Speech Sound Disorders
As children learn to talk, they may say some sounds incorrectly. For example, a child may say wed instead of red. Some speech sounds develop earlier for children, while others take longer to learn. Many children can accurately produce nearly all speech sounds by four to six years of age. Children who have not learned these sounds by their expected age of development may have a speech sound disorder.
Signs of a Speech Sound Disorder
substituting one sound for another
For example: saying wed for red
omitting sounds from words
For example: saying at or ba for bat or tar for star
changing consonant sounds
For example: saying gog for dog or cop for top
Possible Causes of Speech Sound Disorders
childhood apraxia of speech
dysarthria
hearing loss
cerebral palsy
traumatic brain injury
developmental disorders, like autism
genetic disorders, like Down syndrome
While some speech sound errors are typical for a younger child, they become indicative of a speech sound disorder as children get older. It is important to note that accents and dialects are not speech sound disorders.