Late talker or SLI?: the story of Jay X

Distinguishing between children who will "catch up" after delays in early language development (late talkers), and children whose early delays are a harbinger of the condition known as specific language impairment (SLI), remains one of the biggest mysteries facing speech-language pathologists who work with young children. The case of Jay X, a preschool child with a history of delayed language acquisition, illustrates the process by which the crucial pieces of clinical information are accumulated and interpreted to make this determination.