About SpeechTherapy.org
SpeechTherapy.org provides clear, experience-based guidance for families navigating speech, language, feeding, and communication development.
Whether you’re wondering about your child’s first words, concerned about a speech or language delay, or trying to understand what to do next, our goal is to make reliable information easier to understand.
We help families understand what may be typical, when additional support may be helpful, and where to turn when they have concerns.
What You’ll Find on SpeechTherapy.org
SpeechTherapy.org has a special focus on the early years of communication, when families often have the most questions about what is typical and when a child may benefit from additional support.
You’ll find practical information about:
- Speech and language milestones
- Late talking and speech delays
- Early Intervention
- Toddler speech therapy
- Speech sound development
- Autism and communication
- Stuttering
- Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)
- Feeding and swallowing
- Activities families can use at home
- Finding a speech therapist
- Speech therapy costs, insurance, and teletherapy
Every article is designed to make speech-language information easier to understand without oversimplifying it.
You don’t need a clinical background to understand what you’re reading. When professional terminology is important, we explain what it means and why it may matter to your family.
Meet the Founder
John Burke, MA, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist · ASHA Life Member
I spent more than 28 years as a speech-language pathologist working with people across the lifespan—from toddlers learning their first words to adults rebuilding communication after stroke or traumatic brain injury.
The final decade of my clinical practice was devoted primarily to Early Intervention, working with children from birth to age three and their families in their homes.
That experience shaped much of what you’ll find on SpeechTherapy.org. I learned that some of the most important opportunities for communication don’t happen in a therapy room. They happen during meals, play, books, getting dressed, and all the ordinary moments families share every day.
Parents aren’t simply observers of speech therapy. They are their child’s most consistent communication partners.
That belief remains at the heart of SpeechTherapy.org.
Why I Created SpeechTherapy.org
Information Families Can Understand and Trust
Educational, Not Diagnostic
SpeechTherapy.org provides general educational information. No article or online checklist can determine whether an individual child or adult has a speech, language, communication, or feeding disorder.
When you have concerns about an individual child or adult, an evaluation by an appropriately qualified professional can provide information specific to that person.
AI-Assisted, Human Reviewed
Technology, including artificial intelligence, may be used to assist with research, organization, and drafting. Content is reviewed and approved by John Burke before publication, with particular attention to clinical accuracy, clarity, and usefulness for families.
A Philosophy Shaped by Families
During my years in Early Intervention, I met many parents who were worried long before I arrived at their door.
Some had been told to “wait and see.” Others had spent hours searching online. Some had recently learned that their child had a developmental delay or diagnosis and were trying to understand what it meant.
What parents usually needed first wasn’t another reason to worry.
They needed someone to explain what we knew, what we didn’t know, and what they could do next.
That is the approach I want SpeechTherapy.org to take.
We want to help families understand what may be typical, recognize when additional support may be worth considering, and know where to turn when they need help.
Sometimes reassurance is appropriate. Sometimes an evaluation is the better next step.
Good information can’t replace an individualized evaluation, but it can help parents ask better questions and make more informed decisions for their families.
My Story
My path to becoming a speech-language pathologist wasn’t a straight one.
It began with military service in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division.
After returning home, I studied English and Philosophy at Fordham University, worked as a computer programmer, became involved with people with disabilities, and eventually discovered the profession that would become my life’s work.
That journey took me through graduate school, home health, rehabilitation hospitals, assistive technology, and finally into the homes of families through Early Intervention.
Each chapter taught me something different about resilience, independence, families, and the fundamental importance of being able to communicate.
I’ve told that story separately for anyone who would like to know more about the person behind SpeechTherapy.org.
Every Person Deserves to Be Understood
Over the course of my career, I’ve watched toddlers discover their first words.
I’ve watched children and adults use technology to communicate when speech wasn’t available to them.
I’ve watched adults work to regain language after stroke.
And I’ve watched parents discover how everyday moments can create meaningful opportunities for their child to communicate.
The ages were different. The challenges were different. But the fundamental need was always the same.
Every person deserves to be understood.
That belief guided my clinical career. It led to SpeechTherapy.org. And it continues to guide what we publish today.
Communication is worth fighting for.
It has been the work of my lifetime.
— John Burke, MA, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist · ASHA Life Member · Founder, SpeechTherapy.org