Speech Therapy

Speech Therapy

To the Moon and Back is committed to providing speech therapy services that embody our values. We understand the importance of effective communication skills for your child’s development and success.

Benefits of speech therapy

Speech therapy offers a wide range of benefits for children. Our ultimate goal is to empower your child to become confident communicators. By addressing speech and language challenges, we enable your child to express themselves effectively, improve social interactions, and succeed academically. Together, we can unlock your child’s potential and help them thrive in all areas of life.

Person Centred Speech Therapy

Our therapists work closely with parents to create personalized treatment plans that address your child’s unique needs and goals. We believe in the power of teamwork and value your input as an essential part of the therapy process.

The power of inspiration and motivation

Our approach is designed to inspire your child to reach their full potential. Using innovative techniques and evidence-based practices, we make therapy engaging, interactive, and fun. We believe in fostering a positive and motivating environment that encourages your child’s active participation and progress.

Professionalism

Integrity is at the core of our services. We uphold the highest ethical standards, ensuring that our therapy sessions are conducted with professionalism, respect, and confidentiality. You can trust us to provide reliable and evidence-based interventions backed by our expertise and experience.

Connection

At the heart of our practice is the connection we build with your child and your family. We strive to establish a nurturing and supportive relationship during speech therapy, fostering trust and creating a safe space for your child to grow and learn.

Contact us today to embark on this transformative journey and witness the remarkable progress your child can achieve through speech therapy at TMB.

Communication Milestones 0 - 5 Years

Children all grow differently.  It can be difficult for parents and caregivers to know whether their child needs speech therapy.  

 

Communication milestones tell us when children are expected to be able to do certain things.  If a child misses one or more of these milestones, it means they might need some additional support.  

By 12 Months

• Respond to their name • Recognise a few people or objects • Make eye contact with caregivers • Use sounds and gestures to communicate • Babble with a variety of sounds • Copy sounds and noises
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By 18 months

• Understand up to 50 words • Follow simple instructions • Point to familiar objects/pictures • Say between 6 - 20 words • Copy lots of words and sounds • Use objects to pretend play
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By 2 years

• Put 2 words together • Follow 2-step instructions • Say 50+ words • Respond to Wh- questions (who, what, where) • Point to a few body parts • Use most vowel sounds • Use a variety of consonants
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By 3 years

• Put 4 to 5 words together in a sentence • Follow more complex 2 step instructions • Varied vocabulary including objects, actions, locations and describing words • Ask Wh- questions • Talk about the past • Have conversations with others • Be understood about 50% of the time
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By 4 years

• Answer questions about a story • Use words like 'and' and 'but' to make longer sentences • Describe recent events • Ask lots of questions • Use pronouns • Count to 5 and name a few colours • Be understood by others about 75% of the time
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By 5 years

• Follows up to 3-step instructions • Recognises some letters, sounds and numbers • Uses well-formed sentences • Understood most of the time by most people • Tells simple short stories
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Speech Sound Development

Of course, children are not born with all of their speech sounds.  These develop over time, starting with sounds like p and b. Children’s speech sounds develop in a fairly predictable sequence.  Have a listen to your child’s speech. If you notice that your child isn’t using one or more of these sounds and they should be – contact us to see if your child would benefit from speech therapy.

p and b

2 - 3 years

w

2 - 3 years

v

4 years

ch

4 years

n

2 - 3 years

ng

2 -3 years

sh

4 years

z

4 years

m

2 - 3 years

y

2 - 3 years

l

4 years

zh

5 years

d and t

2 - 3 years

f

2 - 3 years

j

4 years

th

5 years

k and g

2 - 3 years

h

2 - 3 years

s

4 years

r

5 years

Reference: McLeod, S. & Crowe, K. (2018) Children’s consonant acquisition in 37 languages: A cross-linguistic review. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology

Speech therapy can also help with:

Hearing Loss

Temporary or permanent hearing loss can impact on a person's communication development
Hearing loss results from damage to parts of the inner ear and/or blockage in the outer or middle ear. Poor access to auditory input can cause speech and language difficulties. Speech therapy can help.
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Lisps

When the "s" sound is produced interdentally, i.e. with the tongue between the teeth
Interdental lisps are relatively common speech errors that may resolve on their own before age 5. Lateral lisps (when air escapes the side of the tongue) often don't resolve on their own and require therapy.
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Late Talkers

Children with a limited vocabulary at 18-24 months.
Late talkers will often catch up on their own, but we don't have a good way of predicting which ones need support and which don't. Speech therapists can assess and monitor your child's progress to make sure they stay on track
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Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)

Devices, systems or strategies that replace or enhance vocal speech.
Non-speakers or people whose speech is very unclear benefit from systems and supports that can allow them to communicate their message clearly. These can be speech generating devices, iPads, sign language, gesture or picture exchange.
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Feeding and Mealtimes

Children with difficulties with eating including limited diet, sensory preferences and swallowing difficulties
The muscles involved in speech are the same muscles involves in chewing and swallowing food. Speech therapists have knowledge and expertise in how these muscles work and can provide therapy and supports to address some feeding issues.
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Reading and Literacy

Difficulties with decoding written letters into words or with spelling words.
Dyslexia is a specific learning difficulty that results in an inability to read accurately and fluently, to write words and to comprehend written text. It impacts 5-10% of people. People with dyslexia benefit from systematic instruction in how written letters correspond to sounds, vocabulary and comprehension.
Find out more

Autism Spectrum

Communication support for autistic children and adults
Some autistic people are non-speakers and benefit from AAC supports, others may require support to develop more complex spoken language and comprehension and others may require few supports at all.
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Downloadable Speech Therapy Tip Sheets

Speech Pathology Australia has produced a series of helpful downloadable tip sheets.  These are available from our resources page.  

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