Speech Language Pathologists (SLPs), can evaluate a patient’s Speech, Language, Cognitive,
Communication and Swallowing skills in order to diagnose a speech disorder.
The SLPs will gather a history of the child’s health, family, development and school
performance before the evaluation. Depending on the age and attention span of the child, the
evaluation may be completed in just one session, or it could span over several sessions. The
length of the session depends on the SLPs plan and the child’s cooperation.
The SLPs will likely evaluate the following categories:
- Understanding and use of different words
- Correct use of words in correctly formed sentences
- Use of language for different purposes
- Pronunciation of speech sounds
- Physical abilityto produce speech
- Voice quality
- Fluency or smooth flow of speech
- Fine motor skills