Developmental Delays

Hey everyone, it’s been awhile since I last posted but I have been popping in every now and again.  I wanted to see if anyone had any suggestions on an issue we are having.  My son has a speech delay (diagnosed with Apraxia of speech in July 09) and he sees a speech pathologist 3 times a week. 

Ok so we are expecting another baby in February and we would like to get Ian into the pre-school program at the local child care center.  My concern is… is he ready?  He will not be able to attend until he is 2 ½ (March) so we are going to enroll him in the toddler program.  We are meeting with the director of the center next week to address some of our concerns regarding his speech delay & what extra help/attention he may need.  I am wondering if anyone else has crossed this bridge and how you handled it. I’m just unsure on what to say and not too say and if I’m expecting too much from the center or is my son truly ready.  We want him to be ready for the program in March and I’m hoping that with speech and 2 days a week in the toddler program it may give him the extra boost he needs to make the next step. 

I feel like I might be rambling on here… so I will try and get to more of my point. I just don’t want to underestimate his capabilities and on the other hand I don’t want to push him into something he may not be ready for and then be labeled as the “bad kid” when all he needs is a little extra attention.  We don’t want him to think that once the baby comes he is getting shipped off, so that is our second reason for getting him started now. 

I’m looking forward to hearing your suggestions along with any and all thoughts.

I am new here so I don't feel like I can give you much advice. 

I can tell you a little bit about my son.  He is 8 years old now.  When he was 2, I was told that he needed speech therapy (obtained by sending to public preschool) by my older son's teacher.  I was resistant to it because he was so little.  I kept him home with me until he was 4 and his speech had only worsened.  He ended up in therapy until the end of second grade (last year).  He still has some trouble with his pronunciation BUT he is also in the Gifted and Talented Program at school.  At least in his case, speech did not impact his academic abilities.  If anything when he learned to read it helped because could see which sounds were correct. He is also a social butterfly and speech did not impact his ability to interact with his age mates.  Truthfully, if I had to do it over again, then I would still have kept him home with me but made an effort to get services outside the school system.

Just food for thought.

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