Route 2 Language provides services for a variety of speech and language disorders for individuals ages 2-18. Our primary focus is  Language Disorders secondary to Autism. Due to the complexity of Autism, our practice provides services for individuals who may not be on the spectrum, but may have one of the many language disorders associated with Autism. A comprehensive list of services follows:

Apraxia of Speech- A speech disorder in children characterized by sensorimotor problems in positioning and sequentially moving muscles for the volitional production of speech. Services provided include: oral motor exercises, phoneme drills in context of increasing complexity, breath control, articulation, and prosody. Each program is designed to meet the specific needs of each student.

Articulation and Phonological Disorders- Speech disorders are characterized by difficulty in producing speech sounds correctly. Areas of speech may include:sound omissions,   sound deletions, sound substitution, addition of speech sounds, devoicing, frontal and lateral lisp, nasalization, stridency deletion, syllable deletion, backing, cluster reduction, consonant deletion and fronting.

Augmentative Alternative Communication (AAC)- Services provide assessment, programming and functional use of high and low level AAC devices.  AAC can be used many ways such as: a way to facilitate natural speech,  a temporary means of expression or an alternative to natural speech.  Augmentative Alternative Communication can also be used  to decrease deviant behaviors by providing a more acceptable form of communication. This can be done through a variety of avenues such as: Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS), electronic voice output devices, specialized gestures, charts, language boards, talking books and key chains. The goal of AAC is to provide a form of communication, not to rule out natural speech.

Autism Spectrum Disorders- A comprehensive language plan is created for students on the spectrum. Due to the differences of each individual on the spectrum, we target any of the following areas: Receptive and Expressive Language, Attention, Memory, Organization, Word Retrieval, Reasoning, Problem Solving, Pragmatics, Articulation, Vocabulary, and Emotional Regulation. Collaboration with other Speech Pathologists, Occupational Therapists and Play Therapists provides a comprehensive treatment plan to address the needs this special population.

Community Outings- Community outings provide the Speech Pathologist and student the most natural enviornment to practice skills learned in the therapy setting. Skills such as waiting, requesting, directing, following directions, following natural cues, transitioning from place to place. Community outing sessions provide the opportunity to generalize and utilize newly acquired skills.

Early Intervention Services- We identify, diagnose and treat communication disorders in individuals ages 2 and up who are at risk. Services are designed to develop communication skills in children with, or at risk for speech and language disorders. Parent involvement and training provides a framework to create language enriched enviornments throughout the day.

Expressive Language Disorders/Delay- For students or pre-students who have difficulty with verbal expression, therapy is designed to assess and address: delayed language, word retrieval issues, rules of grammar (syntax), changes in verb tense (morphology), word meaning (semantics), vocabulary, production of simple and complex sentences and need for augmentative and alternative communication.

Literacy Lessons- At present we are piloting "Reading Revolution", an interactive literacy program adaptable for kids with differing abilities. Space is limited as we prepare, create and implement programs for each student based on their needs.

Parent training- A program is created to bring out the speech therapist in every parent. It is essential to comprehend the nature of your child's disorder in order to understand them.  We put great value in the one to one therapist time. However,  to maximize our efforts parental involvement is critical. We provide on-site, at home, and community training.

Pragmatics- The practical use and understanding of language is essential to any successful communicator. It provides the understanding that language is used for different purposes such as: greeting, requesting, informing and demanding. Other skills related to pragmatics include: turn taking, introducing topics in conversation, staying on topic, repairing communication breakdowns, appropriate distance between speaker and listener, eye contact,understanding feelings and facial expressions. Specific lesson plans are designed to teach the non-verbal cues in language.

Receptive Language Disorders/Delay- Services provide a complete assessment and treatment plan tailored to suit the need of each student. Areas addressed include but aren't limited to: central auditory processing disorders, comprehension deficit, processing, retaining, attending to and integrating spoken language,following directions, answering "yes/no", who, what, where and either/or questions appropriately.

Table/Restaurant Manners- Students are taught appropriate table manners such as: waiting, greeting the server and host , ordering, pointing to choices from menu. Initial outings will be conducted in louder, busier restauraunts and/or cafeterias gradually moving to quieter establishments for extended periods of time. As skills are acquired, parents will accompany student and therapist on outings to learn strategies for successful meals out with the family.