• Who is a person with speech difficulties
• What causes speech difficulties?
• Child and family issues
• Communicating with a person who has speech difficulties

A person with a speech or language difficulty may have difficulty producing speech sounds or problems with voice quality. They may have difficulty understanding or using words. Some characteristics include:

• Difficult, improper, or inability in production of words
• Improper use of words
• Inability to express ideas
• Incorrect grammar
• Reduced vocabulary
• Inability to follow directions

What causes speech difficulties? ¹
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There are several causes of speech difficulties, including but not limited to:

• Mental retardation
• Hearing loss
• Neurological disorders
• Brain injury
• Stroke
• Physical impairments

Child and family issues ¹
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• Children are often teased by peers
• Parents become frustrated, perhaps disappointed in the child
• Parents may deny the disability
• Early intervention and training is very important
• Parents should coordinate with the school system to obtain  maximum educational and social benefits for their child

1.    This portion relied heavily on information from Linda M. Struck, M.S.W., Abuse and Neglect of Children with Disabilities, Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Social Services, Child Protective Services 

Communicating with a person who has speech difficulties
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Individuals can make use of the Virginia Relay in communicating with people over the phone with special technology that cannot be understood over the regular telephone.  They make use of hearing carry over.

People with mild to moderate speech disabilities can also make use of speech to speech relay to communicate with others by calling 711.  The operator will either take an active or passive role in the communication.