I’m Olha Zabolotna, a speech therapist. I work with children who don’t talk or struggle to understand speech: motor, sensory and sensorimotor alalia, speech delay and delayed psycho-speech development. My goal is not the first words, but fully age-appropriate speech.
The first assessment is free.
This is how a child’s speech grows. Tap a step to see what we work on at each one.
Parents often hear “just wait, it will pass” for years. Here are the signs that mean it’s worth booking an assessment as early as possible.
This is often what motor alalia looks like
This is often what sensory alalia looks like
This happens with speech delay
Recognize some of these signs? It isn’t a diagnosis yet, but it’s a reason to check speech. The earlier the right work starts, the shorter the path to the norm.
Book an assessmentChildren with sensory alalia are often diagnosed with autism (ASD) or suspected of it: the child doesn’t respond to words, repeats other people’s phrases, behaves “in their own way”. But something else may be behind it: the child simply doesn’t understand speech. This changes what therapy should look like.
An ASD diagnosis is made by a doctor; I neither make nor remove it. At the assessment I check speech and understanding to find out whether sensory alalia is behind the difficulties. If it is, it can and should be worked on.
I work according to V. A. Kovshikov’s language approach and follow the developmental (ontogenetic) principle: the child goes through the same stages of speech as their peers, in the same order. We start from the step the child is on now and move step by step to the age norm. In Eastern European speech therapy these steps are known as levels I–IV of general speech underdevelopment.
Choose the step your child is on now
Speech level I
“ma”, “beep-beep”, single words and gestures
Speech is almost absent: babbling, sound imitation, gestures, single words. With motor alalia the child understands what you say but can’t answer. With sensory alalia the child hears well but doesn’t understand words.
We launch speech. With motor alalia, straight through short phrases with verbs (“give”, “go”, “more”), not through separate names of objects. With sensory alalia, we teach the child to understand words: showing, action and a “quiet mode” at home.
This is a guide, not a diagnosis. I’ll define it precisely at the assessment.
Speech level II
“Mama, give appo”
Short phrases of 2–3 words appear, but grammar, pronunciation and the syllable structure of words are severely impaired, and vocabulary is still small. The child understands everyday requests but gets confused by questions like “whose?” or “with what?” and by the words “I” and “you”.
We build vocabulary quickly through semantic fields, build phrases using grammatical models and teach the child to express wishes in words: “I want a drink”, “I don’t want to”.
This is a guide, not a diagnosis. I’ll define it precisely at the assessment.
Speech level III
“Mommy, give me red apple”
Phrases are already full, but there are errors in word endings and prepositions, words are missing, and it’s hard to tell what happened.
Grammar, connected speech, sounds and the syllable structure of words. The child learns to tell stories, retell and ask questions.
This is a guide, not a diagnosis. I’ll define it precisely at the assessment.
Speech level IV
“Mommy, can I have that red apple?”
Talks almost like peers, but small difficulties remain: complex words, retelling, words with several meanings, individual sounds.
We get to the norm and don’t stop halfway. This is exactly where many families quit, and the remaining difficulties resurface at school.
This is a guide, not a diagnosis. I’ll define it precisely at the assessment.
Goal
“Mommy, I saw a squirrel hiding nuts!”
The child talks freely, like their peers: tells stories, asks questions, understands complex explanations.
This is the goal of our work. Not the first words, but fully age-appropriate speech.
At the assessment I’ll determine which step to start from.
I choose techniques for the type of alalia. At every step we work on all parts of language: vocabulary, grammar, sounds, phonemic hearing and the syllable structure of words.
You leave a request on the site or message me. I reply and suggest a time for the assessment.
I see how the child understands and uses speech and determine which step to start from.
I explain what we’ll do and in what order, and show you how to set up a language-rich environment at home.
Online, together with you. Between sessions you practice with your child using my tasks.
I track progress, and we move on until speech reaches the age norm.
Alalia therapy relies on daily work at home, not just on an hour with a therapist. That’s why I work with your child together with you: you see every technique and reinforce it between sessions. Progress doesn’t wait for the next meeting.
No travel and no unfamiliar offices. The child is calmer, and therefore works better.
Every session ends with a clear task for home.
I work with families in Ukraine and around the world.
Clips from sessions at the start and a few months later. Published only with the parents’ consent.
I want to thank you for the work you did with Matvii. In the 14 months we worked with you, Matvii made a huge leap in his development: phrases and even sentences appeared. Lately in the evenings he retells the fairy tales you acted out with him in sessions. And he very often asks, “let’s go to Olia”.
Olia, thank you for your professionalism and kind heart in working with my grandson. I’m very glad he was surrounded by your attention in every lesson and that his results are excellent. The thoughtful, patient way you approach every child with an understanding of their needs deserves great respect and gratitude. You explained a lot to me about my own grandson’s behavior, showed me my area of responsibility, supported me and taught me to interact with the child thoughtfully. Thank you so much for your work, your professionalism and your love for children.
I’m very grateful to you, Olha, for the effective sessions with my son Vova. Thanks to your individual approach we’ve seen incredible progress in his development. He loved going to the sessions. Thank you for your professionalism.
I’m a speech therapist specializing in severe speech disorders: motor, sensory and sensorimotor alalia. I help children move toward the developmental norm, whatever level they are at now.
My work is based on V. A. Kovshikov’s fundamental language approach. I gained hands-on experience applying it from leading specialists during my practice in Montenegro.
“The ultimate goal of my work is a child’s full speech and intellectual norm, not just a few first words”
Didn’t find an answer? or leave a request, and I’ll answer personally.
Alalia doesn’t go away on its own: it isn’t a delay a child will “outgrow”. The earlier the right therapy starts, the shorter the path to the norm. If you’re not sure, the assessment will show whether work is needed.
I work with children from 2.5 years. If your child is younger and something worries you, message me: I’ll suggest what you can do right now.
It’s not too late. Starting earlier is always better, but at 5–6, with the right therapy, children can still reach the age norm. The main thing is not to put it off.
You are next to your child at every session. I show the techniques, you see how to work, and you reinforce them at home between sessions. With alalia, most progress happens in daily work at home, so the online format works very well.
It depends on which step we start from and how regular the sessions are. With alalia my guideline is about 2–2.5 years to the age norm. I’ll say more precisely after the assessment.
Be present at sessions and practice with your child every day using my tasks. I’ll teach you how to talk with your child at home and what to avoid. Without work at home, progress will be much slower.
Honestly: no speech therapist can guarantee the norm, because every child is different. I guarantee work based on a method that gives your child the best chances, a clear plan and progress tracking. The goal we work toward is fully age-appropriate speech.
Yes, if the difficulties come from impaired understanding of speech: sensory or sensorimotor alalia. At the assessment I check speech specifically. The ASD diagnosis itself is made and removed by a doctor.
The first assessment is free. We discuss the price of sessions after it, once it’s clear which step we start from and how many sessions are needed.
Leave a request and I’ll message you in the messenger you prefer. The first assessment is free: we’ll get to know each other and see where to start. It doesn’t commit you to anything.
Thank you! I’ll message you in your messenger soon.
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