Early Intervention for Language Development

It never hurts to check in with early intervention. That way if there is a problem later you will have your foot in the door already. One of my sons went through early intervention but we didn't start until he was 2 1/2 they told me ideally they would have liked us to contact them around 18 mos. Don't let it stress you out that your 15 mo old isn't saying much yet. They all progress at different rates. Talk to her as much as possible and eventually she will start to talk back. I have four kids and they all started talk ing at different times.

I'm a speech-language pathologist and I did an internship in Early intervention in grad school. Early Intervention is also part of my job now. There's no harm in getting some help now versus waiting it out. They'll likely do an evaluation and then depending on what they find either offer some suggestions or set her up with a developmental specialist or speech-language pathologist who will work with you most likely for one hour per week. Don't stress about it. EI is a service that you are entitled to. It doesn't hurt to use it.

Hello, I have a 2 years old little girl that had the same problem. And it was because she was learning more then one language at once. She is now 2 and talking alot.

Absolutely I would recommend that. My daughter was born with cleft lip and palate and has had other issues develop since then. She started with Early Intervention at 3 months. She will turn 3 in December. They have done wonders with her and without them coming to our home every week, I don't know if my daughter would have overcome some of her issues. Not only have they helped our daughter, but they have been a great sense of strength and support to my family. They in a sense become "family". I go through Critereon for the Enrichment of Children out of Woburn.. They not only offer therapy, but they have playgroups and so much more to offer. Please, I highly recommend that if if was suggested by your pediatrician, definately look into it. They help with getting your child into a special education class if need be. We are currently getting ready to transition my daughter to pre-school when she turns 3. My daughter does not have any serious health or developmental issues but she does receive speech therapy, physical therapy and overall developmental therapy. Good luck and this is definately something that would be beneficial to your child. A.

my advice!Do it! I called when my son was 2 because he said about 3 words and not very clearly.. they gave him speech therapy, put him in several play groups for free.. they gave him a basis for his language and when he turned 3 (that's when they age out of the program) he qualified for FREE preschool(and free summer school) because he has an IEP (Individual Education Plan).. he's doing fabulous now! If she's understanding, then her receptive language skills are fine, but she is not speaking, then get her help.. it may be something simple.. or something not so simple, but it's a free service and you can stop at any time if you aren't happy.. well worth the phone call and evaluations. good luck..

S.,
I went through that with my oldest son who is now 16.The best thing about the assessment is they will find out if the chances of speech theropy is worth it.My son went through speech theropy and does very good at communicating more now a days.He didn't start talking until he was two but it was well worth the wait of him doing so.Now him and I can talk and understand each other more.I think you should take the assessment as a path to words and knowlede.

my son didn't start talking until he was 20 mos. he's doing beautifully now at 26 mos. The spectrum of normal lang. development is very broad, if your daughter still has only a few at 24 mos. then you begin to seek out answers... i did have my son's hearing checked at about 18 mos. because that type of loss does run in my family, but that checked out so then i just had to wait. its hard, but give her time to develop at her own pace, and don't let the doc scare you...

ABSOLUTLEY!!!!!!!!!!!!Have her assessed!!!! My son was 2 and had 0 words and I had him assessed only to find out he is PDD which is a mild form of Autism. Not to say she is autistic but best to have her evaluated so that she gets the help she needs to communicate. It was very hard to communicate with my son and he did not talk until he was 3 1/2. Please go ahead and do it!!In the long run you don't want to find out when she gets to school that there is a problem. Best to find out now. Early detection!!!!!! Hope this helped!!!

Hi S.. Yes, I've had experience with Early Intervention for my two younger children. My son, who's now 18, wouldn't talk after his father & I split up. We went through Early Intervention, using play to get him to talk, in less than a year. For my youngest, she was a little bit tougher. She was in Early Intervention from just before she was two, until her 3rd birthday. She had had difficulty in hearing & saying words properly (poor ear drainage). After having PE tubes surgically placed in her eardrums, she was able to hear & function normally. Now that she's 10, I can't get her to stop talking (LOL).

My two year old was the same. He had a lot of ear infections, and we think that affected his speech. I'm not saying this is what is going on with your little girl, but we contacted Kennedy Donovan Center in Plymouth. They were great. We had someone come out once a week. Just the initial assessment was helpful- they have 3 people come out to play with the child and test where they are as far as speech, development. I highly recommend them even to eval and make sure nothing is going on. Good luck! By the way, my son Braden is still delayed with his speech, but improving, but he does understand everything. I think it just takes some kids longer. Hope this helps!

Yes, I have had a child in EI for language development. I had my son tested when he was 2 I believe it was. The program is great. He is 9 now and still recieves speech therapy in school. Mostly for annunciation and some blend trouble. Yes, definitely haver her assessed by Early Intervention. It is done at no cost to you. It would be better to find out if she is language delayed for a reason.

My daughter didn't say a word until she was 2 1/2, although she used sign language, and understood everything we said. She had fluid buildup in her ears, which didn't exactly cause her to lose her hearing, just perhaps not understand the little nuances of speech. She had ear tubes put in, and was seen by a language specialist, who then gave her "speech therapy". In retrospect, (she is now 5 years old, talks all the time, although has certain articulation problems) I would have waited on the tubes, and tried other interventions for that issue, but I was very happy with the early intervention system. It has no negative effect on her later school records or anything, and I think it really helped her language development. Also, I did a lot of reading about alternative medicine at this time, and began giving her omega-3 supplements, which seemed to have an immediate effect on her starting to talk. Good luck.

My son wasn't using sentences at 2.5 years old. He had Early Intervention from the May Institute, and Speech Therapy from The Teresa Dooley Smith Center. They come right into your home for services. It's a great idea to have her checked out now. The more services she gets early on, the better off she will be in the long run. Early Intervention is only available up to the age of 3.

Hi

Two of my friends have had assessments done through early intervention and thought it was very worthwhile. If your pediatrician has recommended it, I would think that it could not hurt to at least have the consultation. If the person who does the evaluation does not think that her services are needed, then you have reassurrance that your daughter is where she should be, if not, then you at least are getting help early. Good luck.

I actually had early intervention for my son... I thought that
instead for helping him they were parenting me....I thought they were digging into my personal life...My son is now i kindergarten and doing fine

Hi S.,
YES - I can't recommend EI enough. My son was 22 months and not saying much at all. Maybe 5-10 words. If that. I had him evaluated, and he was 8 months delayed. We had a Speech Therapist start coming to the house once a week, and now at 28 months, he's caught up and no longer delayed. Please don't hesitate to call, it's the best help you can get, if you're eligible. We even participate in a playgroup once a week with other speech delayed kids, it's been a great experience for my son.

Please feel free to contact me if you have other questions!
-K. in Natick

I used to work in the preschool setting before I had my children and we worked with EI all the time. It helps a lot. I know that it is also covered by insurance. And they will do an assessment and give you all of the results first. Then everyone will decide whether your child would benefit from help and how often it would be needed. I hope this helped!!! Good Luck!