What is Childhood Apraxia of Speech?
Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) is a motor speech disorder in which the child has difficulty planning and producing the speech movements needed for clear communication. The child knows what he/she wants to say but has difficulty producing the sounds in the proper sequence for clear speech.
Signs of CAS in Very Young Children
- Limited babbling with very few sounds
- Inconsistent consonant and vowel productions
- Difficulty imitating sounds even when they can produce them spontaneously
- May produce words or sounds that are not typical for their developmental level
- Speech that is often unclear even to familiar listeners
Signs of CAS in Older Children
- Inconsistent production of words (may pronounce the same word differently each time)
- Difficulty with multisyllabic words
- Difficulty sequencing motor movements for speech
- Speech that deteriorates as length and complexity of utterance increases
- Awareness of their own speech errors and frustration with their speech difficulties
- Possible associated difficulties with oral motor movements
- Difficulty with rhythm and intonation patterns
Treatment Approaches
Motor Learning: Intense, focused practice using sensory feedback and cueing strategies to establish motor patterns for speech.
Sensory Input: Multi-sensory approaches including visual, auditory, and tactile cues to help the child establish and refine motor speech patterns.
Rhythm and Prosody: Use of rhythm, intonation, and melodic patterns to support motor speech planning and production.
Specialized Training
Therapists trained in evidence-based approaches for CAS including Kaufman Speech Praxis Treatment, Visual Phonics, and PROMPT (Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets).