Is there a link between dyspraxia and speech/vocabulary problems?

[Chopster]

ds1 (5) has dyspraxia and did have speech delay but appeared to catch up. So when he had a salt assessment after we moved the only thing they picked up on was an unusual choice of words and lack of vocabulary. However it seems to be getting worse, and I'm very confused by it. He just seems to forget very common nouns and is unable to articulate clearly. They are things he should know, such as a saucepan (big round shiny thing) and a jumper (yellow cardigan sort of thing). Is this likely to be due to his dyspraxia and what should I be doing about it?

[mccreadymum]

Chopster - I am no expert but I am pretty sure that my son has verbal dyspraxia. He is fine physically, but he has real problems pronouncing the ends of words - eg mum is "mu" (though for some reason he can say words ending in a vowel perfectly, eg mummy is fine). He also can't hold onto words, and you can see him making a real effort to recall words from his memory bank. He is only 4 so is younger than your DS, and is also ASD, but I think verbal dyspraxia might be an interesting one for you to look into, They seem to know more about it on US websites, and it's sometimes called Developmental Apraxia of Speech or DAS, I think. Whatever it is, your son sounds like he has only mild probs though. Good luck!

[magso]

Not an expert either but I think problems with working memory (such as recalling words) sometimes is a feature of developmental specific learning disabilities.

[Chopster]

he sounds like mr bean when he talks, but the salt didn't think he had pronunciation difficulties, though he has in the past. I sometimes wonder where it will all end.

He's had a very bad day at school, and I'm really not convinced he is just dyspraxic. He's been beaten up by a couple of kids (again). When I went to pick him up he was rolling around the floor (rest of the kids all ready with coats on listening to the teacher). Then when he was sent to get his coat he was coasting up and down the corridor on a trolley and nobody noticed.

He just doesn't seem to be in the real world!

[saggarmakersbottomknocker]

The ds of an online friend of mine has verbal dyspraxia Chopster. He had a referral to Nuffield Speech & Language who have helped him greatly.

[mccreadymum]

do you have a statement for your DS chopster? it sounds like your day has been awful - can you talk to the mums of those horrible kids or are they just as horrible??? big hug to you!

[Chopster]

thanks.

He only has an IEP atm, which does have a lot listed on it, but not sure it is enough. I haven't applied for a statement yet, I'm a bit worried bout putting him through yet more assessments. He only got the dx of dyspraxia a few weeks ago - that took long enough to get.