Infant development assessment

The boys had their bi-monthly infant developement assesment today, and she is recommending that been seen for speech. They are at the lower end and I was told that there is a 9 month waiting list, so she would rather they be on it now, then 9 months from now when they may REALLY need it. IF they dont need it come 9 months I Can always so we are ok. Karla, that's the girl that works with the boys, says that they are ok, she isnt super worried, but they should have more words and be able to string more words together. They also don't recognize certain pictures, like a ball, but if you ask them to bring you ball they will. She also said they have 3 strikes against them for speech delays too. 1) they have an older sibling, 2) they are twins and 3) they are boys. I am honestly not worried, but I guess its better to have them on the list and not need intervention then to not have them on the list and need intervention.

 

I brought my girls to be assessed for exactly this reason...the waiting lists to actually get help are soooo long! I have heard from several parents that once they realized their child needed some help they had to wait up to a year to be seen so they were school-aged before the therapy began and were behind their peers when they started JK. I would put them on the list...worst case is they do need the help and you get it for them early (which is also the best case for the worst case scenario!), best case is 9 months from now they have caught up and don't stop talking .

I was told the same thing with my girls about the strikes although our third strike was a bilingual household rather then them being boys (obviously!). I have a friend who's reading a book about speech development in twins (can't remember the name) and it says ID twins are usually later then frats so you can add strike 4 . I've seen some advancements in my girls in the last 2 months so hopefully your boys catch up quickly!!!

 

I'm a speech-language pathologist that works in early intervention and I just wanted to add my two cents worth..

since it sounds like you will be waiting for 9 months you might want to look into what you could be doing on your own at home while you are on the waiting list. The majority of therapy at your kiddos' ages is largely "play therapy"... if you still have contact with the therapist that did the evaluation you might contact her and see what you could be doing in the meantime. When we go into people's homes the hour or two we spend in the home is spent working with parents to carryover the treatment... kind of like a "coaching" session for parents. Yes, the therapists have the expertise with which way to go as far as the child's specific needs, but language development doesn't take place in an isolated therapy session.. it takes place in everyday life.. so.. things like getting them out of the house and talking to them about what they see, taste, hear, etc.. teaching them to follow simple directions (e.g., get your shoes and bring them to mommy).. get the object that they don't recognize in the book... like the ball and hold the ball and point to the ball in the picture... talk about what you can do with the ball.. obviously I can't speak for your child's specific needs, but IMO you, as parents, are your child's best teachers... there are many reliable websites and books out there that would be able to get you going with increasing general speech/language development while you are on that waiting list. PM me if you need some direction with speech/language resources!

I also wanted to add.. I'm not sure if you are able to, but many insurance companies will cover a large percentage of therapy for a certain number of sessions per year if you look into private therapy. The other thing you might look into is group language therapy sessions through private providers.. even if your insurance doesn't cover it there may be some affordable language therapy play groups out there that might get your kiddos going in the direction they need to go during the time you are on the wait list...

 

Thanks girls for the responses.

E's 3 - Hopefully the girls will start talking more soon.

Babyhopes09 - thank you very much for the tips. I am going to start pointing to more things in books to help them along in that respect. They follow direction very well. They understand go get your shoes, ta mommy your truck etc. I am honesty not all that worried. They tend to pick up 2-3 words every 2 days. I really ca't afford private threapy, I am a single mom on a fixed income. I have another meeting with Karla, the girl who evalated the boys, in 2 weeks to go over some questions she has to ask to get the ball moving and to go over some things I can do at home to help them out.

 

We signed up for the same reason. I ended up getting a private therapist for them when they were getting overwhelmed with frustration, and found they were a few months behind. A month later when we finally got in to the health region specialist they weren't even delayed anymore! So I'd definitely recommend picking up a book or two and working through the exercises.

 

The other thing I wanted to add- since I know private therapy is really expensive when you are on a fixed income.. you might do some research online or call around about toddler-appropriate groups in your area.. for us, the library has been wonderful and has a FREE weekly 20 minute story time for kiddos aged 12-36 mos. It's kind of like a preschool circle time with parents. Anytime you can get your kiddos involved in something that involves toddler friendly language within the context of a routine they will start to understand and use that language... not to mention the opportunities for socializing. We also have toddler music classes and gymboree classes that they give free trials for.. we haven't done those, but I assume they would be a nice thing to take advantage of to boost language development! Even an age-appropriate sunday school class would be a nice start to getting them going.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. The library does run program, I have yet to go to one, as I Fnd it hard to get out with all 3 boys in tow. They will be going to Daycar come Sept, although it well most likely be a french one, so that may slow them even more.

 

We had our 18 month WBV the other day and I asked some of the same questions. The pedi asked me a lot about their ability to follow basic commands, Noah and Sophie's ability to communicate non-verabally (i.e. make noises to get our attention and clearly pointing things out) and use of words (even if not consistent or always appropriate- i.e Noah can identify a car in the street, his book but sometimes he gets carried away and calls something else a car too). Overall, the ped wasn't concerned at all. She recommended getting a book on techniques to help kids with their speech and working through it.

Being the mom that I am, I called early intervention anyways. I spoke to an intake person and she asked me some questions and said that a child of 18 mos should say at least 20 word/sounds. So she recomended getting on the list, which is 6 months in York region.I put the kids on the list for the same reason you did, easier to decline it then need something done and ahve to wait. The book she said that they use and recommend is called "It takes two to talk", sold at Chapters. I am going to look for it tomorrow. Have a look, maybe it will be of help to you too!

Good luck

 

I am also a Speech Pathologist for preschool age (3-5) and I think the suggestions that Babyhopes09 gave are fabulous! The one thing I always tell parents are you have to have expections of your child. Have your child make a request to get what they want, this can be by sign or verbal word, or even an imitated sound (m for milk). I know how hard it is to remember to talk about everything that is going on around you, but just talk about everything you are doing and see around you.
I have an 8 year old daughter that I had so much one on one time with, we read books, played I spy, she talked early (first word at 8 months), my 2 1/2 year old son was not so talkative until about 6 months ago, then came my twins, I feel like I am running around like a chicken with it's head cut off most of the time with working (have to for benefits) and trying to spend time with my 4 kids. I know how hard it is to try and do activities to build language. My twins have all the strikes against them too, they are ID twins, kid #s 3&4, & boys (I wish they were bilingual) they are 13 months old and only really saying Ma, Da , and maybe mmm for more.
I took a 3 day course on It Takes Two to Talk, it is a wonderful program, it is usually 12 week class run by a Speech Pathologist, but the book is very easy to read and should be easy to impliment in your home. I highly recomend it.

 

I just PM the speech pathologist for either books or websites she feels are reliable. I too have the same problem. One of my twin boys (fraternal) is SO advanced..he says everything and anything...he will recite an entire episode of Yo Gabba Gabba, he counts to 10 and then, Anthony says like 3 words only and rarely will follow directions I give to him (ex: go get the ball). Lorenzo walked at 12 months & Anthony at 15 1/2. Lorenzo's personality is very determined tho, while Anthony's is very laid back..My pediatrician said at their 18mo check up that shes more concerned about him not following directions, then she is with them not talking yet...so Im just hoping Anthony catches up...My frinds son (only child) didnt say ONE word until he was over 2yrs old & now he says everything.

 

Your Lorenzo sounds like my Sebastian.

Orion was really not saying much and I started to worry- so we separated them on a Saturday on a whim and the parent with Orion asked him a bunch of questions. It turned out for us that he wasn't responding with Sebastian around b/c Sebastian always answered first. After a little bit on 1 on 1 time he now is very quick with an answer and much more verbal.