Early Communication Skills for Children With Down Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals [Paperback]

Libby Kumin (Author)

Book Description

Series: Topics in Down Syndrome | Publication Date: January 2003

Children with Down syndrome have a wide range of speech and language abilities, and most need the help of a speech-language pathologist (SLP) beginning at birth to maximise communication development. Early Communication Skills for Children with Down Syndrome explains the role of a SLP, the stages of communication development, and how certain characteristics of Down syndrome, such as low muscle tone, hearing loss, and cognitive delays, can slow progression of those skills. Delays can lead to frustration and other problems for children who do not have intelligible speech until age 2 or later. This new book is the updated, expanded edition of Communication Skills in Children with Down Syndrome. It focuses on speech and language development from birth through the stage of making 3-word phrases, which is often around kindergarten age, but can occur later. This book offers parents a wealth of information on intelligibility issues, hearing loss, apraxia (difficulty planning oral-motor movements), and other factors that affect communication for children with Down syndrome. It explains how to prepare for and understand the results of a speech-language assessment, and goes on to describe what to expect in the years ahead when a child enters elementary school. Throughout the new edition, the author incorporates the latest research on Down Syndrome and communication development. She has added new chapters on augmentative and alternative communication and other high- and low-tech supplemental communication options, as well as articulation, and literacy (how reading aids in the learning of language, speech, and auditory skills). New checklists on evaluating and treating speech problems, and numerous home activities designed to help children master each stage of communication development have also been added

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Essential for most collections, even those that already own the earlier edition." -- Library Journal, September 1, 2003

"It's thorough, practical and affirming." -- Down Syndrome News, Volume 26, Number 4, August 2003

"[A]n indispensable guide about language acquisition for young children with Down syndrome. [H]ighly recommended as an informational resource..." -- Review of Disability Studies, Volume II, Issue 1, 2006

About the Author

Libby Kumin, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, is the Director of the Graduate Program of the Department of Speech-Language Pathology/Audiology at Loyola College in Baltimore, Maryland, where she founded the Down Syndrome Center for Excellence. She is the author of Classroom Language Skills for Children with Down Syndrome (Woodbine House, 2001). She continues to be active in scholarly research and is frequently published.

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Woodbine House; 2 edition (January 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1890627275
• ISBN-13: 978-1890627270
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #38,348 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very informative, April 11, 2007

By 

J. Pariseau "flock mom" (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Early Communication Skills for Children With Down Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals (Paperback)

I wish I had time to read the whole thing at once, it's full of helpful info. I recommend it to anyone working with or parenting a child with down syndrome. Something that is partcularly nice about it as well as the other books like it is that they don't talk in ages but in stages. This way you can follow your child, and not some outward source that determines what they should be doing and when.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent suggestions and explanations, August 1, 2007

By 

J. Stanfield - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Early Communication Skills for Children With Down Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals (Paperback)

Bought for use in a parent-infant education program for children infant to 3. Written with parents in mind so that it is not full of medical-speak, and full of suggestions, this is a good book for anyone working with or parenting a child with low tone or multiple issues that interfere with language development.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent resource, April 16, 2009

By 

M. Owens "Snewo" (Richmond, VA United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Early Communication Skills for Children With Down Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals (Paperback)

I consider this book, along with the gross and fine motor skills books, my primary written resources for working with my 7mth son with Down Syndrome. The information is clearly written, easy to understand and comes with activities that you can do to help with speech skills. I use these books to supplement what we have learned from the early intervention therapists. I highly recommend them for any new parent of a child with Down Syndrome.