Signs that your child might be dealing with Dyspraxia

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Dyspraxia also known as Developmental Coordination Disorder is a motor disorder which affects gross and fine motor skills in infancy and early childhood. It is not a disease and if properly managed the symptoms can improve over time. A child who has dyspraxia will need the services of an occupational therapist. They may also present with other challenges such as behavioural, emotional and social difficulties. This is mainly because the reflexes in the body associated with dyspraxia also control some other sensory reactions which together can cause a barrier to a child’s ability to learn or behave appropriately – hence why it is a form specific learning difficulty. Common conditions which may exist alongside dyspraxia include ADHD, ASD and dyslexia.

***Gross motor skills means knowing how to make use of the large body parts and muscles for movement and coordination e.g running, crawling, swimming, walking.
*** Fine motor skills involves knowing how to move and use the smaller body parts and muscles e.g writing, cutting with a scissors, using cutlery, buttoning a shirt/top.

Below are things to look out for in children which can possibly suggest the presence of Dyspraxia:

1. Consistent delay in reaching developmental milestones such as those relating to head/ body control and movement as well as hand/eye coordination.

2. Lack of core body strength e.g.
a. When a child can’t seem to hold themselves upright while standing (Floppy posture)
b. When a child can’t seem to stand by themselves without leaning on someone or something.
c. Where a child has difficulty walking even a short distance without needing to sit or rest because they don’t have the strength to support that action.

3. Poor Balance e.g.
a. When a slight nudge might result into a fall
b. Where small tasks requiring balance are proving difficult e.g. balancing on one leg in order to pull trousers off.

4. Poor Coordination e.g.
a. When a child seems to always bump into things even when they are obvious.
b. When a child has difficulty navigating corners or avoiding obstacles or has limited spatial awareness.

5. Poor concentration, hypersensitivity to touch and or sound, limited listening skills coupled with difficulty in following instructions.
Please note that this is not an exhaustive list and is by no way a diagnosis. Please discuss all child health issues with a paediatrician.

#BeAware

You are your child’s first role model- special needs or not!

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Lead by example
Teach
Model
Nurture
Groom
Show love
Show understanding
Be compassionate
Encourage positive behaviour and attitude
Have faith in self

Don’t be the the person in this picture
Don’t raise your child to be the person in this picture
It takes conscious efforts and is certainly more difficult if the child has special needs but it is doable.

N.B If your child is showing early signs of aggressive behaviour please talk to your pediatrician. A lot of conditions such as Conduct Disorder can be managed with early intervention.

#BeAware

Specific Learning Difficulties

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As your children start to grow, you may notice that they are struggling with certain areas of their learning. Sometimes, this may be as a result of varied learning pace. Other times, it may be as a result of other difficulties associated with the child’s ability to learn. Specific learning difficulties refer to a number of conditions that affect the way a child processes input information and converts this into specific action or output. These conditions cannot be cured but can be managed effectively and people with these conditions can go on to live independent and successful lives.
 
#BeAware and show empathy.
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How to make learning fun for children with special needs

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All children learn at different paces, and it is not uncommon to find that special needs children can take a bit longer to learn basic concepts. This is because of the way and rate at which they process information. Notwithstanding this, we want to ensure that just like every other child, children with special needs are able to have fun despite their challenges. For kids, learning is better when it is fun, but developmental challenges can sometimes pose a barrier to this. To overcome this challenge, we must be able to do things a bit differently. Although, it might result in more effort but it is worth every bit of that effort. If your objective is teaching, then your mission is not accomplished until learning has occurred.

These are 5 useful and practical tips to make learning fun for children with special needs:

  1. Use the things they love or are obsessed with to teach them new concepts. This can help make the concept easier to grasp. If a child is obsessed with cars, you use the cars to teach imagination, feelings and emotions for a start and then transfer the concept to people. You can even use it to teach simple maths concepts (additions, subtractions, multiplications and division).
  2. Use lots of visuals and practical displays. This makes it easier to relate to what is being taught as imagination sometimes can be a challenge.
  3. Divide what needs to be learnt into smaller bits so that it is not overwhelming. Remember that for a child with special needs, it doesn’t matter if the learning is at snail speed as long as it doesn’t stop.
  4. Embrace the use of technology. The preferred way of teaching is not necessarily the best way of teaching. A child who hates music but loves computers can learn music using computer software.
  5. Lastly empathy! How does empathy help you may ask? Children can sense when teaching them feels like a burden to you. So put yourself in the child’s shoes and just have fun together- no judgement.