Dyspraxia By Gavin Reid University of Edinburgh

Slide 1

Some factors:

  • Left hemisphere dysfunctions - association with language
  • inter-hemispheric collaboration deficit - corpus callosum disorder
  • poor bi-lateral integration
  • lack of established hand dominance
  • problems with direction and orientation
  • timing, rhythm and sequencing difficulties
  • low muscle tone
  • poor co-contraction - controlling movement
  • clumsy inflexible movement
  • persistence of some primitive reflexes
  • unclear hand preference
  • avoidance of midline crossing

Slide 2

Key Areas:

Generally speaking the key areas of intervention are:

  • Social skills training
  • Language development programs
  • Perceptual training
  • Developing co-ordination
  • Improving literacy and numeracy skills

Slide 3-5

Sensors:

  • Tactile receptor
    Cells in skin send information to brain
  • Vestibular Receptor
    found in inner ear- body movement in space - automatically co-ordinated movements of eyes, head and body
  • Proprioceptive System
    awareness of body position - enables us to do familiar actions such as fastening buttons without looking
  • This helps body adjust to changes in environment - e.g. walking over uneven ground

Slide 5-9

Intervention:

  • Physical skills - stage by stage approach
  • differentiated P.E. activities - materials, groups, activities, praise
  • fine motor co-ordination -beads threading, string games, tracing, copying
  • handwriting
  • reading - eye tracking
  • memory and attention
  • social integration - playground staff
  • self-esteem - classroom responsibility
  • early identification - and intervention
  • a structured handwriting programe should be used each day, even for a short time each day
  • the important point is that it should be used consistently on a daily basis
  • multi-sensory methods and practice in pre-writing skills such as beads threading, shape and pattern copying, tracing, colouring in, and writing letters in sand
  • children should be encouraged to verbalise the nature and direction of strokes while tracing and drawing individual letters
  • children should be encouraged to repeat back key points
  • and talk through tasks as their own voice will help to direct their motor movements
  • this can also help to serve as a useful memory aid

Slide 10

Information: