Speech vs. Language
A battle through the ages…
Let’s get technical here.
lan·guage
/ˈlaNGɡwij
noun
1. The principal method of human communication, consisting of words used in a structured and conventional way and conveyer by speech, writing, or gesture.
speech
/spēCH/
noun
1. The expression of or the ability to express thoughts and feelings by articulate sounds.
Another way to look at it?
A classic dessert, aka the s’more. We know it. We love it. The whole dessert? That’s language. The marshmallow, graham, and chocolate? Speech, writing, and gestures.
Language has a vast history- I won’t take you to school, but there are experts who go to school just to learn about language. The varieties, complex nuances, and structure of it. Where words come from, why they exist, and why we have two different meanings for words like “show”, or “blue”. Or why there are three types of “their, there, and they’re”. Which is your favorite nuance?
Anyway, language is the concept. The idea. The system. The clock- not the gears. Speech, though, is the detail. The implementation of the language. The gears.
So, why do we even need to know the difference? Well, when it comes to speech and language therapy, the needs of a child can be rooted in one or the other, and it’s important to meet them where they are. If they’re standing in the speech bucket, but we assume it’s language as a whole, we will waste time addressing things they already have grasped. On the contrary, if we put them in the speech bucket, but they have trouble with the words themselves- spelling, sounds, letter combinations, etc.- they won’t be able to learn how to speak it. Make sense?
Where do we start? How can we tell which therapy methods to use? That’s what the experts (like Katie at As We Speak) specialize in.
When prompted by the question, “When you first meet a child, where do you begin? Is there a question you ask first, or do you just observe?”
Katie replied with, “I like to take a dynamic approach during consultations with parents. I may ask parents specific questions to gather information about their concerns. Once we schedule a screening, I can observe the child and use various tools to determine more about the child’s skills and current needs.”
Take, for example:
A child that is hard to understand. He’s a bit quiet, and you can’t quite tell what he’s saying.
A child who is 16, but has always had trouble learning new things. She needs extra time to take tests because she’s a slow reader and writer.
Both of these children have trouble communicating, but their problems are different. A child who is hard to understand, most likely requires speech therapy. This could focus on articulation and the use of our tongue, teeth, and lips to formulate sounds. Articulation therapy focuses on increasing a child’s speech intelligibility. That is, how much others can understand what the child says. A child who has difficulty learning new things and requires extra time for reading and writing may require language therapy. Language therapy can target reading comprehension, as well as writing. An SLP can help children create sentences, use proper word order, and organize paragraphs.
What makes up speech and how it relates
Articulation- Making the correct sounds associated with letters. A common trouble spot is with “r”, and turning it into a “w” sound. (Think, “rabbit vs “rabbit”)
Voice- Vocal cords and use of our breath to make sounds. Some have high-pitched voices, others have low ones. They can be soft, or loud, too.
Fluency- Rhythm of our speech. Whether we repeat words, or pause while we are talking. Stutters fall under this category.
All of this together is what makes up speech. So, if your child has specific struggles with one (or more) of these things, it’s time to get in touch.
Language, on the other hand
Language refers to the words and how we put them together to form sentences to get our ideas relayed.
It includes:
Word definition. Why one version of “blue” means sad and the other means the color. Or why “show” can mean something on a stage or a display of something.
How we make new words from the same root word- This is adding prefixes like “un” or “ly” to the beginning or end of a word and changing the meaning.
Word combinations to make sentences- Do you remember conjugating sentences in middle school? That’s it. How we structure sentences to make them make sense- and, I might add, punctuation when writing them- a comma can make or break a sentence.
What we say and when we say it- Like asking nicely to start, but then taking the kindness out if we aren’t being heard.
The complexities of language can make it difficult to pinpoint issues on your own when it comes to therapeutic methods to address them. It’s best to get in touch with a licensed SLP and let them answer the tough questions. They can start by screening, then evaluate where your child is and what the best course of action is.
The bottom line? Speech and language both play a big role in the overall success of your child’s communication skills and they can, and should be, addressed with different approaches. This certainly isn’t a “one size fits all” kind of deal, and it’s important to break it down in order to build it back up properly.
After all, who likes a s’more without chocolate or marshmallow?