Early Intervention

When my mom took my son Elijah to his "well baby checkup" (I had to work) The doctor insisted on putting him into the early intervention program, where someone comes to your house and works with your child because he isn't talking in sentences yet. The whole concept of Early Intervention is to help with learning disabilities and whatnot. But I don't think there's anything at all wrong with Elijah. He just turned 2 and he says lots of words just not sentences, what is so bad about that?? I'm pretty upset about this and my mom is trying to convince me that it would be a good thing for him to have some stranger come to our house (that probably thinks he's going to be slow) and work with him on his speech. My mom told me that I didn't talk clearly until I was 3 and I think I've turned out just fine. My child is very intelligent and I think he's just doing things at his own pace. My boyfriend says it just my "ego" thats keeping me from letting these people work with Elijah which really pisses me off. I think I would know if my son needed help and he doesn't, it's simple as that. Sorry I just need to vent and I'm sick of my mom and boyfriend thinking its ridiculous that I don't want Elijah to be in this program. Does anyone out there agree with me? I need some more views on this.

 

Don't take it so personally- they all think they're helping.

Who knows? Maybe they are.

Learn everything you can about the program and that particular field - and then decide.

 

Go with your gut. You are his mother and know him better than anyone else.

Two years old does seem young to be speaking full sentences, especially for a boy.

Hope everything turns out fine.

TTFN
Sage

 

If he just turned 2 and he can string 2 words together he is just fine. Accrdint to those "Standards" that is normal. My son is 27 months and is just stringing 2-3 words together. I walked into his Dr's office and freaked out about why he is not talking. (BTW if they are also saying its because he isnt talking ignore them....when alex needs to talk he does other wise he talks jibberish...Normal)
Anyway my dr said shut up if he can say 15-20 words and knows them(what they are..dog barks cats meow cars beep vroom,trains choochoo) simple stuff like that he is totally fine.
Go with your gutt though...follow your insticts and nothing will go wrong.....
TRUST WHAT YOU WERE GIVEN!

 

fwiw, my niece (who is now almost 5 years old) was very involved with early childhood intervention (ECI). she had a speech therapist, a teacher for the deaf, a play therapist, a psychologist, and an occupational therapist. they were all very nice people, and they helped her a lot. they weren't "strange" people. they were also not condescending, and didn't treat her like she was dumb, or look down on us, as though we weren't doing enough. they are trained to work with all kinds of kids.

you're the mommy. it's your choice. your son may not need speech therapy. but if he does, eci is a good program.

 

I work in home child care and I can tell you that your child is JUST FINE and doesn't need speech therapy. At 2, most kids aren't forming full sentences yet. I've worked with kids of all ages and I can tell you right now that there seems to be a more sinister reason for your doc to even recomend this. Has he ever questioned your parenting? If so this throws up a bunch of red flags. I'd switch docs if I were you.

 

Fuck that, don't let some loser government employee come to your house and teach your kid the way he "should" be.

This is the kind of thinking that leads to conformity and basic acceptance of what you're told. Which is never good.

I'm against schools for the same reason. They teach everyone the same exact way and if they don't learn like everyone else then they're either held back and feel like morons, put in the moron classes, or put ahead in higher grades and feel like freaks because they're too smart for their own good.

Don't ever let anyone make your kid do things THEIR way. He must do them HIS way or he'll never be truely happy. How is someone supposed to find themselves if they've lived their whole life the way other people told them they should? How could he possibly know who he is?

 

Woah woah woah, that's a little extreme...if she lets a speech therapist work with her kid, the kid isn't going to be doomed to a life of misery. Please. The final decision is up to the mother, but don't overreact! I went through the public school system from k-12, and I wouldn't consider myself a blind conformist--and I was considered "gifted". Your really taking this off topic.

-Kate

 

No I'm just looking at a more generalized view of things.

I went through with 11 years of school and I'm not a blind conformist either. But it happens a lot, and that's what its function is.

The function of school is to teach you to be a good member of society, to make you ready for "adult life", a wife a child and a 9-5 job.

I'm not going off topic, this all fits into the fact that just because this child doesn't speak full sentences doesn't mean he needs help or has a learning disability. It means he's an individual and shouldn't have to live up to the same standards as everyone else. Neithre should everyone else. You don't need to make your kid have special talking instructions just because he doesn't speak full sentences yet.

 

I think you need to trust your instincts. I know your child best! Being late in speaking really means nothing. My brother is extreamly gift. He did not talk but a little until he was nearly three. He started talking and reading on his own, at the same time (a little before he turned three years old.) Often times it is just that they are busy learning other skills, and has nothing to do with their intelligance. I'm sure you know that there is a whole lot going on inside your child's mind. My son is almost three. He just started really talking. He would talk a little, but he was very good at comunicating in other ways (signing, made up words and sounds, that kind of thing.)

Personally I would not have someone I do not know work with my child at that age, even if he did have a problem, but that is just me. If you are concerned about it, you could always do a little research and work with him yourself.

good luck!

 

Thanks for all your opinions guys... I've decided I'm definitely not putting Elijah in early intervention. Elijah can communicate with me just fine... he doesn't do too many two word sentences but he almost always gets his point across to me (i.e. made up words, pointing, and making the sound that whatever he's talking about makes) And I know there's nothing slow about him and that is just how he's developing as an individual. So my decision is made.
Also I must agree with stalkz on the whole conformist thing about the government/school/all that. I excelled in certain areas (like english,history,physical sciences) but was horrible in others... sooo because I wasn't good at everything I was in the "business" curriculum or whatever, and not the college prep. Even though I was completely uninterested in anything business related... So I ended up just graduating because I hated all my classes and was miserable. Plus I hated seeing all the college prep kids that had their futures all planned out while I was left completely confused.... Oh well, I survived and had my eyes opened in the process

 

Where did you go to school? We never had "college prep" and "business" at my school...

 

We have classes like that here in NY.

Yeah, it really does make you feel left behind if you let it get to you. I've always said though, that it's impossible for everyone to learn everything the same way as everyone else. So from the beginning I never let it bother me. I'm not a slow learner or whatever they would have labeld me, I just simply wasn't interested in what they wanted to teach me. I'm glad that there are parents out there that realize that too. It's so great to set your kids up to think for themselves the way they feel is right for them, right from the beginning.

 

I went to school in rural PA

 

Hey. amber, I thought you (and maybe some others) might be interested in these links:


http://http://www.johntaylorgatto.c...ur/history1.htm


http://http://www.holtgws.com/whatisunschoolin.html

Let me know what you think!

peace and love.

 

My daughter Moira is 2 1/2 and has been speaking in complete sentences for a while now. When she was 2 the pediatrician and several local moms were astonished that she was so "advanced". So I wouldn't worry about it. As long as he can communicate his needs to you and you understand him, that's what is important. Of course if you need to appease your family to get them to shut up , let your child have one meeting with the expert. A real pro should tell you if the child doesn't really need it. Good Luck

 

Put your foot down when you need to but maybe try this out and see if it even helps at all. If you don't see any difference then take him out of the program. This way you can all see what happens. Even if he does not need it it will not kill him. But then stick to your gut feeling.

 

If your kid isn't talking well at 4 or 5, maybe then you should look into it. My little girl barely said anything, even mommy or daddy, until right after she turned 3. Now she's constantly talking my ear off, very clearly. She wakes up in the morning singing "twinkle little star." Seriously, she went from never saying anything to speaking in full, intelligent sentences almost overnight. As long as your son seems to be developing well every other way, and he understands everything you say to him, then i don't believe there is a problem. He'll talk when he's ready.

 

Maybe it's got something to do with the fact that you're from texas. Seriously, no offense or anything, but every high school I know of has at least college prep, and you usually sign up for it during your last year of middle school/junior high.