Educate me about speech/language delays

[Anonymous]

Is it wrong for me to assume that my children with speech and language delays will have low IQs? I would ask the speech therapist but don't want to do it in front of my kids. I tried googling and can't seem to find much but I seem to remember that language skills played into assessing high IQs? (I have one with speech delay and another with language delays. My ds was tested for Autism because it runs in my family but didn't meet the other areas beyond language.)

Second, how does a child with language delays do educational testing to go to private schools? (We live in DC.) Do I need to find someone who is both a speech pathologist and does educational testing?

Sorry if I upset anyone. I fully admit I know very little about these things and haven't found too much on the net that I found information rich. Any suggestions for further reading is much appreciated.

[Anonymous]

I can't speak to the private school issues but speech/language delays are not necessarily indicative of intelligence. I've got two kids with not just speech delays but also other developmental delays. They score like village idiots on standardized tests but are, in fact, exceptionally intelligent - and there are many kinds of intelligence. My kids will never be quick readers, quick writers or quick with a response. However, they are very deliberate in their thinking, love learning and have robust social lives. When we learned of their challenges, it was very difficult and it took us a while to come to terms that the path we envisioned them (and us) taking was going to be very different than the one we're on. However, we have every expectation that our kids will be successful, happy, well educated and gainfully employed.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thank you for your heartfelt response! My dh and I are well educated but don't really have a path for our children rather we are trying to set them on one that will make them happy. I haven't a clue about what is needed or what limitations are associated with speech/language delays. I want them to be in a supportive and caring environment that will help them discover their chosen path. (If that makes any sense?) I don't know what I should do to help this process.

[Anonymous]

DS who has a speech/lang delay did score poorly on the IQ tests because they are so linked to language and processing, but his ed psych was very strong in saying that as his speech/lang issues resolved, he would test better, so it's really not a case of IQ being "fixed" (the way they say it is). DS's teachers made a big point last year of saying that he is much brighter than he tests, and this could well be the case with your child.

My sister, who is in her 40s now, scored in the range that was considered mentally retarded when she was 6. She is an academic and one of the smartest people I know, but she doesn't think "ordinarily" - she is very outside-the-box in her thinking, and these kinds of tests can't capture this. I always think about her poor IQ scores whenever I hear of people worrying about these tests. Thank God my parents and her teachers didn't pay attention to them.

[Anonymous]

My DS has Aspergers and had significant speech delays (which technically means he has autism, but he really fits the profile of someone with AS.) At one point I was told by both his speech therapist and our pediatrician that studies have found that speech delays do not correlate to intellectual deficiencies. I can say that DS caught up with speech, has a VERY high IQ, taught himself how to read when he was three and while he is definitely on the autistic spectrum does well in school (and has friends, which wasn't the question). He does have executive function issues that have an impact on his ability to perform in the classroom and some attention issues but is still a fairly successful student.

And I remember when he seemed to be the only child his age who couldn't hold a conversation.

Treat whats in front of you and don't worry about the future.

[Anonymous]

The answer to your question is two-fold. Kids with language delays have a range of IQs, including high IQ. However, as other posters indicate, kids with delays often score poorly on standardized intelligence tests and need specialized measures of intelligence.

[Anonymous]

NP here wondering if someone who has been here can help me. My 3 YO son was in speech therapy for a language delay but has since stopped therapy as the therapist said he was back within normal range. He certainly has improved but doesn't have the in-depth kind of conversations I see other kids his age having (doesn't ask about what might happen, doesn't talk about the past, can't seem to tell me a story, doesn't ask "why'). He is (or seems to me to be) very bright- can count backwards in Spanish, for example, and can spell words, etc. My question is really more do kids "grow out" of being delayed and can I expect that he will just be like other kids on test scores, etc., now that he has stopped therapy, or should I continue to look for "signs" (wondering if I am over-analyzing). Should I worry about him going forward?

Sorry if this hijacks your post, OP. Just wondering if things ever just "go away" or if once there's something there, it will always be there, and what to expect. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

OP, I think it depends on what is causing the speech delay. DS has mild dyspraxia, but it was enough so that he did not make sounds until 2 years. No babbling, no sound production at all. It was a terrible time for our family. It did always look like he understood everything. Several years later, his speech caught up with his comprehension. His scored at the 99.9th percentile in the WPPSI. This was the full scale score. His IQ according to this was 146. While many people on this board have pointed out how crazy the WPPSI is and how it does not correlate with true intelligence (which I agree with), it does at the least mean that the dyspraxia did not affect DS's intelligence greatly.

[Anonymous]

16:55, you should have your child evaluated by a developmental pediatrician. My child who has Aspergers had exactly these issues once his language skills "caught up." he had trouble with abstract language, such as describing something that wasn't in front of him. "Tell me three things that are in your classroom," that sort of thing. never mind describing something that had happened or will happen in the future. This kind of thing is typical for kids with ASDs. DS continued speech therapy and worked on abstract language, eventually catching up on this as well. I think you need a new speech therapist. You might also explore floortime. One of the things we worked on was closing circles of communication because my DS also had trouble engaging in an ongoing conversation.

[Anonymous]

My daughter has a speech delay and we recently found out it was due to an undetected hearing issue. So no, not all speech delays relate to IQ. And I'm fairly certain even if it's not hearing related it can sometimes be chalked up to each child learning at their own pace. Not necessarily IQ related at all.

[Anonymous]

Einstein apparently didn't speak until he was 4 years old.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thank you for your heartfelt response! My dh and I are well educated but don't really have a path for our children rather we are trying to set them on one that will make them happy. I haven't a clue about what is needed or what limitations are associated with speech/language delays. I want them to be in a supportive and caring environment that will help them discover their chosen path. (If that makes any sense?) I don't know what I should do to help this process.

First and foremost make sure your children know you love them unconditionally, praise Learn as much as you can about their challenges. Don't be afraid to try therapies (the ones you can afford) or new approaches and don't be afraid to chuck what doesn't work. Be factual and open with them about their strengths and challenges and teach them not to be ashamed. There is no shame in being challenged, only in not doing your best work. Don't forget to nurture yourself and your relationship with your DH. Don't waste energy on things (and people with attitudes) you can't change. Be open to meeting new people and accepting help when it's offered. You'll be surprised at how kind some people are.

[Anonymous]

What sort of private school are you looking into? Lab school or regular private school? My DC wasn't talking at 2, tested for Autism (not) and started speech therapy privately when he was 2.5. He is now 10 and still in speech therapy, OT and receives academic support at school. He is very sharp, loves reading and learning but just learns slower than other children his age. We had him in private school (Catholic) but it was clear they couldn't meet his needs. We moved him to public school and found that having his needs integrated into the classroom and with his peers has worked wonders for him.

Of course if we could afford Lab I would put him there in an instant!

[Anonymous]

Speech delays can take all forms. My DD with a speech issue actually has fantastic scores on standardized tests because her problems are with pragmatics. So the issue for us is really social. WHen you ask about private school, I think you really need to take a step back and identify the type of school that would be best. Private schools that can accommodate serious speech delays are not going to be concerned with the test scores. And schools that are going to be concerned with the test scores are probably not going to be able to accommodate serious speech delays. Its the sad truth that there are special needs private schools and then traditional private schools that are not at all special needs friendly, even for very bright kids. So, public school may be your path. Public schools are required to provide services and accommodations and they can be excellent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is it wrong for me to assume that my children with speech and language delays will have low IQs? I would ask the speech therapist but don't want to do it in front of my kids. I tried googling and can't seem to find much but I seem to remember that language skills played into assessing high IQs? (I have one with speech delay and another with language delays. My ds was tested for Autism because it runs in my family but didn't meet the other areas beyond language.)

Second, how does a child with language delays do educational testing to go to private schools? (We live in DC.) Do I need to find someone who is both a speech pathologist and does educational testing?

Sorry if I upset anyone. I fully admit I know very little about these things and haven't found too much on the net that I found information rich. Any suggestions for further reading is much appreciated.

Yes, it is TOTALLY wrong of you to assume this. Kids have language delays (and learning problems) even with very high IQ's... Sometimes is it motor planning/apraxia problems etc. I'd do a neuropsych eval (they are able to tease out what is SPD, learning and IQ issues.