Understanding how a child communicates takes time. Sadly, a recent study suggests that time is a major obstacle for experts seeking to assess and assist children. In a survey of 337 U.S. speech-language pathologists (SLPs), only 60% reported using language sample analysis during the previous year, and 74% (of those who had not) identified limited time as a barrier (Wilder & Redmond, 2024).
This means many students are not getting properly assessed and—without a thorough understanding of students’ challenges and needs—adults are hindered in their efforts to provide well-informed support.
Amid such challenges, how can we properly hear what children’s everyday communication reveals? To better understand the answer to that question and more, I chatted with Yvonne Johansen, a pediatric SLP trained at Teachers College, Columbia University, and the founder of SmartFelt Toys. Johansen’s 35-year career has spanned Head Start programs, public schools, private practice, consulting for California’s Regional Centers, and serving as Clinical Director of Pathways to Speech. I spoke with Johansen about the challenges of assessing children’s language, as well as what adults can do to overcome such challenges and get students the support they need.
Jenny Rankin (JR): Language sample analysis (in which a child’s language is recorded during play, conversation, or storytelling, then transcribed and analyzed) is considered the gold standard for assessing children’s language. Why isn’t it used more often?
Yvonne Johansen (YJ): As an undergraduate in the 1980s, I worked for the New York City Board of Education‘s Citywide Speech Services while attending classes. I distinctly remember my first language sample analysis. I immediately knew its importance, but transcribing a 50-utterance sample (about 50 things a child says) word for word and then analyzing it took hours and hours by hand.
When something is that time-consuming, avoiding it can become a temptation. So many SLPs let language sampling slip out of their diagnostic battery because it’s simply not in the bandwidth of a school-based SLP.
There’s software now for transcription and analysis, but getting the child to talk is still a challenge. In a 30-minute session, you need to build rapport and keep a child engaged long enough to get 50 or more utterances. You also have to change how you talk. This isn’t a therapy session, and, let’s face it, speech therapists talk a lot. To get a good sample, you have to become the copilot, not the pilot, and that’s not easy for us to do.
JR: Why is a language sample necessary?
YJ: I’ve worked with many children who were able to answer questions on a standardized test but struggled to explain to me what had happened at school or why they were upset. A language sample allows us to hear how a child uses language to communicate. Research has found that certain aspects of how children tell stories and explain things at age 5 predict their reading comprehension at age 8 (Griffin et al., 2004).
The sample will also show us the child’s content, form, and use of language. This helps determine eligibility for services. And beyond that, it gives us important information about what that child needs, and where their therapy should start.
JR:What have you discovered to overcome the obstacles to language sampling?
YJ: I worked with many children who wouldn’t speak in the classroom, whispered, or spoke only to certain people. I learned that getting a child to talk isn’t as simple as asking questions. You have to find something that engages their interest and draws them in.
With younger children, I’ve found that play is often the best place to start, assuming you can get the child interested. If they don’t like what you’re giving them to play with, they likely won’t stick with it, and you won’t get much language from them.
I’ve also learned not to ask too much, too soon from a child. Start with something they can easily manage, and build from there. Stay in their comfort zone.
Children enjoy toys they can handle and move around. A dollhouse or farm with people and animals gives them plenty to do and talk about. They can make up their own stories and decide what happens next. Children who are engaged talk more, providing you with language you might not hear if you’re simply sitting across from them and asking questions.
JR:What should parents and teachers know, and what can they do at home or in the classroom?
YJ: Parents and teachers are usually the first to notice when a child has difficulty communicating, and their input matters. So it’s imperative to pay attention to how a child talks about something that happened, explains an idea, or makes up their own story during play. And it’s important to let them talk without asking a barrage of questions. Let them take the lead, while you follow it.
If you’re concerned about the level of a child’s language, share your observations and concerns with an SLP, and ask whether a language sample was part of their evaluation.
What matters most is getting a true real-life picture of how a child communicates, not just how they perform on a test.
