Does Anyone Have a Child with Apraxia?

Buy the DVD Baby Babble - I bought mine through Amazon.com. My son at 22 months was saying 0 words...the DVD was amazing - he would copy sounds, sound effects, and signs as he watched. His words started to emerge shortly after. Baby Babble was recommended by his speech therapist and is created by 2 ST.

Your therapist may introduce you to the Kaufman cards. They are cards that give a hierarchy of how to produce certain words and were developed for children with apraxia. You could google them. There are also "sign and say" cards that have the picture, sign language and hierarchy of several familiar/common items that I have found useful working with children with apraxia and other speech-language issues.

N.,
Where do you live? I have met a wonderful mom through my non for profit organization, Celebrate Differences. She is actually writing a book on Apraxia. If you send me your information I could share it with her and she could contact you.

The Kauffman cards are amazing! You can purchases them through Super Duper Publications. I use them for my son who has Down syndrome.

R. Christiansen
Director - Baby Crazy
www.iambabycrazy.com/R.

My son just had Speech delays from His DTaP shots.. HE went from 30 words to 1 word after his 3 and 4th shot...
Our ST has us doing flash cards you can even just do the ones at the dollar tree.. they help a ton.. WE blow bubbles in a bucket with Fish tubbing... just cut some and put an inch of water in a bucket or so.. and some dish soap.. they blow and IT makes a ton of bubbles great for outside even with it nice now....
My son had a week Pucker.. so we do alot of this stuff.. Any whistles * go to like Party city and buy the lip wistles or any you can find may be noisey but they will help ...

YOur ST should be able to help you with Idea's.. are you with Early Intervention?? They should be able to buy you some stuff to.. Even the Kalphman cards as listed below.. I know a lady who got her Son's cards paied for from Early intervention!!! SO ASK!!!
Chewies too... Mouth Jigglesr.. ASK!!!! YOU will be suprized!!!

WE got 2000$ of free stuff for my son!!! he has SPD and ASD though but he needed mouth stuff for speech!!!

Good luck!

My son was diagnosed with apraxia when he was two. We were seeing a therapist twice a week and working at home. We did a lot of bubble blowing with him. First, just have her try to wiggle or blow the the bubble on the bubble stick. It may be to hard for her to blow his own bubble. When she is ready, blowing her own bubbles is a great activity. Blowing out candles is also a great activity. We used to use cotton balls with straws to have a cotton ball race. Also do things to encourage to get his tongue moving. Put peanut butter or cream cheese on different areas of her lips, under/above her lip, etc. Ask your therapist for other ideas. I am sure she has some and would love for you to work at home. I was told that apraxia will not just "get better" on its own. A child needs to practice and practice for it to improve. I have done tons of reading on this topic. Fell free to send me a message if you would like to chat. My son is now 6. He is now talking great and most people can understand what he is saying. He has also learned how to "explain" any word we can not figure out. Good luck!!

My son was dx with apraxia at age 3. We did outside speech therapy for a total of 3 years. About a year and a half into the speech, we added Occupational Therapy at the same place, which he had for about 3 years. Since apraxia is basically a "motor planning" deficit, sometimes it will affect fine motor skills and even gross motor skills. My son was somewhat of a mild case and no longer requires any type of intervention (except probably with writing skills down the road). At home, we worked on flashcards that our speech therapist gave us that worked on sound blends. We also encouraged participation in soccer and other sports which assisted his motor planning and coordination. I sat in on his therapy time with the speech and OT and did similar things with him at home that they were doing in therapy (best I could). But to be honest I work as does my husband so while we did work with him at home, I credit his therapists for everything! He did not end up needing any speech or OT in school, the outside therapies ended up being sufficient. The place I went to was terrific as were his two therapists. I am a school psychologist, so I also am able to learn about different techniques at work with the other professionals with which I work so that was a nice support. We went to WEE Care Therapy in Dyer, Indiana. Hope this helps. Depending on the severity of the apraxia would dictate how long and how intensive the therapy need would be. Good Luck! Sincerely, J.

Hi there -- I have a 12 yo apraxic son who was diagnosed when he was about your daughter's age. I also lead a support and resource group in Chicago called the Chicagoland Apraxia Network. A great online resource is www.apraxia-kids.org. They have a comprehensive website as well as a listserve of thousands of families and professionals who deal specifically with apraxia and many times issues associated with apraxia as well. You can e-mail me directly at ____@____.com and chat, too. Believe me, I know how frustrating this all is...we've been walking this road for a very long time and I'm happy to help if I can.

Take care, H.

I have 2 children who were diagnosed with mild apraxia. One is now 11 and the other is 12 and they are both fine without any speech issues. By 1st grade their speech was great. You are doing a great job getting her help this early.

I worked with the therapist to come up with activities. She made some copies for me to take home. Other than that, we didn't really do much special. I read to them a lot and pointed at pictures in the book and said the word and had them repeat it. I might have had some flashcards with pictures on it and used those.

Sorry I can't give you more specific advice.

M.

I have a friend who has a little boy with apraxia. He is now almost six and doing really well. He had a lot of speech issues initially and went through a few years of speech therapy. He didn't start until after 3, however. She would have a lot more to tell you. I am trying to think of a good way you can contact her without giving out her confidential information on this site. Let me know if you have any thoughts on that. She could be a great resource for you.

OMG - It always stuns me to hear other mom's looking for children w/apraxia , NOT just me.
My son has apraxia (he's 5 now) and he currently is enrolled in a special needs preschool where he is giving speech therapy and OT.
Is your daughter is 2 you should be able to ask your dr., for the # to Child & Family Connections and the state will cover speech therapy until she turns 3, then she'll be enrolled in school district preschool where her services will continue.
At home I just try to get him to talk to me if he wants something. I'll have him say "mom, I want whatever". It'll never come out a fluid sentence, but at least he's speaking words.
If your insurance covers speech therapy, take advantage of that. Mine doesn't. Speech therapy is not cheap.
Watch sesame street too, PBS is great for that + Super Why & World Word.
Plus the leapfrog toys w/the magnetic letters, they talk the pronounciation of each letter.
take care
C. (sahm mom of 3)

HI

Wow its rare I hear about someone else's child with apraxia. My son is now 7 he was diagnosed around 2. First of I think all cases are different some more sever than others. My son is still in special ed and still is hard to understand and also has some other learning disabilities. I think the best thing you can do for your child is speech therapy the more the better and be sure that the therapist knows about apraxia and how to treat it it is not the same as just a language delay . LIke I said each case is different but a good speech therapist will make a world of a difference and also look into your school distict I know that at 3 they can go to preschool and receive speech and ot. Some districts even have programs for children under 3 where they come out to your home. The more therapy the better. I wish you the best of luck. Let me know if you have any more questions.