Kekoa's Journey With Childhood Apraxia of Speech: August 2011

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

New Words To Add!!!

I think its been a month since I last posted what words Koa has in his vernacular. He's building... slowly, but surely. He's getting more and more words that make us laugh, make us cry and yes, even make us go, "HUH?!" But then we laugh when we figure it out... it's so cute.

Here is his list from last month to recap:

1. Mama (my favorite!)
2. Dada
3. Ses (for Sissy)
4. Dih (for Dini the Dog)
5. Dah (for dog)
6. Eeya (for ear)
7. Eeee- tuh (for eat)
8. Che (for chip... how he learned that one I'll never know)
9. Shhzzz (for shoes)
10. Pih (for Pig)
11. Peez (for Please)

New Ones To Add:

12. ME! (As evident in the video below!)
13. No (usually said repeatedly, which is always cute)
14. Moo (as in cow sounds)
15. Moe (for more)
16. Pee (for feet)
17. Beebee (for baby)
18. Bah (for ball)
19. Har (for car)
20. Tat (for cat)
21. Kah-kah (for Kaukau, Hawaiian Pidgin for "Eat")
22. Bah (for bath)
23. Shi (for fish)
24. Cheyah (for train)

To update, there are more words that we have heard Koa say, but again, I have to reiterate that they haven't been consistent, so we can't count them just yet. These words listed are words that have been consistent and when he says them, he says them with the correct meaning and we understand him.

Unfortunately, there are some sounds that Koa seems to have lost, one of them being the "p" sound." He can say it for some words like, "feet" but in "please" it comes out as "eeeeze." Sometimes they come in and its "peeze" again, sometimes its gone. Again, more work to add to the pile.

Also, notice that a lot of the words are either the first sound or part of the word, not the whole word/ sound. This will come with tweaking as part of Apraxia is the missing of phonemes... Koa's getting there, and we're understanding him. It really is a wonder to see how far he's come thus far. We are so proud of him!

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Koa Man aka "SuperMan"

Auntie Kira sent the most amazing and inspiration note to Kekoa telling him how proud she was of all the progress he has made.

I know that Koa has been working really hard here at home and at Lucid with his SLP... not to mention also during his EI sessions with his Regional Center teacher. The frustration has diminished, but I can see that at times he still gets upset because he really is telling us something, we just still can't decipher his sounds. But at the same time, Koa has also gotten really patient with having to repetitively try again and again in order to communicate what he's wanting or showing.

Auntie Kira, the amazing Auntie that she is, recognized all of that... even from 300 miles away. :)

In addition to a beautiful letter she sent him (and Mommy and Daddy too!) she also sent him a little reward for all of his hard work... a Superman t-shirt, to show to the rest of the world the superhero he really is.

Thank you Auntie Kira!!!! We love you so much!!!

Definition of Apraxia per CASANA

Childhood Apraxia of Speech is a neurological motor speech disorder. For reasons not yet fully understood, children with apraxia of speech have great difficulty planning and producing the precise, highly refined and specific series of movements of the tongue, lips, jaw and palate that are necessary for intelligible speech. Apraxia of speech is sometimes called verbal apraxia, developmental apraxia of speech, or verbal dyspraxia. No matter what name is used, the most important concept is the root word "praxis." Praxis means planned movement. To some degree or another, a child with the diagnosis of apraxia of speech has difficulty programming and planning speech movements. Apraxia of speech is a specific speech disorder.

The act of speech begins with an intention to communicate. Next, an idea forms, outlining what the speaker wants to say. The words for the desired message are put in the correct order, using the correct grammar. Each of the words are comprised of a specific sequence of sounds (also called phonemes)and syllables that must be ordered together. All of this information is translated from an idea and information about order of sounds into a series of highly coordinated motor movements of the lips, tongue, jaw, and soft palate.

The brain must tell the muscles of these “articulators” the exact order and timing of movements so that the words in the message are properly articulated. Finally, the muscles must work properly with enough strength and muscle tone to perform the movements needed for speech.

In typically developing speech, children make word attempts and get feedback from others and from their own internal systems regarding how “well” the words they produced matched the ones that they wanted to produce. Children use this information the next time they attempt the words and essentially are able to “learn from experience.” Usually once syllables and words are spoken repeatedly, the speech motor act becomes automatic. Speech motor plans and programs are stored in the brain and can be accessed effortlessly when they are needed. Children with apraxia of speech have difficulty in this aspect of speech. It is believed that children with CAS may not be able to form or access speech motor plans and programs or that these plans and programs are faulty for some reason.