Speech and Language

Disorders

Presented ByDr. Donna Walker Tileston, Ed.D.

In This Session…

A short history of the research onspeech disordersThe natural progression of languagedevelopmentLanguage problemsSuggestions for the teacher

A Brief History…

French surgeon Paul Broca1861

Broca’s areaJust behind the left templeAffects fluent speech

History…

German Neurologist, Carl Wernicke1871Damage to left temporal lobe (above theleft ear)Could not speak meaningfullyInference: Broca – stored vocabulary,grammar and syntax of native languageWernicke – site of native languagesense and meaning

Current Research

fMRIWe use Broca and Wernicke’s areasas well as other neural pathways.The more complex the sentence,the more neural pathways used

Are We Hard-Wired?

Nature and Nurture

Spoken Language Development

David Sousa, 2001Birth – recognize prosody6 months – phoneme recognition

Phonemes are minimal units ofsoundCombinations such as p and o form asyllable “po”90 phonemes in all languages

Information Charts…

National Institute on Deafness andOther Communication Disorders(NIDCD, 2000)www.nidcd.nih.govLearning Disabilities Association ofAmerica (LDA,2000)www.idanatl.org

Birth to 5 Months

Reacts to loud soundsTurns head toward a sound sourceWatches your face when you speakVocalizes pleasure and displeasuresounds (laughs, giggles or cries)Makes a noise when talked to

Between 6 and 11 Months

Recognizes nameSays 2-3 words besides mama anddadaUnderstands simple instructionsImitates familiar soundsRecognizes words as symbols forobjects

10 to 12 Months…

Brain can distinguish and rememberphonemes of native languageAnd to ignore foreign sounds

12 Months…

Attaches meaning to wordsFrom phonemes to words

By 8 monthsGreen house or greenhouseNew words at the rate of 10 per dayMemory and Wernicke’s area

Between 12 and 17 Months…

Understands noSays 2-3 words to label an object (pronunciationmay not be clear)Attends to a book or toy for about two minutesFollows simple directions accompanied bygesturesAnswers simple questions nonverballyGives a toy when askedBrings an object from another room when askedPoints to objects, pictures, and family members

By 18 Months…

Recognize noun/verb differencesDetecting patterns

Between 18 and 23 Months

Enjoys being read toUses 10-20 words, including names(pronunciation may not be clear)Follows simple directions withoutgesturesUnderstands words like “eat” and“sleep”Imitates sounds of familiar animals

18-23 Months Cont…

Correctly pronounces most vowels and n,m, p and h, especially in the beginning ofsyllables and short words.Asks for common foods by nameUses words like more to make wantsknownBegins to use pronouns such as minePoints to simple body parts such as nose

By 24 Months

Recognizes other grammaticalfunctionsDoes television help?

The Process

PhonologyMorphologySyntaxSemanticsProsodyPragmatics

Between 2 and 3 Years

Identifies body partsConverses with self and toysHas a vocabulary of over 400 wordsAsks simple questionsUses two-word negative phrases such as“no want”Forms some plurals by adding an “s”Uses more pronounsGives first name and holds up fingers forage

2 and 3 cont…

Combines nouns and verbs such as “daddygo”Knows simple time concepts, such as“tomorrow”Refers to self as “me” rather than by nameTries to get adult attention with “watchme”Likes to hear the same story repeated

Continuation of 2 to 3

Talks to other children as well as adultsAnswers “where” questionsMatches 3-4 colorsUnderstands “big” and “little”Names common pictures and thingsSolves problems by talking instead ofhitting or cryingUses short sentences such as “me wantcookie”

Between 3 and 4 Years

Can tell a storyUses sentences of 4-5 wordsHas a vocabulary of about 1000

wordso Uses most speech sounds but may distort

more difficult sounds such as l, r, s, sh, ch,y, v, z and th

o Strangers begin to understand much ofwhat is said

3 to 4 Continued…

Uses verbs ending in “ing”Names at least one colorUnderstands “yesterday”, “tonight”,“summer”Begins to obey requests, like “Put the toyunder the chair”.Knows last name, name of street andseveral nursery rhymes.

Between 4 and 5 Years

Uses past tense correctlyUses sentences of 4-5 wordsHas a vocabulary of about 1500 wordsDefines wordsSpeech is understandable but makesmistakes pronouncing long words such as“hippopotamus”Uses some irregular past tense verbs suchas “ran”

4 to 5 Cont…

Names and points to colorsIdentifies triangles, circles, and squaresUnderstands “in the morning”, “next”, and“noontime”Can talk about imaginary conditions, suchas “I hope”Asks many questions using “why” and“how”

Between 5 and 6 Years

Uses 6 to 8 word sentencesHas a vocabulary of about 2000 wordsDefines objects by their use (you eat witha fork) and can tell what objects are madeofUnderstands spatial relations like “on top”,“behind”, “far”, and “near”Understands time sequences (whathappened first, second)

5 to 6 Cont…

Knows home addressIdentifies penny, nickel, and dimeUnderstands common opposites likebig/little and same/differentCounts ten objectsAsks questions for informationDistinguishes the left and right handUses complex sentencesUses imagination to create stories

Language Delay

Symptoms at age 1-2Use only a few words during speechUse only a few phrases duringspeechSpeech is not coherent

Specific Language Impairment

SymptomsComplexity of speech not developingwith ageLittle or no growth in vocabularyConsistently poor grammar with little orno improvementDifficulty remembering recently usedwords

Expressive Language Disorder

SymptomsBelow average vocabulary skillsDifficulty producing complex sentencesImproper use of correct tensesProblems in recalling words

Receptive-expressive Language Disorder

SymptomsImpairment in language comprehensionImpairment in language expressionSpeech contains many articulationerrorsDifficulty recalling early visual orauditory memories

Adolescent Language Disorder

SymptomsFailure to understand or follow rules ofconversation, such as taking turns andstraying off topicDifficulty requesting further informationto aid understandingIncorrect use of grammarPoor or limited vocabularyDifficulty with instructions

Especially those that are long or complex

Adolescent cont…

Extreme forgetfulnessDifficulty understanding puns,idioms, jokes and riddles

Some Reasons

Received no early interventionReceived early intervention thatwas terminated too soonExperienced a disruption inlanguage development due tomental, physical, emotional ortraumatic event

William’s Syndrome

Genetic disorderDifficulty with spatial tasksIQ in 40 to 50 rangeCannot read or write beyond firstgrade level.

Recommendations

Early intervention is importantTraining for regular educationteachers including those who teachadolescentsKnow that language problems donot necessarily equal cognitivelearning problems

Helping Develop Oral Skills

Talk to childrenRead to childrenMake reading interactive and positiveCultivate phonological awareness withauditory and visual word gamesLearning follows a patternEnriched environment

In This Session

History of the researchNormal patterns of developmentDisabilitiesSuggestions