What’s the diff???

Before I went into the Home Staging business, I was a speech/language pathologist.  I love doing home staging for my clients, but I continue to have a soft spot in my heart for the area of speech/language pathology. I spent 23 years involved in providing speech and language therapy services to children within the public school setting.  I think there is alot of valuable information about speech and language development that can be provided to parents and teachers of children with concerns in this area.  That will be the purpose of my periodic blogs in our Health and Wellness Category. .. hoping to provide others with information and resources in another area which I feel I have knowledge and experience.  

I wanted to write today about a particular “pet peeve” that I have had through the years.  As a speech/language pathologist working in the school environment, I would work with children who had “speech” concerns and children with “language” concerns.  Sometimes my kiddoes would have both. 

I came to realize that many of my regular education colleagues, as well as the parents of my therapy children did not always realize or understand that there is a significant difference between “Speech concerns” vs “Language concerns”.  I did my best to educate and inform them through conversations and newsletters.  But then there were those continued occasions when I would hear one of my regular education teachers say, “Johnny, it is time to go to ’speech class’”, when in fact Johnny was coming to my therapy for “language help”, not speech.

With all of the children who came to see me for therapy, no matter what the age, I shared with them on a consistent basis, the reason why they were coming to see me for help.  This increased their awareness of why they were coming to Mrs. Rector’s room and it helped to keep them focused toward their goals in therapy.  Even with very young children, this could be covered in a way that helped them to understand.

Here is the diff:

“Speech” refers to four different areas of communication:
1.  Articulation is the way a child makes his/her specific sounds;  Example: if a child
     makes the /w/ for /r/ sounds, this is a speech concern in the area of Articulation.
2.  Phonology is the way a child understands how sounds go together to make words; 
     Example:  if a child has not learned the rule that sounds go at the end of words,  
     the child may be dropping all or most ending sounds such as a child saying /ca/ 
     for /cat/, this is a speech concern in the area of Phonology.
3.  Fluency is the smoothness of a child’s speech as he/she talks in words or sentences;
     Example:  When a child presents speech behaviors such as repetitions, blocks, and/or
     prolongations of sounds or words, depending on the severity, this could mean that
     this child has a speech concern in the area of Fluency (ie stuttering).
4.  Voice is the quality of a child’s vocal cord vibrations when he/she speaks; Example: if
     voice quality is consistently raspy or hoarse, this may mean that the child has a
     speech concern in the area of Voice.

*Remember that these are very general definitions and criterions for treatment are typically very specific based on severity of the concern area and the age of the child.

“Language” is the way we understand messages from others and the way we express or convey messages to others.  “Language” is such a general term, it has had many sub-definitions through the years.  Here are some of them as they refer to communication:

Language is a system that is shared by others in the same culture.
Language has many forms.
Language can be oral sounds, words, and sentences.
Language can be visual symbols (pictures, drawings) or written letters, words, and sentences.
Language can be non-verbal, such as gestures, facial expressions, and body postures.

When children have significant weaknesses in understanding and/or expressing messages, then they may have concerns in this area.  We learn through language, so significant language concerns typically interfere with academic achievement.

So…do you understand the diff?

If you have any questions about the above topic or want to comment, feel free!  Let me know if there is any other information that I could possibly help you with in the area of speech/language pathology.  Be glad to help!  Once a speechie, always a speechie!

Sue Rector, MA CCC-SLP
Speech/Language Pathologist

(aka) Sue Rector, ASP
Accredited Staging Professional
HomeStaging Innovations, LLC
sue@stlstaging.com
www.stlstaging.com