Language and learning difficulties.
Speech and language disorders are relatively common in pre-school and school-age children. For the proper development of your child it is essential to pay close attention to the presence of these difficulties not only in order to improve the child's communication with his or her environment, but also to ensure that your child is prepared to successfully face the challenges of this new stage of learning.
It is widely recognized and there is much evidence that speech and language disorders are a risk factor associated with learning difficulties. There are compromised areas of the development whose functioning is fundamental so that the child acquires new information and integrates it as part of his learning. Developing skills such as auditory discrimination, reasoning processes, attention, concentration and memory as well as the development of written language are more difficult for children with the presence of language pathologies. Also their psychological and emotional development can be negatively affected. Children with language disorders are often more exposed to teasing, exclusion from the group and bullying, leading to anxiety disorders, depression and putting their self-esteem, security and independence at risk.
The child who does not receive the right therapy at the right time drags these difficulties along in his development, which become more critical as academic demands increase. The end result is a small, unmotivated and underachieving student.
Parents should always be attentive to their children's language and speech development and keep in mind that it is not something that should be left for later. If you believe that your child needs to be evaluated by a specialist, the sooner you get an accurate diagnosis, the better your child will face treatment. In most cases, early intervention has a better chance of success and your child will be able to enjoy all the school challenges.
Lic. Rocio Vargas.