Does my child need speech therapy?

Q: People easily understand my daughter when she speaks, but she still can’t make the “th” sound. She’s five — almost six. Does she need speech therapy?

A: Every sound has a typical age at which most kids master it, but these norms aren’t set in stone. Most studies show that 90 percent of kids can say “th” correctly by age eight, so your five-year-old still has lots of time to perfect this sound. But if your daughter is self-conscious about her speech, it may be worth a visit to a speech language pathologist, who can tell you if she is  “stimulable” (meaning close to developing the sound) or if she’ll be able to learn it easily with a bit of direction.