Wellesley: (509) 448-9358
Downtown: (509) 309-3789
Deer Park: (509) 276-2005
Whitworth: (509) 465-2139

Childhood Speech Therapy

Here at Acceleration we have a strong pediatric therapy department comprised of a speech language pathologist, an occupational therapist, and a physical therapist. We serve children of all ages from infancy to adolescence for varying developmental disorders and impairments.

If you feel your child may benefit from speech therapy, we offer a free 15 minute screen with our therapist to determine if a comprehensive evaluation is warranted to further identify areas of delay.

Contact a speech therapist

Common childhood communication and feeding disorders treated by our speech language pathologist include:

  • Childhood Apraxia of Speech
  • Delayed Language (“Late Talkers”)
  • School-Aged Expressive/Receptive Language Disorders
  • Articulation and Speech Production (3 years+)
  • Fluency Disorders (“Stuttering”)
  • Social Language Impairment
  • Dysphagia (Swallowing/Feeding Disorder)

Common therapy targets include, but are not limited to, early and elementary language development, articulation and speech sound development, use of augmentative and alternative communication devices (high tech and low tech), social skill development, development of play skills, and feeding skills for an oral diet.

What to expect

Evaluation

Our first step is an initial evaluation where you and your child attend and our speech pathologist conducts interviews, administers formal assessments if appropriate, and educates your family regarding the most appropriate course of action. Therapy goals are then created based on your child’s performance and functional needs. Initial evaluations typically take 30-45 minutes with our speech language pathologist. Please plan to arrive 15-20 minutes early for your intake paperwork.

Treatment

Following our initial evaluation and the creation of goals, children are typically seen one to two times per week depending on the needs of each child. A typical therapy session is between 30 – 35 minutes long and includes both structured tasks and play-based activities to target our therapy goals with evidence-based techniques. Parents are encouraged to participate in therapy sessions to increase their knowledge base and prepare them to target goals in the home.

Home Program

Each child is provided with weekly homework to target in the home program. These can include structured worksheet tasks or play-based instructions with specific goals to incorporate into the child’s natural environment. The home program is an integral part of a child’s success, speech therapy aims to build skills so that a child can grow and develop in their natural environment and the best way to do this is to practice, practice, practice!