Nursery wants to talk - they think maybe dyspraxia. What do I do?

[DandyGilver]

Hi. My nursery manager took me aside today to mention some concerns that his key worker has with DS.

-balance
-easily distracted
-wanders around a lot and does not join in
-lack of eye contact

Having looked up some stuff on the web, other things ring a bell

-not being consistenty left or right handed
-difficulty pedalling a tricycle

So I wonder if they might be right. What do I do? What will they want to do?

Thanks

I now have an appointment with the Health Visitor to come to the house and observe DS.

Any ideas about what I should ask her?

Ask her what early support is about while you wait for appointment.

Dandy

might also be useful for the HV to observe ds in nursery - will give HV a fuller picture of how ds presents in both contexts. Personally I would say it's important because you don't always get a full picture in only one setting. I have known a number of dc where HV's seen them at home and said fine but when eventually seen in nursery....a different story.

Have nursery got access to an Area SENCO/Inclusion Teacher or similar? In our LA they offer support, advice and guidance to pre-schools, nurseries etc. about practical things to do to help, target setting for play plans and support for negotiating local authority proecedures for access to other services if appropriate. If you have it in your area you might also be able to access Portage. It's usually an open referral process (anyone can refer) but nursery should be able to find out about it from their link teacher. Sometimes HV know about it, sometimes they don't but ask him/her.

Thanks. Am making a list for Thursday.

Good idea - just list all the questions yo have or what you want to know. Feel free to make notes too in case they say things that you want to follow up yourself later.

How did it go?

It went OK, I think. Thanks for asking.

The Health Visitor did various puzzles with him, got him to kick a ball, tell her if people in cartoons were happy or sad, walk along a line with one foot right in front of another.

She says that if there is anything it is very mild but that if we want a referral to the community peadiatrician then she will support that.

He does seem to have a bit of a shortfall in the co ordination skils dept. But eye contact and concentration seems fine.

I think that we will ask for referral just to bottom out exactly what we are looking at and what we can do to help him.

The audiology referral is going ahead separately.

I need to see what the nursery Individual Action Plan says and then we will go forward from there.

Sounds positive :)

DD has dyspraxia/DCD, ASD and dyslexia. She has come on leaps and bounds with weekly OT (won at Tribunal) and has really developed the last year, so it is great that it is being investigated early as input really can help; we had a real struggle to get anyone to listen to us when we flagged up that DD was different.
Good luck and well done for getting someone interested early!

Had my first appointment with the consultant, she is confident that he is not autistic and no other development concerns other than with his balance. Most likely outcome is that he will be referred to occupational therapy so that he can be given some exercises.

We have also seen an audiologist and his hearing is fine. Although he does have some negative pressure in one ear.

So all good news. We see the consultant again and then will find out exactly what she recommends.

P.S. Have namechanged since starting the thread.

Glad things are moving along in the right direction. Occupational therapists are great, the majority of treatments are done through games and play, so often kids aren't even aware it's therapy.

Dandy glad to hear that if there is anything that it's mild. Keep plodding along and take all the help you can get, even the smallest things can make huge differences