The first words of the baby become unforgettable moments in the life of the family! In addition, the formation of speech is evidence of the normal emotional and physical development of the child. But more and more often in our society there are cases when children do not master communication skills up to school age. Why is this happening? What to do if the child is not talking at the age of 3? We will answer these and other questions regarding the delay in speech development.
The mechanism of speech formation
Often parents ask themselves at what age babies start talking? The process of speech formation begins literally from birth and ends at about 4 years old, when a preschooler already knows how to pronounce all the sounds of his native language, as well as compose words and build connected sentences. Later, there is an improvement in existing communication skills and expansion of vocabulary.
In the specialized literature, the following stages of speech formation are distinguished:
- Preparatory (from birth to year). Crying, by which a child draws attention to himself and communicates his needs, as well as walking, babbling, is aimed at training the articulation apparatus and are typical manifestations of speech for a six-month-old baby. At the age of 10-12 months, most babies delight their loved ones with the first short, but already meaningful words.
- The pre-school stage (from one to three years) is characterized by the active assimilation of articulation of sounds, the repetition of words for adults. During this period, the words of the kids are still illegible, jerky. Nevertheless, the crumb of two or three years is already able to convey to the adult his requests and express emotions.
- Preschool (from three to seven years) stage. Up to four years, most children are fully formed pronunciation. At this age, kids already know how to compose coherent short stories, actively communicate with other children and adults. By the age of five, the vocabulary of children ranges from 4,000 to 6,000 words. If a child 3-5 years old does not talk, it is necessary to pay attention to this and consult with specialists.
- The school stage is characterized by the improvement of speech, the deepening of grammatical and morphological knowledge.
Reasons for Delayed Speech
Why does the child not talk at 3 years old and later? The reasons for this condition can be divided into the following groups:
- physiological (hearing impairment, congenital abnormalities of the articulatory apparatus, central nervous system disease);
- psychological;
- disadvantages of education (pedagogical).
So, if a child at 3 years old does not speak well, the baby should first be examined for various diseases. To determine the causes of ZRR, there are various tests and diagnostic techniques that are used based on the patient's age and history.
Does the child not speak at 3 years old? The reasons may be psychological in nature. Unfavorable conditions in the family, frequent quarrels, improper communication between adults and a child, physical punishments can lead to the fact that the baby "closes" in his own comfortable world. In this case, the need for communication with others in the crumbs will decrease or completely disappear.
Improper upbringing can also lead to the fact that the child simply will not need communication. Fulfilling all the wishes of the baby at the first call, not giving the baby a chance to explore the world independently and express their own opinion, the excessively caring parents render their child a disservice. Children under excessive care of adults do not see the need for communication - because they are well understood. Moreover, the older the child, the more difficult it is to solve the formed problem.
What is ZRR?
If the child is not talking at the age of 3, specialists can make a disappointing diagnosis - ZRR (delayed speech development). It is impossible to independently determine such a problem, since this requires a multicomponent examination. So, experts will perform tests and analyzes to determine physical disorders, evaluate the volume of the dictionary, pronunciation, reactions to external stimuli, determine the psychological state of the crumbs. If any serious deviations are found, doctors can even diagnose a one-year-old baby with a diagnosis of RR.
If during the examination, mental abnormalities in the development of the child were confirmed, then specialists inform parents about the delay in psycho-speech development (ZPR).
When should I sound the alarm?
Many parents, if their child is not talking at the age of 3, explain this by the fact that the closest relatives of the crumbs too late said their first words and "nothing, somehow grew up." Unfortunately, this fact only indicates that the baby has a genetic predisposition to RR. It should be remembered that the sooner the correction for the development of speech begins, the higher the probability of success of such an activity.
Therefore, early detection of symptoms and timely access to specialists can directly affect the future life of the baby. If a child under 4 years old does not talk, the following factors may become reasons for going to the doctor:
- injury to the baby (including birth);
- detection of symptoms of central nervous system disorders, genetic diseases;
- the absence of a reaction to sounds in a baby, in a one-and-a-half-year-old baby - imitation, in older children - words and connected speech.
Which doctors should I contact?
Parents complain: "The child is 3 years old - not talking." What to do in such a situation? First of all, it is necessary to determine the cause of the condition. To do this, you need to contact such specialists as:
- pediatrician - he will conduct a general examination, determine developmental abnormalities according to age;
- the otolaryngologist will check the baby’s hearing;
- the defectologist will evaluate the development of the speech apparatus ;
- speech therapist will determine the degree of formation of sound pronunciation;
- a neurologist will be able to detect CNS disorders;
- child psychologist will help determine the presence of fears, isolation and other disorders and internal problems.
The main methods of correction of ZRR
To date, in our country, delayed speech development is treated using the following methods:
- medical;
- pedagogical;
- corrective.
Medical methods
When diagnosing ZRR, medication is often prescribed. Drugs are used to activate the "speech zone" of the cerebral hemispheres, in particular, Cortexin, Neuromultivit, and others. If a mental illness is detected, medications are prescribed that correct this condition.
Also, to stimulate the "speech centers", the neuropathologist may prescribe methods of physiotherapy, such as magnetotherapy or electroreflexotherapy.
Pedagogical methods
Parents have a question about how to teach a child to speak at 3 years old? You can use pedagogical correction methods. First of all, attention should be paid to exercises for the development of fine motor skills. Since studies have shown the relationship between finger movements and activation of the areas of the brain that are responsible for speech. In the correctional preschool teacher, many different interesting games are used, aimed at the development of small movements, for example, such as:
- finger gymnastics;
- massage;
- in-game and sorter games;
- classes with sand, water, cereals, various materials to the touch;
- finger theater;
- modeling of clay, clay, salt dough;
- shadow play.
In addition to exercises for the development of fine motor skills, the following methods apply to pedagogical methods:
- theatrical games;
- dramatization of fairy tales (for older preschoolers);
- learning poems, folklore;
- compilation of stories on plot pictures and others.
Parents complain: "The child is 3 years old, speaks poorly. What should I do in such a situation?" In this case, pedagogical methods are most effective for solving such a problem. But now, if the baby pronounces the words inaudible, then professional help from a speech therapist or a pathologist is required.
Correction methods
Speech therapy and correctional classes belong to such a group of speech development methods. These are specially designed measures aimed at eliminating the identified defect. Such classes are conducted by qualified speech therapists or defectologists. These specialists apply various methods of speech correction depending on age, diagnosis and degree of RR, in particular, such as:
- articulation gymnastics ;
- setting sounds with the help of a "scapula";
- speech therapy massage ;
- methods of sound and word-making;
- logo rhythm and others.
The role of the family in the development of the baby's speech
Despite the variety of professional methods, the main role in the development of a child’s speech is played by the atmosphere in the family. Daily communication of close adults with the baby will certainly significantly increase the effectiveness of specialized correction tools. Here are some simple guidelines for parents:
- Before birth, crumbs communicate with him, sing songs to him, share positive emotions.
- Learn to be attentive to the attempts of a one-year-old baby to express his thoughts in words, support him in this.
- If the child is not talking at 3 years old - tell him more yourself, describe everything that you see, do, feel.
- Encourage your child to communicate in any situation.
- Establish family traditions such as reading a bedtime story, learning how to wash while washing, and doing morning exercises in verse.
- Offer your kid games for the development of fine motor skills.
- Do not limit your baby’s contacts with other children.
If the child does not speak at 3 years old - this is not a sentence, but an occasion to reflect on the reasons for this condition. With the timely organization of corrective work, as well as the favorable impact of the family, the baby may well catch up with his peers in terms of speech development, become an active communicative participant in society.