- Speech disorders occur when a person has difficulty producing speech sounds correctly or fluently (e.g., stuttering is a form of disfluency) or has problems with his or her voice or resonance.
- Language disorders occur when a person has trouble understanding others (receptive language), or sharing thoughts, ideas, and feelings (expressive language).
- Social communicationdisorders occur when a person has trouble with the social use of verbal and nonverbal communication. These disorders may include problems (a) communicating for social purposes (e.g., greeting, commenting, asking questions), (b) talking in different ways to suit the listener and setting and (c) following rules for conversation and story-telling. All individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder have social communication problems.
- Cognitive-communicationdisorders include problems organizing thoughts, paying attention, remembering, planning, and/or problem-solving. These disorders usually happen as a result of a congenital or acquired disorders.
- Swallowing disorders (dysphagia)is associated with chewing, sucking and swallowing problem among children.
Additionally, Speech Therapist;
- Provide aural rehabilitation for individuals who are deaf or hard ofhearing.
- ProvideAugmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) systems for individuals with severe expressive and/or language comprehension disorders, such as Autism Spectrum Disorder or Progressive Neurological Disorders.
- Work with children who don’t have speech, language, or swallowing disorders, but want to learn how to communicate more effectively.
