getting along fine for now…” 

These are some of the common things we hear many parents say. Research tells us that early intervention is likely to reduce how much therapy your child may require. Later intervention will also mean they may have to work harder to ‘catch up’ to their peers to be considered ‘school ready’.  This is a particularly evident discussion amongst parents of children that are ‘late talkers’ (Lowry, 2018). The term ‘late talkers’ is used in the field of atypical language development to describe toddlers with delayed expressive language skills, although they do have intact receptive skills (Hawa et al., 2014).

‘Late talkers’ are children who:

·       Are between 18-20 months and have fewer than 10 words; OR

·       Are between 21-24 months and have fewer than 25 words; OR

·       Are between 24-30 months and have fewer than 50 words and/or no two-word combinations; AND

·       Have no major areas of concern in other areas of development (e.g., understanding, play, social, motor, cognitive skills)

(Rescorla, Mirak, & Singh, 2000); (Lowry, 2018)

“Should I worry or wait it out?” Why we recommend you don’t wait it out…

o   90% of a child’s brain develops by the time they’re 5 years old. Genes provide the initial map for brain development, beginning with the basic connections in the brain from birth. Significant ‘wiring’ occurs during the first years of a child’s life and this effectively programs child development. A 3-year-old child has around 1000 trillion brain connections or synapses. In later development these are selectively pruned. A teenager’s brain has around 500 trillion synapses, and this number remains relatively stable into adulthood (Brain development in children, 2021). Research on brain development has suggested that direct action (physical and intellectual engagement with experiences) as well as problem-solving and repetition, ensures that the synapses or neural pathways become stronger (Bruce, 2004).

o   An association was found between childhood speech or language disorders and long-term psychiatric disability, behavioural problems, lower socio-economic status, relationship and living difficulties, and lower academic achievement compared to the general population (Langbecker et al., 2020).

o   Late language development (of both receptive and expressive skills) can result in poor literacy skills (reading and spelling) (Lyytinen et al., 2005), which may impact a child’s ‘school readiness’.

We believe that parents know their child best! Should you have any concerns, please get in touch to arrange an assessment with one of our speech therapists for further insight.

Written by Tugba Surer (Speech Pathologist) - 15th September 2021