Building Early Sentences Therapy (BEST) Solves Language Difficulties

By Renee Anderson , Parent Herald Nov 29, 03:16 am

Researchers have proved the effectiveness of a new technique to help children experiencing language difficulties.

The method known as BEST (Building Early Sentences Therapy), based on the natural process involved in a child's language development, helps children between three and six years to listen to adult speech and learn how to construct sentences from that.

Designed and developed by Dr. Cristina McKean from Newcastle University, Doctors. Sean Pert and Carol Stow from Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust, two years ago, BEST has proved its effectiveness in treating even multi-linguistic children.

During the 16-session therapy, adult therapists utter specific sentences and act them out with toys. Later, they repeat the act while changing one or more elements in the sentence, making children understand the rules of combining words and constructing a sentence correctly.

"The way BEST works is that it supports children to listen to adult speech and to figure out how sentences are constructed from the language that they hear - this is the way most children learn to speak if their Language develops normally," Dr. McKean, a lecturer in the School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences at Newcastle University, said in a news release.

"We focus on the language the child hears and because we do it this way, it means BEST can also be used when children speak another language too. Other methods designed to help young children are developed to work in one particular language so they can't always be used to help a child who speaks another."

The joint effort by McKean, Pert and Stow was recognized and honored with the Sternberg Prize for Clinical Innovation by the Royal Society of Speech and Language Therapists, recently.

"I was really delighted when I heard we had won the award. We've worked very hard to develop BEST and as we all studied for our PhDs in speech and language at Newcastle, it's really nice to for us to have our work recognised in this way," McKean said.