What Are They?
Words
Word-finding difficulties are when a child struggles to retrieve a known word from memory. These retrieval problems are more than just the occasional "tip of the tongue" experience and can occur when retrieving single words or in conversation. Concern arises when the child's production of words is far less than their understanding. Word-finding difficulties can occur in isolation or also as a part of another language/learning problem such as developmental language disorder or learning disabilities.
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There are two types of word-finding difficulties:
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1. Semantic-Based
Retrieval errors that occur when the child has trouble connecting the meaning of a word with the mental representation of the word stored in memory. The typical error seen with this kind of word-finding difficulty is the replacement of the target word with a word that has a similar meaning (e.g. apple for banana)
2. Phonological-Based
Retrieval errors that occur when the child has trouble accessing the letters/sounds that make up a word. The typical error seen with this kind of word-finding difficulty is the substitution of the target word with another word that has similar spelling or the same first letter (e.g. grass for glass)
Think
Signs of Word Finding Difficulties
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Show greater understanding than expressive abilities
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Describe words instead of using the specific word (e.g. cold white stuff that comes from the sky)
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Use non-specific words (e.g. thing, stuff)
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Use lots of filler words (e.g. um)
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Use words of similar sounds or meanings to replace the word they can’t find (e.g. apple for banana, or bandana for banana)
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Use an increased number of pauses in conversation
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Show delayed responses
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Have a lack of content words (e.g. nouns)
A child might...
Diagnosis & Treatment
Impacts of Word-Finding Difficulties
Word-finding difficulties can impact many skills and areas of life:
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Reading
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Test Performance
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Math
Reading is a skill that requires the retrieval of sounds, word parts, full words, and the meanings of these words. If a child is not able to perform these retrievals both quickly and accurately, reading fluency can be reduced.
Children with word-finding difficulties may not be able to show the knowledge they have if they can't find the right words. As a result their skills may be underestimated on tests. This is especially evident in test questions that require fill in the blanks or short-answers.
4. Expressive Language
Word-finding difficulties can be noted in the spoken output of children. Some examples include using shorter and more simple sentences, presenting fewer ideas, and lacking nouns, pronouns (e.g. he, she) and other functor words (e.g. the, and). This may be especially obvious when answering questions, retelling stories or during presentations. Similar deficits can be noted in written language.
Word-retrieval problems can happen with numbers too! Children may struggle to retrieve math facts and will show even more difficulty when there are time limits.
5. Other
Word-finding difficulties can result in feelings of frustration and anxiety. It can also negatively impact a child's self-esteem and social life.
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To determine if a child has a word-finding problem, an assessment can be completed by a speech-language pathologist.
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After a child has been identified as having word-finding difficulties, a treatment plan will be created by the speech-language pathologist. The treatment may depend on:
The severity of the difficulties
The age of the child
The awareness of the child
Other disorders/diagnoses
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Treatment can involve speech-language therapy, recommendations for the home, classroom adjustments, etc.
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