Speech therapy

The purpose of speech-language therapy is to enhance intentional communication via expression of ideas, obtaining desires, sharing information and interpersonal interaction. Language is the means by which communication is achieved.

Speech is a troubling issue in Autism Spectrum Disorders. Some children develop speech in time according to milestones, and then regress, losing all speech. Some children develop speech in time, but talk so much you’d like to pull your hair out, and some children never develop speech and are completely nonverbal. Every child is different in the “speech” part of the Autism Spectrum Disorder disability. Whether your child is verbal or nonverbal, don’t give up hope. Many children with Autism Spectrum Disorders begin to speak with one-on-one speech therapy. Others make incredible strides with PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System) and other visual cues.

Speech therapy will help both verbal and nonverbal children with autism. Before you begin therapy, you will likely have to complete a speech evaluation from a licensed speech language pathologist. After completing a series of tests with your child, the therapist should be able to tell you whether your child would benefit from speech therapy or qualifies for speech therapy. Remember, vocabulary isn’t the only part of speech.
Children with autism have a severely limited ability to speak in social settings, also known as pragmatic speech. Pragmatics is knowing how to use language appropriately in social settings. As children with autism already have social deficits, speech is impaired more by their limited social skills, which makes for very awkward and odd speech patterns. The ability to converse is severely limited in most cases. 

Speech Therapy can help autistic children with any level of speech disorder – from the completely non-verbal to the child who talks incessantly. Before beginning a Speech Therapy program, you and your child will work with a trained Speech Therapist to complete an evaluation. Your child will undergo testing and the therapist will report on ways he or she believes speech therapy will help your child.

As with any treatment program, early intervention is best. However, Speech Therapy is also effective with older children. Some areas addressed in Speech Therapy for autistic children may include:
• Helping the child to understand social interaction and ways he or she can affect his or her environment.
• A desire to communicate.
• Paying attention and listening skills.
• Play skills.
• Understanding verbal communication.
• Social skills.
• Improved speech rate and rhythm.
Speech therapy
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Autism Checklist