my 4 year old has a speech problem?

Question

My son is 4 years old. He is VERY smart, but has a speech delay. He has been going to therapy for it. He also drools a lot for his age. Not as much as he used to but still a little bit. He is a fast learner and catches on very quickly... He talks a lot but to people who aren't used to him he isn't very intelegable. Does anyone know what causes this and are there any suggestions?

Answer 1

There could be lots of causes, but my guess is that he's just mastering his mouth & tongue movements a little slower than usual. If he's going to a speech therapist, I'd not worry about it unless the therapist mentions any concerns to you. Just make sure to be consistent will any speech exercises he's given, and pretty soon, your son will be intelligible to everyone.

Answer 2

I also had a speech problem when I was 4 years old, I would always say dis and dat. But I turned out fine, I am a Junior in college studying for a bio major. But sometimes (not very often) I will forget how to say a word. A speech pathologist would be best to go see. Most people with speech problems actually have higher intellegences than most people, after a few years of speech therapy he should do alot better.
Also you pointed out the fact that he drools alot, this could be due extra tissue attached to the tounge or upper lip, and can simply be removed.

Answer 3

My son sounds exactly the same.

One thing I would do is have his ears and hearing checked. My son had a build up of fluid in his middle ears, and had to had tubes put it. It has made a tremendous difference, his speech is becoming much more "normal".

He also has a global developmental delay that was caused by profound neglect when he was between 8 months and 22 months (a crucial age for language development -- he is adopted). His communication is currently at the level of a 2 years old, but he is making strides with therapy and also with the support and involvement of his preschool.

Answer 4

Unfortunitly this sounds exactly like the conditions I went through when I was a lot younger and I've since been diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, a form of Autism. I went through speech therapy but personally I don't think I really needed it. I catch on to things very quickly and I can outsmart a lot of people. If you're son's good at basic math for his age then he probably has some sort of condition. My 3rd grade teacher said I was capable of doing 10th grade level math then and I could probably help out a lot of college kids now too.

Answer 5

My 4 year old step-son has the same problem. Where ever you live they have a program called Easter Seals that could be where your getting the therapy from. But really the thing I would suggest is to look into your preschools down there. My step-son has been in school since he turned 3 to help him learn to talk. And not only will it help him learn to talk, they do basic schooling for their age levels. It has worked wonders for my step-son, although he will probably be in a speech class until he hits middle school.

Answer 6

When you say therapy, do you mean a speech-language pathologist? If so, are they using oral-motor therapy? Based on what little info I have, I suggest you might do some research on oral-motor therapy. Just those two symptoms send a red flag up concerning oral-motor dysfunction. A lot depends on how long he has been seeing his current therapist. If its been awhile and he has not shown any progress, you might want to try a new one. Sometimes, though, speech therapy takes time.

Please don't listen to the people who have no idea what they are talking about. Please make sure you are seeing a licensed speech-language pathologist!

Answer 7

I had a speech impairment when I was little. It might be something to do with his upper palette (as was my problem) . It also could have to do with the part of the brain that helps you to speak as I am not completely sure what the speech impairment that your son has. I would continue to take him to speech therapy if I were you, likely it will get better from this.

Answer 8

I had the something when i was his age they have me in speech classes. just be there for him and keep helping .He will be fine just slow right now he will get better with time and you are doing the right thing having him go to speech therapy that is all you can really do for him and let him know you love him very much

Answer 9

lots of kids, (boys more than girls) have speech problems during this time, just keep him in the speech therapy classes, and they'll fix it, almost everyone I know has had some sort of speech problem, whether a lisp, or not being able to say certain letters or sounds, or whatever
good luck, I'm sure he'll be fine

Answer 10

I know you probably have already done this but my sister had a similar problem and it was her adnoids(i think that is how you spell it) they were removed then afterward her speech was better. Now the second thing is a question...does he hang around smaller children? Kids have a tendency to mimick what ever they hear maybe he is learning from another child.