May is Apraxia of Speech month and what a great and resourceful month it has been for our readers. We have an awesome Guest Blogger today! Rebecca Eisenberg, MS, CCC-SLP is here to help us look for the red flags of Childhood Apraxia of Speech.
“As a speech language pathologist for 18 years, I have worked with many children with varying complex communication needs. What are complex communication needs? These are individuals that have difficulty communicating via speech due to various reasons.
One of the common expressive language disorders that I have treated on a regular basis is Childhood Apraxia of Speech. Apraxia can be a difficult diagnosis for parents because they watch their child struggle to talk but don’t see any muscular abnormalities when their child is trying to articulate. Many parents ask me, “I don’t see anything wrong with their mouth, why can’t he/she speak? The next question is often “Will my child learn to speak?” This is obviously a question I can’t answer because each child is different and each prognosis varies. Most of the children I see for apraxia of speech are getting intensive speech and language therapy and implementing augmentative and alternative communication to meet their communication needs.
Do you suspect your child may have apraxia of speech? Here are some red flags that I have observed. However, if you do suspect your child has apraxia, please contact a local certified speech language pathologist for a comprehensive speech and language evaluation and intervention plan. This can also be done through your local school district. Additionally, each child is an individual and has to be assessed to determine any speech and language disabilities or delays. To learn more about Childhood Apraxia of Speech and find an SLP in your area, click here.”
1. Difficulty Imitating Speech
“Many children with apraxia of speech have difficulty imitating sounds and words. This is due to a motor planning issue that makes imitation difficult.”
2. Babbling Was Minimal or Did Not Occur
“I often find that many children with apraxia were very quiet babies. They didn’t babble often and play with their sounds like typical babies often do on a daily basis.”
3. Child Struggles to Talk
“For many children, you can see them struggling to talk and move their mouth in the correct way to make specific sounds. This struggle is called “groping.” This is where an approach, called PROMPT is very helpful. As a certified PROMPT therapist, I have seen first hand how this approach can change a child’s world with regard to expressive language.”
4. Child Often Says Only Certain Words Because They Know How to Say Them
“Many child will often answer with specific words that they already know how to say regardless if this are the words they want to articulate. This is where visual aids and augmentative and alternative communication can be life changing.”
5. Child Has a Very Limited Expressive Vocabulary
“Many children with Apraxia of speech present with a limited expressive vocabulary that doesn’t appear to expand or “explode” like their typical peers.”
Rebecca Eisenberg, MS, CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist, children’s book author, instructor, and parent of two children. Thank you so much Rebecca for this wonderful information today.
Thank you for reading my post today. You might also enjoy reading:
What is Phonological Awareness?
Learning to Read with Childhood Apraxia of Speech
Please don’t leave without checking out the PRIDE Reading Program. The PRIDE Reading Program is an Orton-Gillingham curriculum that is used by teachers, tutors, and homeschooling parents worldwide with great success.
