There can be a multitude of reasons why your child’s doctor has recommended speech therapy. While comprehensive, the following examples are not meant to be exhaustive. You’ve taken your 2 -year-old son to the pediatrician. The doctor points out your child is babbling frequently but is not using typical one-two word utterances. He is using sounds instead, like grunting and tugging on your tee shirt, to express his basic wants and needs. Gestures, such as giving, showing, waving, clapping, and pointing are not frequently noticed at the appointment. Furthermore, the doctor notices your child is not nodding his head in response to a simple yes-or-no question. Your child is demonstrating difficulties understanding spoken language. Additionally, he is demonstrating a decreased attention span and turns away when asked to sit down. Subsequently, your child may display apathy towards engagement, use a flat affect, and not show much emotion other than crying. This may be indicative of a language disorder, as your child is not responding to his name being called. Moreover, your child may make a quick attempt at eye contact, then turn away. The doctor observed him hiding his eyes. When the doctor asked, “look at me”, he placed his fingers over his eyes to cover them up, crying. Furthermore, he turned away with his body when the doctor attempted to play peek a boo. Your child is not sharing a warm, joyful expression. Difficulty noted with engagement can be indicative of a social language or pragmatic language disorder. Consequently, your child is not yet responding to interactions. He is not playing with age-appropriate toys, and is not showing you things, he is interested in. The doctor noticed your child is engaging in repetitive movements such as flapping, spinning, and running around your home. He is now avoiding your communicative opportunities. Under these circumstances, play may be restrictive. The doctor notices he is lining up toys in a row and becomes upset when toys are moved around in another way during play. In this case, your child is not engaging, sharing, or enjoying interests with others. The doctor notices your child is not yet imitating your actions upon objects. Imitation of actions upon objects is an important precursor to symbolic play. Additionally, your child is not using his hands to open a cause-and-effect toy. He is not pounding a ball with a hammer. He is not depressing a button on a pop-up toy to make it pop open. You explain to the doctor that your child has stopped using the words he used to say. Moreover, your child’s vocabulary has decreased from 10 words at 18 months to 2 words at 24 months. At the present time, your child has a one-word expressive vocabulary. He communicates only on occasion, saying “ba” or “ga”. He uses another person’s hand as a tool, instead of opening a box independently. He is not yet placing puzzle pieces in a simple three-piece puzzle shape form. He is not yet placing pegs in a pegboard. He is not yet using language to request or comment. Additionally, he is demonstrating difficulty regulating his body in space. He spins around when walking, may toe walk, and frequently moves quickly from one activity to the next, demonstrating a limited attention span. Your child is not pretending during play. He is not yet hugging a baby when asked, is not pretending the baby is drinking a bottle, and is not wrapping a blanket around the baby, after seeing a parent do this first. Therefore, your child is not using any early forms of play. These signs can point to a language disorder, all of which can be corrected through speech and language therapy. Speech Superstars is qualified to address any of the issues listed above, and we look forward to providing expert speech and language services for your child. https://www.asha.org/public/speech/early-intervention/