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Granny's Advice

By Rosaleen Dickson, BA, MJ
Dear Great Granny.

I have 3 sons. My second son is 2 1/2 yr.. old. It's hard to understand him when he speaks. He does pronounce some words pretty well like names of family members or favorite character like Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, etc. We just can't understand his sentences. Is it because he's the second child? Will he grow out of it? Is there something we should be looking for. Or is there some kind of tests we can do to track his progress?
Thank you.

Dear friend

No, it's not because he's the second child. It's because he is in a hurry to say what he wants to say. And yes, he will grow out of it. Don't rush him. Don't mock him. Don't embarass him about his strange speech patterns. Try to understand what he is saying and respond as well as you can.

Spend a lot of time with him, talking. Keep him in the room when you are talking with others. Read to him. Make sure he hears a lot of talking, and NOT just radio and television. Speak clearly with him, and when he is with you make sure you are speaking clearly with others. Don't talk baby-talk to him. Use an ordinary voice, as you do with adults.

If when he is a few years old you discover that he has a real speech defect, then you must prepare to spend a couple of hours a day with him going over the sounds that he can't pronounce. Don't think of it as an unfair chore; think of it as a rare privilege. You can make a game ofit and be sure he enjoys the sessions with you. OR you can pay quite a lot of money to hire a speech therapist. The best way would be a few sessions with the therapist and then take over yourself, after you've seen how it is done.

I know a child who started life unable to pronounce almost any consonant but who, because of his mother's devotion to her task, won the public speaking competition in high school. It doesn't happen quickly, but it does happen surely.

However, at your son's age, I expect his problem is just that his mind is working faster than his tongue. Good luck with him.

Truly yours,
GG


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