Children can begin therapy as early as the age of two, since communication disorders become apparent in the 2-5 year range. Infants can also benefit from early treatment if they are at a high risk for disability due to a difficult birth, have signs of developmental delay, are diagnosed with a hearing impairment, or do not begin to coo at the appropriate age. Early treatment has a large effect on the final outcome. Noticeable improvements, however, can occur as the sufferer grows up.

A test of the patient's hearing, listening comprehension and various other developmental abilities related to language is taken.  A speech-language pathologist can evaluate the child's language development and design an organized plan of language learning.

• Remediation increases activity in delayed or disabled areas and may serve to prevent other related problems.
• Compensation enables the child and the family to make adjustments for limitations.  Language is taught in a natural setting and is presented at the child's developmental level; responses are consistently stimulated; and output is rewarded.
• Play may be used to teach communication, language models or rules of conversation, such as turn taking.