You've hung up the phone; the appointment is booked. And that evening, in almost every family, the same two questions start circling: "What do we tell the child?" and "What's actually waiting for us there?" Uncertainty is the most tiring part of this whole business — so in this article I want to walk you through the first assessment session from start to finish. An appointment without surprises is a better appointment for everyone.
Before the appointment: a short intro call
With most families, we have a 15–20 minute intro call before any session. It's purely a conversation: I listen to your concern, ask a few questions, answer what's on your mind. Sometimes it ends with me saying "let's wait and watch"; sometimes I'll say the issue isn't my field and point you to the right specialist. An assessment appointment is only made when it's genuinely meaningful.
How to explain it to your child
The description that works best is the honest one: "We're going to see someone who plays games and knows talking games." It's true, and it raises no alarm.
There are two things I'd advise against. The first is saying "we're going to the doctor" — for many children that conjures needles, examination tables and white coats, and they walk in tense before anything has happened. The second is turning the visit into a test: sentences like "You'll speak nicely there, won't you?" load a performance burden onto the child at the doorstep. Even saying nothing at all is better than turning it into an exam.
The session itself: it looks like play — it isn't
If you peeked through the door, you'd see a child playing with toys on the floor and a therapist joining in. But inside that play runs a systematic observation: how does the child express what they want, do they understand instructions, how do they produce speech sounds, do they take turns, can they share attention... Play is the most reliable way to assess a young child, because a child only shows their real ability when they're at ease.
Alongside the observation, two more things happen:
- We go through the developmental history. When did the first words come, was there ever a doubt about hearing, is there a similar story in the family, what does the nursery observe... What you tell me is half of the assessment.
- I use standardised tests where needed. Depending on age and presentation, standardised Turkish tests such as TEDİL or EROT let us place the child's language and speech skills objectively against their peers. Not every child needs every test; the picture decides what's necessary.
Knowing the timing helps too: individual sessions usually last 45 minutes — roughly 30–35 minutes with the child, 10–15 with the family.
What should you bring?
The list is short:
- A hearing test result, if one exists — in language delays, hearing is the first thing to rule out
- Any hospital reports, discharge summaries, school or nursery observation notes you have
- A child who is rested and fed — it may sound trivial, but this is often the single biggest factor in the quality of an assessment
If you have none of these, that's fine; coming without reports is no obstacle to an assessment.
At the end of the session: I'll be straight with you
When the assessment is done, I share the picture exactly as I see it. Sometimes that means saying "therapy isn't needed right now — watch these signs and let's look again in three months", and I don't shy away from saying it; unnecessary therapy does nobody any good. If therapy is needed, we talk concretely: which goals we'll start with, how many sessions a week, and what your role at home will be.
The first tangible progress is usually visible within 4–8 weeks, and we track the process numerically with re-assessments roughly every three months.
In short
The first session isn't an exam — it's a photograph: a clear picture of where your child stands today. Once that photograph is taken, uncertainty ends and a plan takes its place. If this article left any question unanswered, ask it in the intro call; there's no such thing as a silly pre-appointment question.
