Month: July 2006

Big Picture Thinking for Cerebellar Disorder and Cerebral Palsy

By Pam Marshalla

Q: My granddaughter, Stephanie, is 4-1/2 years old and diagnosed with apraxia. She was born with the cerebellum not fully developed and is classified as having cerebral palsy. Her speech is non-existent, although I can get her to make a variety of sounds in different pitches. In class she seems not to be attending at all. The SLP reported that until Stephanie can let her touch her face and put a spatula on her tongue, she can do little. She…

Older Child With Apraxia and Dysarthria

By Pam Marshalla

Speaking of Apraxia by Leslie Lindsey, second edition

Q: I am a speech-language pathologist at a children’s hospital. I have a boy that I see for therapy who is severely (whole body) apraxic. He has been coming to therapy for years at this hospital and has been through multiple therapists. He is intelligible and we are currently working on /l/ and /l/-blends. He substitutes n/l. I feel like he has reached a plateau. He also receives therapy in school. He has most sounds except vowels, diphthongs, some blends,…