Physical and occupational therapies can be used for a child that has a speech delay due to physical malformations and children that have also been diagnosed with a developmental delay such as autism or a language processing delay. Music therapy has effective results in the fundamentals of speech development, including phonological memory, sentence understanding, sentence memory, and morphological rule generation. Children that have been identified with hearing loss can be taught simple sign language to build and improve their vocabulary in addition to attending speech therapy. The parents of a delayed child are the first and most important tool in helping overcome the speech delay. The parent or caregiver of the child can provide the following activities at home, in addition to the techniques suggested by a speech therapist, to positively influence the growth of speech and vocabulary:

Reading to the child regularly
Use of questions and simple, clear language
Positive reinforcement in addition to patienceFor children that have a physical disorder that is causing difficulty forming and pronouncing words, parents and caregivers suggest using and introducing different food textures to exercise and build jaw muscles while promoting new movements of the jaw while chewing. Another less studied technique used to combat and treat speech delay is a form of therapy using music to promote and facilitate speech and language development. It is important to understand that music therapy is a newer therapy and has yet to be thoroughly studied and practiced on children with speech delays and impediments. See also
References
Further reading
Kennison, S. M. (2013). Introduction to Language Development.
Los Angeles, CA: Sage. External links
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA):  Different Issues in Speech and Language Development. KidsHealth:Delay in Speech and Language
Early Identification of Speech-Language Delays and Disorders
The Listen Up Web-Language Development
YourChild: Speech and Language Delays and Disorders University of Michigan Health System