When Language Delays Fly Under the Radar: Identifying Higher-Level Language Struggles in School-Aged Children

As children grow older, their language needs evolve. Early language delays, such as late talking or difficulty pronouncing sounds, are often caught in the preschool years. But what happens when language difficulties are more subtle and persist into the school years? For many children, higher-level language struggles go unnoticed, even as they impact their academic performance and social interactions.

What Are Higher-Level Language Skills?

Higher-level language refers to the more complex aspects of language that children typically develop as they grow older. These skills include:

• Academic Language: This involves understanding and using complex vocabulary, following multi-step directions, and comprehending academic texts.
• Narrative Skills: The ability to tell and understand stories, including plot, characters, and setting.
• Pragmatic Language: Using language appropriately in different social situations, understanding nonverbal cues, and following social rules.
• Metacognition: Being aware of one’s thinking processes and using strategies to improve learning.

Children with higher-level language delays may have difficulty in one or more of these areas, which can affect their success in school and their ability to engage in age-appropriate conversations with peers.

Signs of Higher-Level Language Struggles in School-Aged Children

Language delays in school-aged children can be harder to detect because these children often seem to be speaking “just fine.” However, if you notice the following signs, it may indicate your child is facing higher-level language struggles:

• Difficulty understanding or using figurative language: They take phrases literally and may struggle with jokes, idioms, or sarcasm.
• Trouble with reading comprehension: They can read the words but struggle to understand the story’s deeper meaning or answer questions about it.
• Challenges with written language: Organizing their thoughts into cohesive paragraphs or essays can be difficult.
• Struggles with following complex instructions: Multi-step directions or tasks can overwhelm them.
• Problems with problem-solving or reasoning skills: They may find it hard to explain how they arrived at an answer or why something happened in a story or conversation.

How Language Struggles Impact School Success

Higher-level language delays can significantly affect a child’s performance in school. These children may find it hard to keep up with class discussions, understand lessons, or follow along during group projects. They may also feel socially isolated if they struggle to understand jokes or engage in age-appropriate conversations with their peers.

These issues can lead to frustration, anxiety, and a drop in self-esteem as they fall behind academically or socially.

Why These Delays Can Fly Under the Radar

One of the reasons higher-level language delays are often missed is because they don’t affect basic speech. A child may speak clearly and appear to communicate effectively on the surface, which can mask the underlying difficulties with more complex language tasks. Additionally, because school-aged children are expected to manage increasingly complicated language tasks in the classroom, some teachers may assume the child just needs more time to adjust to the academic demands.

However, if these struggles persist or worsen, it’s important to seek professional guidance.

How Speech Therapy Can Help

If you suspect your child is experiencing higher-level language struggles, a speech-language pathologist (SLP) can assess and treat these issues. An SLP will conduct a comprehensive language evaluation to identify specific areas of difficulty and create a personalized treatment plan. Therapy might focus on improving reading comprehension, organizing thoughts for writing, understanding figurative language, and enhancing problem-solving skills.

Additional Resource:

The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA): https://www.asha.org/

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD):
 https://www.nih.gov/about-nih/what-we-do/nih-almanac/national-institute-deafness-other-communication-disorders-nidcd

Contact Us:

If you’re in the NW Washington DC or Bethesda, Maryland area and are concerned about your child’s language development, we at Triumph Therapeutics are here to help. Our experienced team of speech-language pathologists specializes in identifying and treating language delays, including higher-level language difficulties in school-aged children.

Contact us today to schedule a consultation and learn how we can support your child in overcoming these challenges.

Triumph Therapeutics
Phone: (202)-621-9793
Email: [email protected]
Location:4900 Massachusetts Ave NW, Suite 340 Washington DC 20016