Developmental delay
Reaching milestones significantly later than expected, in one area or several. A description of where a child is now, not a prediction of where they will end up, and not a diagnosis.
Why developmental delay matters.
Parents are frequently told two contradictory things in the same month: that it is a delay and will resolve, and that they should act immediately. Both can be true. A delay may well close on its own — and the actions worth taking early are cheap, reversible and useful either way.
What a delay does not tell you is the cause. A child can be delayed in speech because of hearing, because of autism, because of limited exposure to a language, or for no reason anyone ever identifies. The support that helps is decided by what the child can and cannot do now, which is why a functional assessment is more immediately useful than a label.
Questions that get a real answer
- Delayed in which specific areas, and by how much?
- Has hearing been checked recently?
- What would you expect to see in eight weeks, and what would concern you?
Ask these of anyone, including us. What you are listening for is not the right answer — it is whether the answer is specific enough to be wrong.
Terms that usually turn up alongside it.
Differentiation
A teacher adjusting how something is taught so more of the class can access it — different materials
GlossaryDyscalculia
A specific difficulty with number — quantity, place value, recalling facts, estimating. It sits alongside
GlossaryDysgraphia
A specific difficulty with the physical and organisational act of writing — letter formation, spacing, speed
Send it to us and we'll translate it.
Any report, from any provider, including ones we have nothing to do with. We will tell you in plain English what it says, what it recommends, and which parts are actually supported by the evidence in it. No charge, and it does not make you a client.