just wanted to say hi and introduce myself. i have 2 children, my son is 4 and a half and my daughter will be 3 next month. My daughter has a speech articulation disorder and dysphagia. She tends to isolate herself when around other kids and i was just looking for parents that go through the same thing that can give advice (since none of my friends understand).

Good Evening Shana,

I have a 6 year old son who has a speech articultion disorder as well. It breaks my heart that I can understand my 3 year old clearly but sometimes have to ask my 6 year old to repeat his question a few times. He just started Kindergarten this year and I'm praying the other children will not be mean or cruel because he is "different" and doesn't sound like them. He has been in speech therapy since he was about 2 and I can understand about 90% of what he says although someone knew can probably understand about 70% if they really listen to what he is saying. I'm so happy you posted this because although I know we are not the only ones out there, it feels like we are since all of the other children his age we come into contact with speak at the level they should be. Like you, none of my friends understand my frustrations, so again, very happy you posted this and now I know I'm not alone...

Only advice is love and patience. Let off steam to others when you can and if someone makes fun of him, let him know it's okay and how wonderful he is.

Have a good night!

Gina

okay..so sorry about the many many posts I sent. Unfortunately, I kept hitting post reply and the screen did not move or change so I thought itdid not go through. I'm new to this site and was not aware if you hit post it will stay there but will post. Again, sorry.

Hi Shana and Gina,

My oldest boy has apraxia and is 4 years old.  He has just started therapy, so right now he only speaks about 10 - 15 words clearly.  Lately I've noticed him shying away from other kids at playgroups and even hurting himself.  So far, I've encountered some teasing from other kids towards him like leaving him behind, calling him a baby, laughing at him, or asking if he speaks english.  This is breaking my heart, and I wish I could find him some friends with similar speech disorders.  In addition, his special ed preschool teacher and speech therapist wants him to start regular kindergarten next year.  He has an August birthday, so we were originally going to hold him back another year.  I, too, am afraid of the teasing he will encounter there.

Hi Sarah,

Just wanted to find out how your son is doing and if you decided to put him in Kinder in the fall. My son turned 5 a week after school started and he had a very hard time. After 2 weeks we pulled him out and enrolled him in a daycare based Kindergarten class with  less than 10 children. This year he is in 1st grade and doing well. It really depends on how supportive the teacher is and if they are willing to give your child the extra attention they need. Speech wise he is still at about 80 to 90 percent, however I think he is becoming to stammer on top of the articulation issue. Im going to talk with his speech therapist to see if this is normal as I know the older kids get the meaner other kids get and he is becoming shy.