By Pam Marshalla
Q: My daughter is almost 4 and her speech is rarely understood by anyone outside of our family. While my daughter absolutely loves her therapist and has made some progress, she has been stuck at a plateau for a while. My daughter is very bright and has a high level of understanding and of vocabulary. However, she never says her word endings, many letters are omitted, she talks in a very rapid rate, S is always slurred, and she can’t…
By Pam Marshalla
Q: Is it wise to talk to a preschool child with childhood apraxia about their disorder? I never tell little kids that they have a disorder. I let them know that they are speaking very well, that they are still learning, and that I am thrilled that they are speaking as well as they are. Often I imitate back to the child what he said and how he said it, then I model for him how to say it better….
By Pam Marshalla
Q: My preschool client with apparent childhood apraxia is not willing to participate and often walks away from or gets annoyed with therapy plans and procedures. What should I do? He sounds like most of the kids on my caseload. Childhood apraxia comes with its pure stubbornness at times. But I don’t think that “behavior” itself is always the issue. There is a reason for the stubborn behavior. What I usually see with preschool kids like this is that they…
