Individuals with Down syndrome bring joy, personality, and a unique perspective to their families and communities. Many have a natural ability to engage with the people around them, strong visual learning skills, and an excellent use of gestures. They also may experience developmental differences that affect verbal communication. These may include low muscle tone, differences in oral structure, frequent ear infections, as well as learning and memory challenges that make speech intelligibility and language development more challenging. Because communication plays such an important role in building relationships, independence, and confidence, speech therapy becomes a cornerstone of support for those with Down syndrome.
How Down Syndrome Affects Communication
Children and adults with Down syndrome often:
- Reach language milestones later than peers, such as first words or sentences.
- Show stronger understanding (receptive language) than speaking (expressive language).
- Experience hearing difficulties, often from recurring ear infections, which can delay sound development.
- Face oral motor challenges like low muscle tone and tongue placement, making speech less clear due to inaccurate articulation of sounds.
- Have reduced speech intelligibility, meaning others may not be able to fully understand them.
Despite these verbal communication challenges, most individuals with Down syndrome communicate verbally daily. They also may excel in communicating in other ways, including nonverbal communication. This may include using facial expressions, gestures, and signs to express themselves clearly.
The Role of Speech Therapy Support
Speech therapy supports individuals with Down syndrome throughout their lives, adapting to their needs at different stages:
- Early Intervention (Birth–3 Years):
SLPs focus on the building blocks of communication: eye contact, babbling, and turn-taking. Families may be introduced to sign language or AAC (augmentative and alternative communication) so the child has a way to express themselves even before speech develops. Early intervention is highly important to implement speech and communication skills early on to set children up for success. - Preschool and School Age:
Therapy expands into vocabulary growth, grammar, as well as phrase and sentence development. Children may work on speech sounds and intelligibility to make their speech sound clearer. Literacy is often emphasized, since reading and writing strengthen language and cognitive skills. - Adolescence and Adulthood:
Speech therapy continues to play a role in developing social communication skills, self-advocacy, and functional communication for everyday life. Therapy may also focus on workplace communication, assisting individuals in gaining independence and confidence in daily and vocational settings.
Supporting Communication at Home
Parents can make a big difference and incorporate tools for speech and language by:
- Dialogic reading: reading aloud every day and encouraging interactive discussions about books.
- Modeling short, clear sentences and expanding on what the child says while using correct grammar that may have been left out.
- Using gestures and signs in combination with words to support spoken language.
- Encouraging play-based, child-led activities that build communication.
- Allowing extra processing time before expecting a response.
Individuals with Down syndrome are often described as warm, social, and eager to connect with others. Speech therapy assists in ensuring they have the tools to share their voices fully, whether through spoken words, signs, AAC, or a combination of communication methods. By supporting communication from the earliest years into adulthood, therapy opens doors to connection, independence, and self-expression.
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-HANNA MOELLER, Illinois State University, Senior Research and Marketing Intern
-NICOLE BUTLER, M.S., CCC-SLP/L (ASHA Certified and licensed Speech-Language Pathologist, Founder and Executive Director of Speech Within Reach.)
SPEECH WITHIN REACH provides in-person and virtual telehealth speech therapy for children and adults. We are happy to support your speech therapy needs. Please feel free to reach out to us.