A Concerned SLP’s Response to TIME Magazine article by Camarata

A recent TIME Magazine article entitled “Why You Shouldn’t Immediately Worry If Your Child Is a Late Talker, According to a Speech Pathologist,” is potentially misleading and has the risk of causing damage to families of young children with concerns about speech and language development. Although the author, Dr. Stephen Camarata is a world-renowned Speech-Language […]

Facts about “Late Talkers”

When caregivers start asking questions about their child’s language development and late talking, speech-language pathologists hear answers like this all. the. time. “Don’t worry – he will talk when he’s ready.” “She’s just a late talker, she will catch up.” “Boys talk later than girls, he’s fine.” “She’s just letting big brother talk for her.” […]

Cost of Delayed Intervention in Texas

Research shows many benefits to early intervention and speech therapy for children. However, many children do not have access to services in Texas. The cost of delayed or absent therapy is significant for our society. Read more about the importance of early intervention and where to find help. Without early and appropriate intervention, there are […]

Pretend Play

Research indicates there are several risk factors for delayed language skills, developmental delays, and cognitive delays. One of the risk factors is decreased pretend play skills. Pretend play begins to develop around 12-18 months, but isn’t mastered until 3-5 years. What is pretend play? Children develop pretend play skills later, after functional play and constructional play […]

Screen Time – What parents should know

Screen Time –Is it harmful, or can it be used to help children learn and develop? As a speech-language pathologist, my opinion is screen time can be both. Interactive media and technology can help children learn if used appropriately and intentionally, guided by an adult, and accompanied with language-rich interactions. On the other hand, using […]

Bilingual Facts: What parents should know

As a bilingual speech-language pathologist, I am honored to serve culturally and linguistically diverse families daily. Through my education and experiences, I have learned so much about bilingualism and the importance of celebrating all languages around the world. Nearly 25% of public school students now speak a language other than English at home across the […]

What is Feeding Therapy?

Mealtime meltdowns are not new to parents and caregivers, especially those with “picky” eaters. Feeding therapy may help increase a child’s variety of accepted foods, ability to participate in family meals, and decrease the family stress related to food. What is feeding therapy? There are two main goals to feeding therapy: Learn how to eat […]

Picky Eating

Selective eating, or “picky eating” can be very stressful for children unable to tolerate a wide variety of foods and for caregivers wanting to end the mealtime battles. If you have concerns about your child’s eating abilities, contact a speech-language pathologist (SLP) or talk to your pediatrician. A SLP is often included in the care […]

The Dangers of “Wait and See”

I worked with a mother of a bilingual child with a significant language disorder who was told by the pediatrician to “wait and see” for TWO YEARS. This mother told me her gut feeling started when her child was three years old. She shared how she stopped speaking Spanish at home to focus only on […]