What are the symptoms of developmental delay in children? In which situations should families apply to pedagogy?
Babies may experience developmental delay due to various reasons during their development. This situation can be caused by biological reasons, as well as the inadequacy of environmental conditions most of the time. Biological causes have no time cure for the child or conditions can be improved with an intensive educational program to optimize it. However, without a biological reason, the child may experience developmental delay only due to the inadequacy of the surrounding conditions. There are many things that can be done in this situation, of course, if it is diagnosed early. This is because the parents and the person responsible for the care of the child do not provide the child with a sufficiently stimulating, healthy and rich environment. The child is unconsciously neglected for various reasons.
For example, he had to grow up between 4 walls, accompanied by an adult, without going out often. No one cares or plays with him. Especially in working parents, one of the reasons for this is that the child is left alone until the evening without doing an activity with the caregiver and playing with his friends enough. During the developmental period of the baby, there is no need to eat, drink or sleep. He needs friends, a social circle that takes care of him, a game. Children learn, grow and develop by playing games with their peers and adults. If the child grows up deprived of these indispensable conditions, developmental delay is inevitable.
How is developmental delay in children?
It is right to compare children to their peers one-on-one. Every child is different. As a matter of fact, there are skills expected from every child in certain months and age periods. If the child is behind in these, there is developmental delay. Developmental delay can be in various areas such as social, emotional, language, physical and mental development.
The biggest precursor of developmental delay is “speech delay”. The child may use fewer words than his peers or may be trying to express himself in a language he has developed. Speech delay is not only a precursor of developmental delay, but also some serious pathological problems. Early diagnosis is very important in such problems.
In the field of physical development, there may be retardation in the baby’s motor skills such as walking, running and holding. For example, the child may not be able to place the blocks expected from his age. He may not be able to walk confidently.
Developmental delay may not only be in language development, but not in motor development. The most neglected developmental delay is in the social and emotional domain. The child does not know how to communicate with his friends. The child either attacks his friends or cannot protect himself at all. The lack of social skills can only be improved by providing an environment for the child to play with his friends. mental retardation; It can be summarized as the lack of development of concepts, cause-effect relationships and problem-solving skills. In this case, it is essential for the child to receive individual education support.
How is developmental delay diagnosed?
The developmental delay in the child is not accepted or noticed by the family on time. It is very difficult for parents to understand and accept developmental delay. They think that their children, who are in the process of development, will gain the skills they have left behind as they grow up. With this thought, they waste time and decide to get support from a pedagogue only when the developmental delay reaches more serious levels.
If you suspect a developmental delay, you should immediately consult a pedagogue. Because it is very difficult to progress in developmental delay when it is late. The gap between the child and his/her peers in terms of skill and development gap widens day by day.
Since it will be difficult for families to understand the developmental delay, it is very important for their babies to be checked by a pedagogue on a regular basis. Developmental delay can be detected as a result of the Denver II Screening Test and the clinical evaluation of a Pedagogue who is an expert in the field.
Babies and Children Should Have Regular Pedagogue Checks!
Every baby at the age of 0-3 should be checked for development at least once every 6 months by a pedagogue.
Between the ages of 3-6, it is recommended to go through a pedagogical check at least once a year. The pedagogue sees the signs of developmental delay that you do not notice in the child early and prevents these signals from returning to developmental delay. Developmental delay is not a problem that cannot be overcome with an intensive education program and parental guidance. The most important issue here is “early diagnosis”. The sooner this situation is recognized, the more things can be done and the child can catch up with the skill and development level of their peers without a trace of developmental delay.
How is developmental delay treated?
If developmental delay is diagnosed early, it can be treated with an intensive training program. This program is developed and implemented under the supervision of an expert pedagogue from the field. The educator applies the program developed by the pedagogue with the supervisions he receives. The content of the program will vary with the development of the child. Family also bears great responsibilities in developmental delay. Arrangements are made all around the child. All living spaces of the child, from the bedroom to the playroom and the garden, are arranged in a way that supports the development of the child.
The most important thing is to develop a holistic program and involve the family.
Specialist Pedagogue Sevil Yavuz
Child, Adolescent and Family Psychology Specialist
Lecturer, Play Therapist
Parenting Skills & Counseling Center
