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Is anyone home edding a child with mild dyspraxia?

6 replies

kumquatsarethelonelyfruit · 24/11/2011 21:18

Hi,
We removed DS1 (nearly 6) from school in mid-Sept due to issues with his teacher. He has always had difficulty writing (inc holding his pen properly) and they were being 'very angry' (teacher's words) with him for refusing written work. He was kept in at lunchtimes and punished. He was also getting into trouble for poor listening and never changing for PE on time. We thought he was struggling and was unhappy so we removed him. He has been mush happier since and is making progress with his writing with me.

DS is actually very bright and could free read basic books at 2.5 and has an excellent understanding of science especially physics. He does find it hard to sit still and doesn't look at people when they speak to him. He is definitely not AS as he loves metaphorical language and is very cuddly etc.

Anyway, someone who turned out to be an occupational therapist pointed out to me today that his problems areas and also lack of self-organisation and dexterity (as well as other factors) suggested mild dyspraxia. I have looked it up online and he hits most of the checklist.

Anyway, I really don't want to take him to see anyone. He has epilepsy and a heart block and I just don't think he could take any more 'labels'. He is coming along well in his own way and I am sure he will get there in the end.

I was wondering if anyone else has gone down this route. Also how can we help his self-organisation, his constant leg-swinging and wriggling and his listening skills. The not looking at people thing is particularly bad as it affects his social interactions. He can do it if he is prompted or particularly interested but often just doesn't choose to do it. Any tips?

OP posts:
lilyfire · 24/11/2011 22:38

Hi I am not sure if you would want to label mild dyspraxia as 'special needs' exactly, but you could try this - www.he-special.org.uk (in an ideal world I would have converted that to a link, but somehow not happening today). They have a discussion forum.

toadnotfrog · 26/11/2011 15:35

I'm not suggesting your ds does have AS but being cuddly has nothing to do with whether a child has autism or not - my ds, like every other child I know with an ASD is extremely affectionate :)

My ds is also mildly dyspraxic with gross and fine motor issues - we use a PC or iPad for 'work' & encourage fine motor skills at a more basic level (painting/modelling/beading etc). We include masses of exercise in the day (walks, parks, soft play, swimming riding, trampoline, some wii games) - it reduces the amount of fidgeting. His organisational skills aren't bad (for a 5 year old!), we've always built 'what are we doing today' & 'what do we need for today' into routines. We use a token board for work & rewards, lots of people like visual time tables although they didn't work for us.

kumquatsarethelonelyfruit · 26/11/2011 16:21

Lots of good tips there. Thanks. Sorry, I didn't mean to offend regarding AS kids being non-affectionate. I wrongly thought that AS kids didn't like having their body space invaded. Sorry.

Is it common for dyspraxic kids to drift off in the middle of conversations? The O.T told us that that was what made her think he had dyspraxia. He is a poor listener too (have had his hearing checked).

OP posts:
nancy13 · 03/02/2012 21:49

The poor listening could be a sign of auditiry processing disorder...hows his speech? my DS has Dyspraxia & Aspergers and has word finding problems too, he knows what he wants to say but (sometimes has to repeat the first few words) gives his brain extra time to find the word he needs. He too drifts off mid conversation...but now I know why I'm ok with that.
We have had lots of input from Pead physio, OT, speech & launguage and the things they have suggested are begining to work...regarding the leg swinging & wriggling a sit & move wedge would give his body the feedback that it's craving (reduced proprioception) & maybe a tangle toy.
We are thinking of taking our DS out of school & home schooling him as I don't think the school he's at is giving him the extra help he needs to fulfill he true potential.

Tinuviel · 04/02/2012 16:13

DS1 is, according to OT, SALT and Clinical Psychologist 'absolutely fine'. Hmm However, he show various traits of Aspergers and dyspraxia and is under the 1st centile for handwriting. Quite what the OT thinks is causing that, I'm not sure. He has many of the traits you describe and we have been home edding him for 7.5 years. We have enough evidence to get him extra time in exams (which was what made me seek a diagnosis in the first place) but they won't actually diagnose anything specific. Hopefully the paed, who seems to be the only one taking my concerns seriously will know where to go next.

Re HE, it hasn't been a problem - we are quite structured but do quite a bit of English orally, in particular comprehension as well as Latin into English translation. The constant jiggling still gets on my nerves but I know he can't help it!!

CakeMixture · 05/02/2012 19:58

Hi Kumquat
I know zero about dyspraxia so cant help about that.
I do have a ds with AS though who hates cuddles unless on his terms (which is rare)
I just googled "metaphorical language" and found this quote on a wiki page - "People who are classified with Autistic Spectrum Disorder tend to communicate metaphorically rather than with common phrases"

So Im not commenting on whether your ds has ASD but certainly dont rule it out!
FWIW my ds loves talking in quotes from different books/cartoons and using different metaphors. But if you talk to him using one he normally gets confused (again its on his terms)
I once said "Granma might explode with anger about X" - he cried because he thought she really would explode Blush me for saying it!
Yet if its raining heavily he will gleefully declare "its raining cats and dogs, well obviously not literally Im just using a metaphor, just in case you thought I was being literal............" [witters on for several minutes]

All the best for your HE with your ds - Both my dc love being HE (most of the time!)

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