Selective Mutism
What an AbilityScore® of 600–700 means in Selective Mutism
An AbilityScore® of 600–700 in Selective Mutism reflects a moderate band: your child's language ability is intact, but anxiety blocks speech in certain settings. It marks clear strengths to build on and a workable starting point — interpreted only by a clinician, never from a number alone.
When a number lands on your child's report, you deserve to know what it actually means — and what happens next.
In short
An AbilityScore® of 600–700 for a child with [Selective Mutism](/) reflects a moderate band — your child has real, identifiable strengths to build on, alongside specific areas where speaking in certain settings (often school) is held back by anxiety, not by an inability to talk. It is a starting line, not a verdict. The number is meaningful only as your child's own baseline, against which future progress is measured.What this band tends to mean
Selective Mutism is, at its heart, an anxiety-based difficulty — children who speak freely and warmly at home may fall silent at school or with unfamiliar people. A 600–700 band usually points to a child who:- Communicates comfortably in a safe setting (typically home), showing language ability is intact
- Withholds speech in specific environments where anxiety is high — this is the core feature, not defiance or shyness alone
- Has clear, workable entry points — non-verbal participation, whispering, or speaking to one trusted person — that therapy can gently widen
In other words, the building blocks are present. The work ahead is about lowering the anxiety that blocks the voice, in a graded, pressure-free way — not teaching language from scratch.
How the band guides the plan
A score within this range typically shapes a therapy plan that prioritises comfort before performance: warm rapport, graded exposure to speaking situations, and close partnership with you and the school so confidence transfers beyond the therapy room. Crucially, the band is a snapshot in time. Re-measurement against this same baseline is how you and your clinician will see progress — a question answered, a word spoken to a teacher — turn into objective movement.The Pinnacle way
A clinical AbilityScore® and any diagnosis are formed only at a Pinnacle Blooms Network centre, under the care of a qualified clinician — never from an online form or a number alone. Drawing on 2.5 billion+ data points and 25 million+ therapy sessions, your clinician interprets this band in the context of your child, then builds a plan around their strengths. Explore how the AbilityScore® is calculated, our speech therapy approach, and what support for [Selective Mutism](/) looks like.Trusted sources
WHO ICD-11 (Selective Mutism, 6B06); American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) guidance on childhood communication and anxiety-based speaking difficulties; American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org); Pinnacle Blooms Network clinical studies.Next step — A number becomes useful only when a clinician helps you read it. Book an assessment to understand your child's AbilityScore® band and the plan that flows from it.
This is general information, not a diagnosis — a clinical AbilityScore® and any diagnosis are formed only at a Pinnacle Blooms Network centre under qualified clinician care.
What to watch
Notice where your child speaks freely versus where they fall silent — home, school, with relatives. Track whether the silent settings slowly narrow over time, and whether new comfortable people or places are added. Mention any new physical avoidance (refusing to enter a room, distress at being asked to speak) to your clinician.
Try this at home
Never pressure a word. Instead, lower the stakes: offer choices your child can answer by pointing or nodding, accept a whisper warmly, and let unfamiliar adults greet without demanding a reply. Removing the spotlight is what helps the voice arrive.
Trusted sources
Developed by SETU Consortium · Pinnacle Blooms Network · Last reviewed 2026-06-10 · reviewed every 365 days
This is general information, not a diagnosis. A clinical AbilityScore® and any diagnosis are formed only at a Pinnacle Blooms Network centre, under qualified clinician care.
Frequently asked
Is a 600-700 AbilityScore® a good or bad result?
It is neither — it is a moderate baseline, a starting point. For Selective Mutism it usually signals that language ability is intact and the main work is easing the anxiety that blocks speech in certain settings. Your clinician interprets it for your specific child.
Does this score mean my child has Selective Mutism for certain?
No. The AbilityScore® is a clinician-administered structured assessment that informs the picture, but a diagnosis is made only by a qualified clinician at a Pinnacle Blooms Network centre, considering your child's full history and other possible causes.
Will the score change with therapy?
Yes — that is the point of re-measurement. Progress is tracked against your child's own baseline, so when they begin speaking to a teacher or in a new setting, that movement becomes visible and objective.
My child talks fine at home — why is the score in this band?
That pattern is the hallmark of Selective Mutism. Speaking freely at home shows language is intact; the band reflects the difficulty speaking in specific anxiety-provoking settings such as school. Therapy focuses on gently widening where your child feels safe to speak.