Changes in the production of speech sounds (or oral language) are one of the main reasons why parents seek out a speech-language therapist. And this happens mainly when children are about to start the first cycle of elementary school. One of the main concerns of parents is knowing whether oral language has an influence on learning letters, since this is the school phase in which children will begin to learn to read and write. And the answer is yes. In fact, speech sounds are directly linked to learning to read and write; The development of oral language in different linguistic domains (semantic, morphological, syntactic, phonological and pragmatic) is one of the main prerequisites for correct learning. Be aware and seek the right help at the right time There is a relationship between phonological development and processing (of speech sounds) and success in learning to read and write , more specifically in the accuracy and speed of the processes of: Decode , that is, read by producing the sounds of the different letters; Encode , that is, write the letters that represent the sounds of the words. When children start to speak, and as they approach school age, special attention must be paid to changes in speech sounds and their origin, which can be of two types: 1. Changes in speech Changes in speech itself refer to motor execution and motor planning. They are not linguistic and do not tend to be a risk factor for reading or writing. 2. Phonological changes Phonological alterations are errors with a phonological origin, that is, due to an incorrect use of phonological rules for the age. These can result in difficulties in learning to read and write. The importance of phonological changes When learning to read and write, children must be able to recognize and understand that different letters (graphemes) can be represented by more than one sound (phoneme) and vice versa. Therefore, for better reading and writing skills, children must be able to understand that words are composed of different speech sounds and, consequently, know these same sounds. In short… The answer is yes, speech changes of phonological origin affect the learning of reading and writing. But that's not all! There are other domains of language that also have an impact. The important thing is for parents to be attentive . If you have any questions or identify changes in speech sounds in children, you should seek the help of a speech therapist for an assessment or seek advice from the pediatrician who follow-up the child. Author : Marta Martins Meet the Speech Therapy clinical team from Hospital da Luz network. The content published in the Health Guide is intended for the general public and is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It does not replace individual medical assessment, diagnosis, or personalized clinical advice from a qualified healthcare professional. The content is produced or reviewed by physicians and other healthcare professionals at Hospital da Luz and is based on the knowledge available at the time of publication or the most recent update, as indicated at the beginning of each item.
