5 yr old with Expressive Language problem-- SO CONFUSED/Help

You’re right in that kindergarten curriculum has changed. In my day all kindergarten was was play. We didn’t learn letters/numbers until 1st grade!

Preschool curriculum and kindergarten curriculum at two different schools can’t be coordinated -your daughter’s having trouble ‘closing the gap’ between the two different curriculums. Does she know her letters and numbers now? I assume there are continuing problems beyond letters and numbers.

Expressive language issues are usually caused by an underlying issue - likely her auditory processing. Working with a speech pathologist can’t hurt if you have the right speech pathologist who works well with your daughter. My own son had and has expressive language issues and we carefully monitored his progress and made placement decisions around it. Could your daughter do another year in kindergarten to give her some ‘catch-up time’? We also had our son work with a speech pathologist and tried to encourage those around him to extra patience with his language issues. He eventually became successful in school although taking a foreign language was a challenge for him.

Summers can be an opportunity to do some catch up too. We lived near a summer day camp that was specifically for children with language and reading issues. In a fun way, they spent part of the summer working on those issues.

All parents feel quilty about these things - it’s the sign of a great parent.

Good luck to you and your daughter.

I have observed that expressive language problems are often the result of an auditory processing disorder. APD can be fully evaluated only by an audiologist with specialized training in this area. Sound therapies are often very helpful for APD. You may want to start looking at TLP (http://www.advancedbrain.com ) and FastForWord (http://www.scilearn.com ).

For more information about auditory processing disorders, see http://pages.cthome.net/cbristol/

Nancy

Thanks for the information. Really, when she was evaluated- what was flagged was phoenmeic awareness issues (sorry, I mixed that up)- (hearing the sounds in language)She has not been formally diagnosed with auditory processing…but I will look at the information and follow up with her speech pathologist regarding this.
She has made tremendous progress since the fall. she knows her alphabet and even the sounds of each letter (the k teacher does this with them every day) she has learned to rhyme. she still has some number issues- she still has problems identifying/visually 8,9,10-but they are counting to 100 in school and she can do this mostly right. If you ask her what comes after L, she will have to go thru the entire alphabet to tell you M. same thing with numbers…so I guess this is a sequencing issue.I have purchased lots of things like Jumpstart software and she does really well with that. Also, I got Hooked on PHonics since the speech pathologist recommended it. it was 300 bucks and the tapes and workbook really bore her. I think I spent 300 bucks on a computer CD- since that is all she likes to do. She seems to be picking up on that too- but I still think she has a hard time hearing the end of words (The “ap” in map etc..)
Sara- you mentioned your son has been successful in school after seeing a speech pathologist-that is encouraging. how old is he now? did he have to continue therapy for some time?
I’m thinking of getting her a reading tutor (someone suggested Orton Gillingham/sp) for the summer. I”m wondering if this is a good idea. And also I wonder about these types of learning places/centers like Sylvan- if that would be beneficial.

I have two out of three children with difficulty learning. One definitely has developmental expressive language delay both oral as well as written while the other we are just starting testing to find out her issues. It is easy to know what your child is telling you when you are aware of everything going on in their lives, and then comes kindergarten and you are not there 24/7 as they are now in school for longer. There are gaps and you do not always understand what they are trying to tell you which can be very frustrating. My son’s auditory issue was auditory memory deficit…in one ear and out the next. His writing was really bad…had no clue what he was trying to tell you. With testing, and therapy from an SLP life has gotten much better for him. Five years later and he can communicate well both orally and in writing. So, with the right help and strategies, your child can learn and do well in school, but everything comes in time. There can be a bright side, you just need to get through all the testing and find what works and what doesn’t and that can change from year to year. Yes, it is very frustrating. Don’t feel so bad, I never realized my son had a problem either until the school told me. With my daughter, I have told them there was a problem since she entered kindergarten, they told me she was fine….now in third grade she has fallen apart at the seams and we have finally moved to testing. I find lanugauge issues can be subtle and unless you are trained professional or have experienced them, you may not notice them. What is normal…it is different for each age and then there are wide variations [lack of a better word]. Hoped this helped you.

I think a multi-sensory approach to reading would be a great summer activity for your daughter. OG or Lindamood Bell are both good. I’d stay away from Sylvan; they don’t have a good track record with learning disabilities. My son has phonemic awareness problems, and he is improving but it is definitely alot of work. Your daughter sounds like she is progressing well. I’m sure she will do well—you are obviously a caring parent and will find what she needs to succeed.

Many times there is a strong co-morbidity between CAPD/and ADD. Just yesterday where I work as an SLP the psyche and I were talking about that same thing. So treat the Auditory processing issues and if you find you aren’t making progress then look into her attention. If she can’t focus the remediation period will be longer. Sometimes the underlying processing disorder and ADD don’t go away either. You just have to live with compensatory strategies that you are shown to compensate for your disability. Been there…myself as a matter of fact as I have both CAPD/ADD combined.

Your daughter’s issues sound very similar to my older son’s. He is 22 now and he saw a wonderful speech pathologist once a week from the age of three to about 2nd grade. Then he saw a not as wonderful speech therapist for a few more years.

Orton gillingham works for some children but it depends on what the underlying issues are and I’m not certain if it’s well though of for auditory phoenemic awareness. I’m definitely not a fan of Sylvan or Huntingdon learning - many of their tutors are moonlighting from their reg. jobs and I find such places provide an easy access to tutoring rather than high quality tutoring.
And I’m very hesitant to use Sylvan or Huntingdon for children with learning differences.

Remember that your daughter is very young. Once kindergarten was a place of play - when I was a child we didn’t teach the alphabet until 1st grade or expect children to read until 1st grade. That she needs to repeat the entire alphabet to tell you what comes next may be nothing more than she’s still learning it - it doesn’t have to mean a sequencing issue by any means.

Good luck.

Sara- you mentioned your son has been successful in school after seeing a speech pathologist-that is encouraging. how old is he now? did he have to continue therapy for some time?
I’m thinking of getting her a reading tutor (someone suggested Orton Gillingham/sp) for the summer. I”m wondering if this is a good idea. And also I wonder about these types of learning places/centers like Sylvan- if that would be beneficial.[/quote]

I agree with the other advice to consider an APD eval and stay far, far away from Sylvan. They are not LD specialists. I would definitely not send her to first grade if she is not ready by the end of the summer.

Janis

Check out lindamoodbell.com Lindamood is a proven, intensive program.

Read about LIPs and Seeing Stars.

Also, interdys.org (International Dyslexic Assoc)

First thing Trixie don’t be so hard on yourself. Your daughter’s LD has been found early and right there you are on the right track. My son who is in first grade now was diagnosed last year with Expressive and Receptive Language Disabilities on top of that he has ADHD and is underdeveloped in his fine motor abilities. He has been in speech since he was 2 1/2 and Occupational Therapy since 4. He has made such great strides this last year. He didn’t know all his letters at the end of Kindergarten and reading was out of the question. He is now reading a little and sounding out the words phonetically. We were lucky because with the guidance of his school he is in an adaptive classroom. There are only 12 Kids a teacher, and a full time aide. He goes to specials with his friends and is thriving. I am not going to say that everyday is not a challenge but we know that we are on the right track and did not listen to everyone who said that he will grow out of it. He will never grow out of it but he will learn to get around his LD and be very successful.

Give yourself a hand for starting early and not denying (as many do) that there is a problem. The earlier the LD’s are discovered the more success the child will have. Hope this makes you feel more at ease. You are not alone and this message board has helped me a great deal. Keep writing any concerns you might have.

Thanks for all of the info and kind words.
I did call on getting an eval of CAPD done- and both places advise that this really can’t be tested until age 8; which is just as well for now.
Onward and upward…
Trixie

As far as not hearing the ends of words etc., phonemic awareness can be taught. It is a long, slow process, but you can do a lot.
I have posted lots of very long articles about how I tutor reading including phonemic awareness. Rather than repost the same thing, I’m now offering copies of the old posts by email free, no strings attached. If you are willing to put in the time and effort, email me at [email protected]