Developmental Language Disorder, otherwise known as DLD. Or the invisible disorder as there is so little awareness of it currently. This is something that we, as speech therapists are trying to change!
It is likely if you are reading this article that you have either recently been given a diagnosis, or it has been mentioned to you and you are worried. Please don't be. Hopefully this blog will tell you what you need to know.
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The key facts
It affects 7-10% of children. That is on average 2 in every classroom!
I'll just let you take a breath for a minute... it's more common than you think.
Challenges are often with understanding of language and spoken language skills despite children have typical cognitive abilities for their age.
It can affect their ability to read, write and develop other literacy skills in school.
It can affect their social and emotional wellbeing as they get older.
Research shows that proper with proper support the majority of children with DLD can make significant progress with their language development and communication skills.
While prognosis varies, many children go on to lead fulfilling lives with improved language abilities, particularly when intervention begins early.
I know all of this can seem very overwhelming, but they key messages to take away from this are:
You are not alone. This disorder is more common than autism and it is likely that another child in your child's class has the same difficulties. They just might not know it yet.
With early intervention and support your child is likely to make progress and be able to function in their classroom like their peers.
It is never too late to get support. Prognosis varies, but there is always something we can do to help.
A child's journey through DLD
I have recently spent time working with a lovely little boy, whose parents have given me permission to share his story so that others an see a way through the fog and that there is light at the end of the tunnel.
*Names have been changed to protect this child's identity
Meet Jack*
8 year old boy
Attends a mainstream primary school
Enjoys dancing outside of school and travelling with his family
Jack was referred in February 2022 and his assessment showed problems in the following areas:
Understanding multi step instructions, prepositions, instructions which weren't given to him in the order, and different types of questions.
Developing vocabulary and learning and storing new words at school.
Sound errors when speaking making him tricky to understand at points.
Struggling to hold things in his memory for a short or a long period of time.
Manipulating information in his head in order to understanding what he was being asked to do.
Using sentence structures and grammar of a child much younger than him.
All of this indicated that Jack had DLD and a diagnosis was given.
So what did we do?
Jack received a specialist programme and a set of therapy sessions to start implementing that programme.
We had a meeting with his class teacher and came up with a plan on how Jack could be supported in his classroom, using the resources and time they had available to help Jack with his needs.
Jack received therapy support at school and progress, strategies and resources were shared with Jack's parents and school so that everyone could work collaboratively (I underline this point as it is honestly the most important one).
After around 15 months we re-assessed Jack using the assessment completed in February 2022 and he scored within the normal range in all areas of his speech, language and communication needs. He still has some on-going needs with grammar, abstract topic words and vocabulary skills but these can continue to be supported as we have been.
Jack's teacher has told me that he is thriving in his classroom now, participating in class discussions and completing his work at a level expected at his age.
So why did this work?
As much as I'd love to say this was all me, as the speech therapist, it truly wasn't. There are a few main things that made this work.
Consistent and collaborative support. Jack's parents, the school and I communicated regularly and worked together to support him.
Jack was motivated to make changes, and is now actively telling us things that he is struggling with and we are supporting him with those.
Jack's care was person centred. We looked at his needs as well as what those around him felt he needed support with and we discussed and agreed appropriate targets.
Everyone involved had an understanding of what DLD is and how it affects Jack specifically.
What's next for Jack?
As we know DLD is not something that goes away with a bit of therapy, however we have now established the building blocks for Jack and he is making good progress. We had an open discussion regarding on-going support and have agreed with his family and school that I will continue to work with Jack on a monthly basis to work through the final areas of concern and then my time will likely be reduced further so that I can monitor him while strategies we have put in place are continued to be utilised.
It is likely that Jack will come to a point again when he starts to struggle as academic work becomes harder, or more advanced, however the staff who are working with him, and his parents now have an amazing set of skills they can use to support him. If, that isn't enough, then a speech therapist can step in again and give him a boost.
The most important skills Jack now needs to learn are self-help skills. Developing a further awareness of his needs, and then how he can support himself as he moves up into key stage 2 and then onto secondary school.
Reading this I'm worried what do I do now?
Firstly, try not to worry - I know that is hard, and being a parent myself I completely understand. Have a look at the RADLD Campaign Website. They have lots of information on DLD which can help you to understand what it is you are being confronted with.
Secondly, make sure your child has been referred to a Speech and Language Therapy Service, whether that be NHS or Independent Support (visit www.asltip.com if you want to look into this further). They will need a formal diagnosis from a speech and language therapist and specialist support.
Finally, remember you are your child's biggest resource. You, as their parents know the best way to support them. Advocate for them, be there for them and communicate what it is that is of a concern.
If you are in East Devon and would like further support from my service, please contact me using the contact button below.
Treetops Speech and Language Therapy