What is Language?

Language can be defined as a set of symbols which are usually words or signs that are used in an organised way to communicate ideas and thoughts. It is made up of two components including receptive language (understanding of gestures, words and language) and expressive language which is the use of gestures, words and written words to communicate.

Language is made up of many building blocks which include: morphology (the way in which words are made up to indicate past tense, plurality, possessive), semantics (meaning), syntax (the way in which words are put together to form meaningful and grammatical sentences), prosody (involves duration, pitch intensity in which the sounds of speech are made), vocabulary ( the words a child knows and uses) and pragmatics ( the social “road rules” of language which govern how we use language and interact with each other).

What is a Language Disorder

A language disorder is marked by language is slow to develop and the way in which language is developing does not reflect the normal sequential pattern.

Indicators of Language Disorder

• Often has difficulty finding the right words to use.
• Vocabulary is limited.
• Sentences contain grammatical errors and have poor structure.
• Use of the wrong words in sentences.
• Difficulties understanding word meanings.
• Use of short simple sentences rather than longer more complex sentences.
• Difficulties retelling stories.
• Difficulties providing information to others.
• Difficulties listening.
• Difficulties understanding stories and more complex language.
• Reliance on visual information to gain meaning from a situation.
• Repeating words or phrases (“parroting”).

Common Challenges for Children with Language Disorder

• Being able to follow instructions at home and school.
• Expressing their ideas, thoughts, feelings using language adequately to others.
• Attending within language based activities at school.
• Learning to comprehend written language and write paragraphs and stories.
• Engaging in meaningful interactions with peers.
• Accessing information as it is often in the form of language.

Management Strategies that help support a child at home and school:

• Informing those involved with the child with information about exactly what challenges the child is experiencing in understanding language so that the language used is at an appropriate level for the child to understand.
• Establishing an individualised plan with parents/carers of small achievable speech and language goals to help develop the child’s language skills.
• Providing the family with strategies, activities and ideas that can be used during the day to help reduce the child’s language difficulties.
• Providing the child with strategies to manage and situations when they don’t understand (e.g. teaching them to put up their hands when they don’t understand, teaching some standard questions to ask when needed).
• Use of a visual system using pictures or symbols to help with following directions.
• Providing educational staff with information to be incorporated into an education plan and/or liasing with them to implement ideas, suggestions and activities to help improve the child’s speech and language skills and their ability to access to the curriculum.

Speech Pathology therapy approaches and activities that can support the individual or their carers include:

• Providing parents with interaction strategies to develop language that can be implemented during daily activities within the home.
• Using multi-sensory approach (e.g. sight, taste, smell, touch) to learning new words and concepts.
• Using the child’s interests to help develop their language skills.
• Using fun play based activities or games to help motivate the child to learn.
• Use of visuals (pictures, words) to help understanding and expressive language where appropriate.
• The use of books and stories to aid language development.
• Strategies for developing vocabulary knowledge and use.
• Strategies for developing the ability to sequence events and stories.
• Activities to develop grammatical elements of language (e.g. use of past tense –ed, plural ‘s’).
• Visual strategies to help develop oral language story telling.