This DVD was written, produced, and directed by Will Schermerhorn.Running time: 81 minutes.
I watched this because I am concerned with Matthew's speech. He is speech delayed and watching this DVD is part of my research on the topic. I want to understand speech and language development and get ideas to help me help Matthew.
If Matthew was not speech delayed, I would still watch this. One of my long-term speech goals for him is good articulation, specifically the ability to clearly pronounce different consonant and vowel sounds for clear speech.
The film is well done and easy to follow with emphasis on factors that matter in speech and language development for kids with Down syndrome. Chapters included (as copied from the back of the DVD case):
- The Child Discovers the World
- Communication Milestones
- Hearing Issues
- Encouraging Speech
- Sign Language
- Making Speech Understandable
- Talking Begins
- Building Vocabulary & Grammar
- Text & Reading
- The World Discovers the Child
I appreciated how the film incorporated interviews with different families together with opinions from experts on the subject such as Dr. Libby Kumin, author of Comprehensive Speech and Language Treatment for Infants, Toddlers, and Children with Down Syndrome and other books, and Professor Sue Buckley. I found inspiration and comfort in listening to other families' experiences with speech and language.
There was a lot of good information presented in the film that I found myself taking notes while watching, as if I were back in school. I think that every person who watches this film will learn something. I did. I found that the following key points and information stood out to me:
- The "typical" toddler develops and takes off with speech between ages 2 and 4. A child with Down syndrome usually takes off with speech between ages 4 and 6 (but this isn't always the case. I'm sure some may develop speech sooner and maybe some later. I think they just have the age range as a general guideline).
- Speech Milestones are:
- cooing
- babbling
- lalling - imitating environment sounds
- echolalia - repeating sounds made by others
- true speech - the first words, 2-word phrases, 3-word phrases, early sentences
- Sign language aids communication when used as a bridge to talking.
- Kids learn language best through sensory experiences.
- Keep a list of words the child understands and work on adding more. For words the child knows, work on getting him to say them.
Overall, I recommend watching this DVD. Have you seen it? What do you think?
