What do I need help with?
Sometimes families are not sure why they are bringing their child to see a speech pathologist, or they think that we only work with pronunciation of words. In a broad sense, speech pathologists look at communication as a whole- and this encompasses so much more than ‘just talking!’
To assist us to look at communication, many of us look at a language model developed by Bloom and Lahey in 1978. This model describes that language is made up of 3 parts: content, form and use. Since language is part of communication, the model is modified to include communication in its entirety (and includes language as a part).
An effective communicative act includes 3 areas:
- The content or meaning of a message.
- The form (symbols or words) used.
- The use or function of the message.
When one or more of these areas are missing, a communicative attempt would have been made but it will most likely be unsuccessful. The goal then is to work out where the breakdown has occurred. This leads us back to “What areas does my child need help with?” or “Why am I here?”
To assist us to look at communication, many of us look at a language model developed by Bloom and Lahey in 1978. This model describes that language is made up of 3 parts: content, form and use. Since language is part of communication, the model is modified to include communication in its entirety (and includes language as a part).
An effective communicative act includes 3 areas:
- The content or meaning of a message.
- The form (symbols or words) used.
- The use or function of the message.
When one or more of these areas are missing, a communicative attempt would have been made but it will most likely be unsuccessful. The goal then is to work out where the breakdown has occurred. This leads us back to “What areas does my child need help with?” or “Why am I here?”