• Speech Language Pathologists at the Loftus Early Childhood Center provide the following services:

    Speech Therapy: Speech is the ability to communicate using sounds to formulate words.  Sounds are expected to develop in a certain sequence.  A delay in speech can significantly impact a person's ability to be understood. A speech language pathologist may develop a program to teach a person to produce sounds/words correctly.  Speech therapy may also address deficits in voice or fluency.   

    Language Therapy:  Language is the ability to communicate to other people using spoken word, sign language and/or written word. It also encompasses the ability to understand what another person is communicating to you.  This does not include difficulty communicating with people who speak a different language.  If a person has a diagnosis that indicates difficulty with language, speech pathologists may develop a program designed to improve or develop their language skills.

    Consultation: Speech language pathologists consult with other professionals including teachers, paraprofessionals and childcare providers on a daily basis to discuss strategies to maximize the students' communication potential.  Speech language pathologists also consult with parents to develop skills in other environments.

    Evaluation: Speech language pathologists evaluate students to determine whether they have a disorder in the areas of speech, fluency, voice and/or language and if it is impacting their educational performance.