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Screen time has become an unavoidable part of modern childhood, with televisions, tablets, and smartphones capturing the attention of even the youngest minds.

Just as they usually crawl before they walk, babies will babble before they talk. Most babies will start babbling somewhere around 4 months and begin practicing repetitive sounds such as "da da" around 7 months. Many babies will say their first recognizable word around 12 months old.

Every day, listeners encounter a wide range of acoustic signals. Successfully solving this variability problem allows them to interpret these signals accurately. While this mechanism tends to be less effortful for adults, children need to learn stable categories in the face of such variability. 

Learning a new language can be an enriching, exciting, mind-expanding experience. When it comes to language learning, many people wonder: What’s the best age to learn a new language? Is early childhood optimal, when our brains are like little sponges, taking in new info at a quick pace? 

Preterm birth affects 15 million neonates annually, increasing mortality, morbidity, and long-term neurodevelopmental issues. Although 90% of preterm newborns survive without impairments, their brains remain vulnerable, leading to cognitive and behavioral challenges.

You may have seen the sight of a very young child completely engaged in a handheld device while the parents enjoy a little peace and quiet. But a new study shows that too much time alone on those devices could have a detrimental effect on the child's ability to speak fluently.

Concerned about your child’s language development? It is best to have your child evaluated by a pediatrician. Children who receive early evaluation, diagnoses, and intervention are best positioned to benefit from intervention and catch up.

 "One book each day is an easy goal for new families to try. To see that there is a measurable improvement in speaking and understanding before one year old is very exciting," said Adam M. Franks, M.D., professor of family and community health at the Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine and corresponding author on the study.

 Research in the UK has found Covid lockdowns have had a negative impact on children's speech and language development. In England alone the number of five and six year olds who need speech and language support at school has risen by 10% in the space of a year.

Speech disorders and language disorders are different; the former is the inability or difficulty to form sounds that create words, while the latter is the inability or difficulty to learn words or understand what others are saying to them.

By age 8, children typically begin to solidify their reading habits. And because a child’s language and literacy skills form the foundation of success in school, it is at this point in development that some readers begin to show significant gaps in ability. Luckily, no matter what reading level your child is at, you can use this time to help them thrive and succeed in both language and reading. 

Although every child grows and develops at his or her own pace, toddler speech development tends to follow a fairly predictable path. For example, by age 2, most children can:

- Follow simple commands and understand simple questions

- Speak about 50 or more words

- Be understood at least half the time by parents or other primary caregivers

SLP’s governing body, The American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA), has said they are concerned that changes in the CDC’s milestone checklist will slow or inhibit early intervention and has voiced their concerns with both the CDC and AAP.

Children who are 5-7 years old may still be working on correctly producing sounds such as the R and TH sounds. This article reviews the development of speech sounds and provides guidance on when a referral to early intervention may be necessary.

Developmental language disorder (DLD) is one of the most common disorders affecting children but is relatively unknown. 

Affecting more than seven per cent of children, DLD is 20 times more common than autism. 

Babies are born communicating. Their cries and coos speak volumes. However, much-anticipated first words do not appear until 12 months later. By 18 months, the average child says about 50 words. By the time a child is ready to start school, their vocabulary will be an estimated 2,300 to 4,700 words. 

The official statement acknowledges that the principles of evidence-based practice inform effective, high-quality speech-language pathology services in schools for students with speech, language and literacy challenges. 

This data provides a snapshot of the experiences of parents who reported having children aged 0 to 14 years with cognitive, behavioural, or emotional disabilities during the early response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Supporting Children With Speech Sound Disorders During COVID-19 Restrictions: Technological Solutions.

 Language development at 5-8 years sees children learning more and longer words. They can make more complex sentences and are better at pronouncing words too. 

While children have been resilient in terms of COVID-19, experts warn of mental, physical, and developmental problems that could arise from delays and isolation caused by COVID-19.

Speech-language pathologists can provide parents with useful tools in five strategy categories. These tools can then be incorporated into everyday routines.

A group that works with students with special needs is concerned that changes to the government's funding formula could impact the quality of the supports they provide.

The Calgary Board of Education has issued layoff notices to speech language pathologists and speech language assistants. Carolyn Kury de Castillo reports on concerns being raised by therapists and education advocates.