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How do I get started?
Please download our referral form here and email it to: kkakar@childrenshearing.ca. Our speech-language pathologist will get in touch to offer a free 15 minute phone consultation to discuss your needs, the services that we offer and our pricing.
When and where do sessions take place?
Typically sessions are conducted in-person at the Centre however, accommodations can be made for virtual services if preferred. SLPs are also able to travel to meetings and observations in daycares and preschools. Sessions are currently offered on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.
Do caregivers join sessions?
Yes, caregivers are present for sessions. Therapy for children includes caregiver coaching so that caregivers are able to support the child’s progress at home. Follow through in between sessions is one of the most essential components for progress in therapy.
When should I seek help for my child and when should I “wait and see”?
We don’t recommend a wait and see approach for young children as early intervention is critical for children who are showing delays or differences with their language development. If you are unsure if your child needs to see a speech-language pathologist, then give us a call and we are happy to discuss any questions you have.
If you are pursuing private speech and language services for a child who is not yet in elementary school, we do also recommend that you self-refer to your local public health speech-language pathologist. Often, families will see a private speech-language pathologist while on public waitlists.
First words typically appear around 12 months, children use a minimum of 20 words by 18 months and many children use 100-150 words by 2 years. By two years old children are using many two word phrases. By 18 months, children are able to independently follow many simple 1-step directions and by 2 years old they can follow directions with 2-steps.
Children are able to be understood more than half the time by 2 years old and are able to be understood most of the time (75% of the time), even by strangers, by around 3 years old. By four years old they should be understood 100% of the time by strangers.
Click here for more information about milestones.
Konika Kakar, M.Sc. Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, Reg. CSHBC, has been working with infants and children with different abilities for over 7 years as a Speech-Language Pathologist. She worked as an Assistant Professor at Bangalore University and as a Visiting lecturer in Delhi, India, where she taught subjects, Childhood Communication Disorders, Fluency Disorders, Anatomy & Physiology of Neurogenic Language disorders to Bachelor students. She headed various clinical research projects and was the head of the Clinical Speech OPD department in her time at the university. Her paper titled “Effect of Musical Experience on Cochlear Frequency Resolution: An Estimation of PTCs, DLF and SOAEs” was published in The Journal of International Advanced Otology · 2021.
