Was asked to take my 36 month old to a speech therapist?

Question

My son will turn 3 end of this year. He can identify more than 700 objects. He can even add and subtract in single digits. He can speak in sentences. However he still uses a lot of gibberish. He will say "The whale is in trouble"..then lapse into babble...then back to "let's rescue whale".My doctor says that a 3 year old should not be exhibiting *any* babble and asked me to see a Speech Therapist immediately.

We are a multiracial family. I speak english with a British accent and my husband is American and speaks like a mid westerner. We don't baby talk. We read to him daily. We thought our kid was doing great, but now wonder. Does anyone else have experience or advice?

He has cleared all hearing tests. He can pronounce many complicated words with ease- caterpillar, catastrophe, Gigantic etc. He just keeps lapsing into gibberish when he speaks sentences....Half his sentences will be very clear and well enunciated, and the other half is lispy, cute, but meaningless. They sound like speech (he is not saying gaagoo or anything) but they do not make `sense'.

Answer 1

Sounds like you have yourself a little smartie pants! Good for him. You are doing a great job.

To be on the safe side, have him evaluated. They will to testing to eliminate things like autism (spectrum disorder) and other problems. You will put your mind at ease. It is important to rule out any problems at a young age. The younger to get him help the better (if he needs it).

Answer 2

My son turned two this past November and it was recommended that we consult a speech therapist for him. At first, I felt that the doctor was pushing me, but after speaking to a few parents from playgroup, I decided to at least go and see what the program has to offer. Our county has a program (Help Me Grow) that handles to 0-3 year old speech therapy. It is set up for both a group class and an individual class where the child learns through play. There is no cost to the parent for the services. Once the child turns three, they are re-evaluated and based on the recommendation they are transitioned into a preschool that offers speech therapy. Usually this is headed up by your local school district. To be honest, I realize now that I was being foolish for not jumping at the chance to get him into the program. There is no stigma attached to it. My son is learning at a much faster rate than when I was working with him, and it has taught him many useful tools along the way. I recommend that at the very least you look into what your local program has to offer and visit with the therapists. You will probably be surprised.

Answer 3

I am so glad that you posted this question. My son is almost 2 1/2 years old. He only says a few words but he still talks baby talk and "gibberish." I don't mind that he doesn't know how to talk yet because every child is different. When I brought my son to neurologist to get checked out for seizures she told me that I need to bring my son to speech therapy. She said that he should be talking in 2 word sentences. I told her I would think about it and when we went back for a check up a month later she still kept persuing the speech therapy and made me feel like a bad mother because I didn't want to bring my son to therapy.

It takes some kids a longer time than others to learn to speak clearly. I don't think your son is behind or slow. These doctors think that because they have M.D. after their name they know everything about a child's well being. If you really think about it they are still babies...to me they are. 2 and 3 year olds are still babies and they shouldn't have to be talking like adults at that age just because the doctor thinks so. I'm not bringing my son to speech therapy because I know why he doesn't talk clearly yet. A mother always knows whats best for their child. If you think your child is doing fine..which I think he is...then keep doing what your doing. I believe that toddlers develop better speaking skills when they are in daycare, around other kids their age to communicate, and they are in a learning environment most of the time.

At the end of the day, he's your child and you know whats best for him.

Answer 4

i have a four year old that does gibber and makes lots of sounds to express himself, your son seems to be on the right track and very advanced in areas of speech, i would not be too concerned at this age, if and when you prepare to enter him in to school if these burst are still there, then i would look into a therapist, if you go through the school, it is covered by the state in most cases. I wouldn't stress about this too much, most kids out grow this phase in time

Answer 5

Did you have his hearing checked also? He may just be confusing the different accents that he is hearing because kids are like sponges at that age. I would just take him and have him check and see what the speech therapist tells you. You don't have to take him if you don't like what they tell you. Remember you know your child best and you know what is best for your child. In my house we actually speak 3 different languages Polish, English, and French so my kids went through something similar it worked its self out by age 5/6. I would just make sure it is nothing to do with his hearing.

Good Luck and Best wishes
Good Luck

Answer 6

I would take the docs advice. A speach therapist deals only with that field and will be a better judge of your childs progress. Also, if there is a problem with the childs speach, these people can do wonders, but the longer you wait the harder it will be for the child to break bad habbits

Answer 7

I don't necessarily agree with your doctor, but not knowing you or your child I guess I would say it couldn't hurt to have him evaluated and have a professional tell you if everything is okay or not. Before you pay for an evaluation, check with you local school district. Many have programs for kids with "special needs" at no cost and the assessment would be part of the process for getting him enrolled.

Answer 8

My daughter had a problem with her speech. Even at nearly four years, it was difficult to understand her. Her doctor said she was normal for her age, but I thought it was odd that I couldn't even understand her half the time. Someone told me that sippy cups were linked to problems with speech development. I took away the sippy cup and my daughter's speech improved very noticeably, almost immediately.

Answer 9

I had that subject while i replaced into little. attempt asking her inquiries to objective to get her to keeep chatting with u. Eg what colour is that toy your twiddling with. If that doesnt paintings communicate over together with her daycare and that they could have the skill to get a speech therapist. good luck.

Answer 10

I can't really comment on what is going on with your child, but my cousin had a severe speech problem and he went to a speech therapist. He had a great time, and it really helped. They did group and single sessions, he didn't feel stigmatized or anything.

Just go to the therapist, it can't hurt.