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Pediatric Speech Therapy

If your child has challenges with speech or language, our skilled speech-language pathologists (SLPs) can help. We provide pediatric speech therapy to families around Des Moines! Our SLPs use play-based, child-led, proven techniques to help your child build their speech and language skills to empower their lifelong success.

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Not only do we work with your child, but we also work with you! We’ll give you simple strategies that you can incorporate into your daily routines to help your child advance their speech and language skills.

What is Pediatric Speech Therapy?

Speech therapy is a specialized approach that helps children build skills to communicate effectively. Our SLPs will work with you to develop your child’s speech and language skills through direct interaction and parent coaching so that you can help your child shine. What does this look like?

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  • Play! Research shows that children learn best through play. We will follow the individualized goals to help guide your child to new heights, all though play-based intervention strategies.​

  • Give you strategies to use at home when your child struggles to communicate.​

  • Provide education and collaborate with parents, schools, and other therapists to ensure communication is being supported in all aspects of their life. We go the extra mile for your child by being their advocate.

Who Can Speech Therapy Help

Speech therapy is designed to help children who struggle with expressive and receptive language. Many children can benefit from speech therapy, especially if they have any of the following conditions or characteristics.

  • Apraxia of speech

          (trouble forming sounds and words)

  • Autism spectrum disorder

  • Dysphagia

​​         (difficulty swallowing food or drink)

  • Fluency disorders

​       (stuttering, cluttering)

  • Cleft lip or palate

  • Developmental delay

  • Articulation disorders​

  • Language comprehension​

  • Down syndrome

  • Cerebral palsy

  • AAC users

  • Genetic and chromosomal disorders/syndromes

Signs Your Child Might Need Speech Therapy

If you are concerned about your child's speech and language skills it is best to schedule an evaluation with a speech-language pathologist who can determine if your child would benefit from services.  Your child may have a speech, language, or communication disorder if they show any of the following signs:​

  • Uses a smaller vocabulary than their peers

  • Difficulty requesting wants and needs

  • Has trouble pronouncing certain sounds

  • Speaks with a stutter

  • Struggles to understand questions

  • Difficulty follow directions

  • Avoids social interactions

  • ​​Had skills and then lost them

  • Has no words 

  • Has trouble telling stories

  • Struggles with reading or writing

  • Demonstrates challenging behaviors

  • Doesn't respond to their name

Benefits of Speech Therapy

The ability to communicate is an essential life skill that your child needs for success at home, in school, and to build relationships. By participating in speech therapy, your child can experience many benefits such as:

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  • Ability to share their thoughts and ideas

  • Decreased challenging behaviors

  • Increased problem solving ability 

  • Better pronunciation in order to be understood by others

  • Increased fluency​

  • Better social skills

  • Ability to follow directions

  • Improved reading comprehension and spelling

  • Increased self-confidence

  • Meeting developmental milestones 

  • Establish a reliable mode of communication, if verbal communication is still developing (i.e. AAC) 

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