Differentiating between speech and language development can be tricky for parents. When requesting a referral for an evaluation, it is helpful for the evaluating therapist to know what concerns you have regarding your child’s abilities. Oftentimes parents and caregivers will identify that their child is having a hard time communicating, but aren’t exactly sure what aspect of communication is difficult for them. The scope of practice for speech-language pathologists is vast and you can help prepare for the evaluation process by accurately describing your child’s areas of need.
Here is a breakdown of the differences between speech and language and what difficulties in each area might look like:
“Speech” is how the individual sounds are produced.
Children with speech difficulties likely speak in full sentences but have articulation or phonological errors. They may have “lots to say” but are difficult to understand. For example, a child might say “wed” for “red” or “dough” for “go.” Other speech disorders may sound like your child speaks using a limited number of consonants or inconsistently produces words. As a general rule, if your child sounds like they are talking a lot, but are difficult to understand, they may have a speech disorder.
“Language” is the content of what they are saying or understanding.
Language is broken into two parts, expressive language and receptive language. Expressive language is the content your child is producing. Receptive language is what they can understand when being spoken to. Children with expressive language difficulties may not talk (or talk using a limited number of words), speak using grammatically incorrect sentences, mix up pronouns, or have a hard time creating sentences. Receptive language difficulties may present as a child having a hard time following directions, categorizing objects, or understanding complex sentences.