Signs To Look For
If your child is experiencing 3 or more problems on the checklist, Speech & Language Therapy intervention may be helpful.
Infant & Toddler
- Difficulty sucking/tongue thrusting
- Difficulty transitioning from bottle/sippy cup to open cup
- Difficulty accepting solid foods or mixed textures (picky eater)
- Reflux history/vomiting
- Inconsistent stool
- Limited attention to name or simple directions
- Limited babbling
- Does not imitate speech or sounds by age 12 months
- Does not play with toys or plays with toys inappropriately
- Inadequate lip seal during breast/bottle feeding
- Choking/coughing during feeding (liquids and/or solids)
Preschool (3-5 years)
- Has low muscle tone; seems weak or floppy; difficulty sitting upright at circle
- Bumps into furniture or people, has trouble with body awareness or judging space around him/her
- Does not enjoy jumping, swings or having feet off of the ground
- Appears clumsy, falls frequently, poor balance
- Avoids playground activities; seems fearful or coming up or down the stairs
- Needs more practice than other children to learn new skills
- Has high muscle tone; muscles seem stiff
- Has difficulty walking up and down stairs
- Seems to have less endurance than peers
School Aged
- Poor grammar (confuses pronouns, gender, “I” vs. “Me”, etc.)
- Difficulty using language to make needs known or for social purposes
- Difficulty organizing ideas when talking; tough time explaining an incident or retelling a story
- Difficulty understanding spoken information
- Difficulty recalling auditory information
- Speech is difficult to understand
- Pre-reading skills not emerging
- Overall difficulty in school
- “Missing” what a teacher says in a noisy classroom, even though hearing is good
- Having difficulty following complex directions
- Using a limited vocabulary; trouble learning new words
- Not remembering complex directions
- Grappling with descriptive language
- Struggling to remember or retrieve words
