I've always wondered what role Down syndrome would play in Bridget's speech development. (Most children with Ds seem to have speech delays, and some are significant.)
When Bridget was an infant, she seemed to be right on track--she was babbling in many different sounds and experimenting with sounds, repeating sounds we made, etc.. She was even trying to mimic singing when she was four or five months old.
As she neared her first birthday, she did not seem to be close to saying words we could understand. And it was not for a lack of trying. She was watching our mouths closely when we talked, and she was very
vocal, but not
verbal.
We had been playing the Baby Bee Vocabulary Builder DVDs for her, which she was interested in watching, but which did not seem to be making a difference in her language development (acquisition, maybe, but not development).
She has always seemed like she understands most of what she hears. Bridget is very perceptive and aware. She makes connections and is able to let us know that she is following everything that is going on around her.
We started signing basic, everyday words with Bridget when she was about 10 months old. We always said and signed words together so we could encourage both ways of communicating and give her the choice to select whichever way worked best for her.
She picked up signs quickly, earlier than she could speak words that we could understand. With signs, she was able to tell us easily when she was thirsty, or tired, or mad. She told us when she wanted to take a bath, or wanted more of something. Having a way for her to communicate her needs not only helped reduce frustration (for both of us), but helped others understand just how much she was processing.
Fast forward to last summer, when Bridget was three and being evaluated for preschool placement. She was still signing, and was still vocal...but still not verbal. She had begun to say some basic words (and some were very clear). She was not, however, saying more than one word at a time for the most part. The sweet speech pathologist who evaluated Bridget thought she heard Bridget say, "where my mommy go?". While we make a point to never underestimate her, Chris and I were pretty sure Bridget did not utter that sentence.
When preschool began in the fall, Bridget had added a few more words to her spoken language repertoire, but not many. I tried to get her to say the names of her teachers, therapists and aides to no avail. She could not say her own name, either. That first week of preschool, she came home and we ate lunch together mostly in silence. I wanted to know what she did at school, whether she was happy there, and whether she'd learned anything new. But she could not tell me any of those things. I only got information if I emailed the teacher, and I didn't want to bug her every day. There were a few days that I felt a twinge of sadness about it, but that didn't last for long. Bridget seemed to be loving school, and I knew the teacher would let me know if there were any problems.
It has only been four short months since the beginning of school, and we are seeing some major progress in Bridget's speech (as well as in other areas of her development--but that is another post altogether).
I've heard other parents say that their children with Ds became much more verbal somewhere between their third and fourth birthdays, and this seems to hold true with Bridget.
She's attempting to say everything we ask her to repeat. (She also says, "SAY...cup" or "SAY...go sleep!") Last night in the bathtub, she said each of the letters of the alphabet, clearly. Today, while eating lunch, she announced, "Emmy at 'cool' (school)".
She is also answering questions appropriately, for example, the question, "Are you tired?" often gets a "NO GO SLEEP" response. Last weekend, the social worker who came for our home study asked Bridget, "Is there a show you like to watch on t.v.?" Bridget shouted, "MAX!" (Max & Ruby).
I love her new verbal skills...and her spunk. You go, Bridget.
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