Speech-Language Services

• use language to acquire, assess and communicate information
  
  
  
• become effective listeners and speakers in a variety of situations.

Key Areas of Speech and Language

• ARTICULATION – speech sound production/pronunciation.
  • Children acquire the ability to pronounce certain sounds at different ages. Some pick up this skill earlier than others. Oftentimes, children in middle school may have difficulty with later-developing sounds like “s” and “r.”
  • It is important to note that some students may also experience oral-motor difficulties in conjunction with articulation difficulties.

•  LANGUAGE – Receptive (comprehension) and Expressive
  • Content: semantics
  • Form: syntax (grammar), morphology, phonology
  • Use: pragmatics (social conventions of language)
  • Content-Form-Use Explained
    
    
• FLUENCY – the flow of speech (ex: stuttering)
  
  
• VOICE – vocal quality.
  • The most common voice issue for school-aged children involves hoarseness, which is often related to vocal abuse and misuse (e.g.,  excessive loudness or use of incorrect pitch).