Talk to Me: Issues in Acquiring Spoken Language for Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Speech-language pathologists play a critical role in the treatment of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) because communication deficits are a primary component of both the diagnostic criteria and the focus of educational services for children with these conditions. Children with ASD almost always are delayed in speech acquisition (Tager-Flusberg, Paul, & Lord, 2005), as well as in other areas of communication. Lack of speech is often the most obvious symptom and greatest cause for concern of parents of toddlers who are eventually diagnosed with ASD, even though closer observation usually reveals additional problems

Case Study #4: Kirk

This last of the four case studies is adapted from a working paper completed by Rhea Paul. It was one of the first attempts to use the NPA procedure as a research tool. This extended case study is more lengthy than the previous three case studies and organized differently. It is included here because it nicely illustrates the discovery procedures that clinical researchers must undertake to more fully understand associations between speech and language

Patterns of Development in Late Talkers: Preschool Years

A group of children was identified as “late talkers” (LT) on the basis of small expressive vocabulary size at 20–34 months of age and matched to a group of normally speaking age-mates. The subjects were followed yearly throughout the preschool period in order to track growth in language and related skills. Results showed that although significant improvement in speech and language skill occurred during the preschool period in the late talkers, a substantial minority of children retained deficits throughout the preschool years. By kindergarten age, these children, as a group, scored within, but at the low end of the normal range in terms of reading readiness. Data suggest that the longer a language delay persists into the third year of life, the less the chance of spontaneous recovery during the preschool period. Late talking girls seem to have less chance for spontaneous recovery than do late talking boys. The implications of these findings for making early intervention decisions will be discussed

Invented Spelling in Kindergarten

Confirms findings of previous studies by linguists C. Chomsky and C. Read on spontaneous spelling by preschoolers. Four basic stages of this process in logical developmental sequence are described. This activity is seen as giving some children a chance to express their ideas independently, and as stimulating purposeful thinking about sounds and symbols. It is concluded that this activity is interesting and suitable for young children before formal writing or spelling instruction, and does not interfere with the later learning of correct spelling

85.4 What Works for Treating Language Disorders in Children

The goal of this session is to provide an overview of the principles of language intervention for children from ages 3–18 years of age and review the evidence base for selection of treatments for language disorders in preschool-aged and school-aged children, with special attention to interventions aimed at addressing pragmatic and social communication disorders

Clinical Implications of the Natural History of Slow Expressive Language Development

As clinicians, we now have a good deal of information about the degree of risk associated with early language delay. When parents ask us what is likely to happen to a late-talking 2-year-old by the time s/he gets to kindergarten, we are now able to provide a relatively reliable statement of the child’s chances for a good outcome, and a reassuring discussion of even the less favorable possibilities. We are now in a position to begin using the information provided by recent research to inform our deliberations about early intervention with the families and agencies we serve, and to guide us in advocating for sensible public policies with regard to these children. It is my hope that the position I have taken here will stimulate discussion that will contribute toward these ends

Sally J. Rogers and Geraldine Dawson: Review of Early Start Denver Model for Young Children with Autism: Promoting Language, Learning and Engagement (Book Review)

Book review by Rhea Paul: Rogers, Sally R. and Geraldine Dawson. Early Start Denver Model for Young Children with Autism: Promoting Language, Learning and Engagement. New York: Guilford Press, 2010. 9781606236321; 9781606234914 (pbk.