This speech disorder is characterized by the child’s disability to convert thoughts, emotions and needs into words and sentences. A child with an AOS disorder knows what to say but has trouble moving the lips, jaw or tongue in the proper way to say it. At Milestone Therapy Group, we’re passionately driven to helping children affected by Apraxia of Speech (AOS) and other speech disorders through licensed and certified speech therapists with years of successful treatment experience. Here’s a short compilation of facts and practices that will help you understand the problem of Apraxia and take the right steps towards helping your child handle this speech disorder.
The signs
*Different pronunciation of the same word every time
*Shorter words spoken more clearly than longer ones
*Stress on the wrong syllable or word
*Distortion or change in sounds
*Delayed language ability
*Problems with reading, spelling & writing
*Difficulty with fine motor skills
The causes
Apraxia of Speech may have any of the following causes.
Brain injury: It may be the result of neurological conditions such as an injury, stroke or infections.
Genetic disorder: Apraxia may also result due to a genetic disorder, syndrome or metabolic condition.
Ways to help reduce Apraxia in children
*Use Alternative or Augmentative Communication (AAC)
One way to help your child improve consistency of communication is by using gestures, sign language, pictures or even a communication device. Helping your child find more means to communicate will bring down anxiety and frustration and improve the way he or she communicates.
*Turn your questions into comments
When a child finds it hard to speak or communicate, asking too many questions may feel demanding for the child and lead to anxiety and possibly, even a breakdown. One way to tackle this challenge is to turn your question into a comment. For example, instead of asking “What is that?” you could state “That is a dog” or instead of “What color is your shirt?” say “You’re wearing a green shirt today!”.
*Avoid the wrong times to communicate
Do not attempt to make your child communicate when he or she is in a tired or emotional state. At such times, use alternate ways of communication like gesturing to interact with your child, instead of making your child feel forced to speak.
*Get your child in a ready state to learn
You could help your child feel more excited or ready to learn new things by ensuring proper sleep, play and rest routines. Children feel calmer when they get used to routines that they like and so making learning feel like a part of an interesting routine will help your child approach communication with a more open attitude and a less anxious mind.
While the practices stated above may help bring about some degree of change or improvement, you would still need to visit a qualified and experienced speech therapy expert to help your child effectively and permanently overcome the problem of Apraxia of Speech. At Milestone Therapy Group, we came into existence with the sole purpose of helping children with AOS and other types of speech disorders find their path to normal and healthy childhoods. Our family of licensed and certified speech therapists has grown over the years and so has the number of children getting successfully treated under our caring and expert watch. Do feel free to book a consultation with us and let’s get started helping your child take those first steps towards speaking without challenges.
