Articulation disorders are one of the most common childhood speech disorders. Children may make speech sounds incorrectly because their articulators (teeth, jaw, tongue, etc.) are not moving correctly. Misarticulation at the elementary school level is usually easier to remediate than at the middle school level, when incorrect placement of articulators may become habitual. Common articulation errors may include substitution errors (wed for red) and distortion errors (thand for sand-frontal lisp). Some of the most common errors are /s/, /r/, /l/, and /th/. A child with articulation errors should always be evaluated when they are young (3 or 4) and at any time that the child displays frustration or struggle when speaking. Most speech sounds are usually produced correctly by the age of 7.

Developmental phonological disorders affect children's ability to develop speech that can be easily understood. Children with phonological disorders have difficulty learning and organizing the sounds needed for clear speech. Two common phonological processes include consonant sequence reduction ("back" instead of "black," "sock" instead of "socks") and velar deviation-fronting ("dame" instead of "game," "take" instead of "cake"). Phonological disorders have been found to run in families. In some cases, these disorders may affect a child's reading and spelling abilities. However, most children benefit from speech-language pathology intervention. Therapy may include making them more aware of the correct production of sounds. Generally, the earlier and more intense therapy is, the greater the benefit for the child.

Children whose language development is significantly delayed may be considered developmentally delayed in language acquisition, or diagnosed with a language disorder. The child may lack age appropriate language comprehension and expressive abilities. This may include a delay in learning appropriate vocabulary (semantics), grammar (syntax), and social use (pragmatics) for his/her age. Language disorders can be specific to each child. For example, one student may have poor social use of language (pragmatics), but appropriate vocabulary and grammar use. Where another child may have a poor vocabulary, but appropriate grammar and social use of language. Unfortunately, problems in language development may be an indicator of other difficulties, such as reading and/or writing. Early identification and intervention may reduce the severity of a language disorder.

Stuttering is a communicative disorder which is characterized by an interruption in the normal flow of speech. These "breaks" in speech may include blockages, (air flow is stopped), repetitions (roo, roo, rooster; can I go, can I go, can I go with you), or prolongations (bbbball). Secondary characteristics such as facial grimacing, arm or hand movements may occur at the time of stuttering without the person knowing. Stuttering most frequently appears in children between the ages of two and six years and may occasionally develop in school age or older children. Statistics suggest that about 3-5% of preschool to school age children will exhibit this fluency disorder called stuttering. It is more common for boys to stutter than girls. Speech therapy may be recommended and is often more successful when initiated before the age of five.

Developmental Verbal Apraxia is a disorder which affects the coordination of movements necessary for speech. Usually, there is nothing wrong with the muscles of the face, tongue, lips, or jaw. However, the child is simply unable to program muscles to make sounds and words correctly. They have a much more difficult time with voluntary, rather than automatic speech. Therefore, the child may be successful when saying and clapping a familiar nursery rhyme. Children with apraxia may become frustrated with communication because they know what words they want to say, but are often unable to say it. Their speech may be effortful and very difficult to understand. Speech therapy for this disorder is often provided in several shorter sessions rather than one long session every week. Therapy will often involve improving planning, programming, storing, and retrieving speech motor patters.

Voice disorders in children are often characterized by a voice that is too high or too low in pitch, too loud or too quiet in volume, or has a hoarse or harsh quality. Poor voice quality may be linked to some type of vocal abuse. Vocal abuse may include activities such as excessive screaming, frequent coughing or throat clearing, or speaking at an uncomfortable pitch (while imitating a character perhaps). Chronic abuse may eventually lead to a "callusing" on the vocal cords know as vocal nodules. If a voice disorder is suspected, the child should first be referred to an otolaryngologist (ear, nose, and throat doctor). If voice therapy is necessary, the speech-language pathologist may target areas such as identifying an appropriate pitch and/or volume and reducing behaviors which are abusive to vocal cords. Voice therapy is often effective in improving the child's voice.