SPEECH CARE 

Parents should use simple, back to basic toys that facilitate interaction between kid and parent. Toys are the tools. Parents are the educational part. Avoid flashy, overly techy and computerized toys. For example, rice shaker (rice in water bottle), blocks, potato head, balloon-let it go child can ask for more, blanket swing, washing her animals, bath time routines, etc. Most things you do not need a toy but the strategy behind it. Pretend play is also good to help children reenact their experiences. For example, feeding the baby or bear, covers with a blanket, etc. Also toys that go with the songs that children likes.

Parents often find themselves asking a lot of questions to their child to get them to talk. Many parents think they are supporting language development when they test kids' vocabulary knowledge by asking "What is this?", when in fact this may have a negative impact. Children get tired of these quizzes, especially when it is a question they have answered many times before. They will often shut down and not want to talk. It also limits their speech to just nouns and labeling - which is not a good thing because there is SO much more to language! Here are some examples for what you could say instead of "What's that?" when you see trucks (Courtesy: MrsSpeechieP)

Parents who have a child who has difficulty with speech or language may have heard statements like "Wait and see, he’ll grow out of it" or “Don’t worry, my son didn’t speak until he was three”. This advice is not always right and unfortunately for those children who do not “grow out of it” precious time has been lost. While there are no adverse affects to helping a child who may grow out of it, there are significant risks in waiting for the child who will not. Current research shows that due to how the brain develops it is easier for children to learn language before the age of five. Early detection and treatment is important for children to overcome social and academic problems as well. So follow your instincts and seek guidance if you are concerned.

Learning more than one language can be good for a child’s overall language and learning abilities in school. A child raised with more than one language will possibly develop a larger vocabulary and have access to more than one culture. There is no clear research that show children with a language delay should be exposed to only one language. Families may wish to discuss their options with a Speech-Language Pathologist. Any language intervention planshould be based on your child's need to communicate for different reasons with different people.

Hanen is a good website to learn about supporting your child with ASD: http://www.hanen.org/Helpful-Info/Autism-Corner.aspx

There are many benefits to bilingualism including better attention, creativity and problem solving. It is important to know that bilingualism does not cause a delay. When children mix their languages it does not mean that they are confused or have trouble being bilingual. Parents do not have to use the “one parent-one language” approach when exposing their child to two languages. They should always should speak to their child in a way that is comfortable and natural to them.