“Why does my child with apraxia of speech shut down during class and ‘refuse’ to do their work?” I often get asked this as an apraxia & individualized education plan (IEP) advocate. From my personal experience, I never refused to do work; my work wasn’t made accessible to me. So, I recommend parents and teachers to look out for the following things:
1.) The communication barrier. I greatly suffered academically when I couldn’t ask for follow-up help or clarification on what I was trying to learn. When we don’t know what we are working on, it can be challenging to engage with the coursework. Therefore, this can represent itself to others as ‘refusing’ to do the work. I highly recommend AAC for the communication barrier, as every human has the right to communication.
2.) Sensory needs. When my sensory needs were unmet, I was too overwhelmed to focus on my coursework. An emotionally dysregulated child can not learn, according to research. We must focus on the mental health of our students. I highly suggest sensory breaks, sensory toy items, sensory corners in the room, etc.
3.) Anxiety. People with apraxia have higher levels of anxiety, according to research. When you can’t say what you want to say on command and at the same rate as your peers, it can be anxiety provoking for us.
I suggest looking at all of these factors to rule out any potential factors. Also, if your student is also expecting to read, write, or spell— people with apraxia can have trouble with reading and spelling. We also want to rule out co-occurring conditions such as Dyslexia, ADHD, etc. I had difficulties with reading and spelling, and a multi-sensory approach to reading greatly benefited me, such as Orton Gillingham.
For the writing portion, Dyspraxia is another common co-occurring condition affecting handwriting. I also have Dysgraphia that affects my handwriting. Occupational therapy greatly benefited me in addressing goals to make the academic environment and coursework more accessible to me.
If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me by email at fightingformyvoice@gmail.com.
Much love,
– Jordan Christian LeVan
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