"He may never write his own name"

[PuddleJumper1]

This is in the newest report from Ed-Psy. Ds will be 11 in a few months. He has a long list of diagnoses which include sensory issues, motor planning and fine motor delays. Dh and I are not ready to throw in the towel on writing yet (Actually what hubby said was "What do they know?" ;)).

 

His history has been one of very slow but increased progress. No one thought he'd walk but he did at almost 4. No one thought he'd talk but in just the last 6 months I've become "mamama" and dh is "dadada" and he calls one of his therapists "mememe" for Megan. He is kid that must be dealt with out of the box.

 

Fine motor-wise some of things he can do: string small beads, do wooden peg puzzles, stack blocks, coins in a bank, buttons open and closed(emergent skill). He can make vertical and horizontal lines - they are not pretty but he can do it with verbal cues when he wants to. He does know the letters of his name - he can pick out the foam or wooden letters when asked.

 

So we're not conceeding defeat - we just can't. You ladies have a wealth of information under your belts so give me your best ideas :001_smile: Nothing is too out of the ordinary for us. We practically have an entire OT/Preschool room here so we've got just about everything at our disposal.

 

Thanks

Edited October 27, 2012 by StillLearning

[FLDebbie]

I'll preface this by saying I have no first-hand experience with this type of issue so take this FWIW.

 

I have heard from parents that even if others have "given up" on their children, that the parents refused to and the kids improved. People can do amazing things when surrounded by love and support. It sounds like your son has already done things that the doctors have said he couldn't. :grouphug: to you for what seems like it's a tremendous job.

[merry gardens]

One idea is to practice writing letters in a pan containing a tactile material, like salt, sand or corn meal. I use corn meal in a rectangle cake pan, but some people use salt boxes. You can even take it to the park or beach and just write in the sand with a finger. You can write it first then show him trace how to trace what you did.

 

You can also create or buy sand paper letters. That compliments nicely with the salt box. First they trace the sand paper letter(s), then they move onto drawing the letter(s) with their finger.

 

We also created letters with play dough or clay. Roll the dough into long tubes, like the lines of the letters. Then shape the letters out of those lines. Scented play dough is my favorite. You can buy scented or make your own with mint or other flavored extract from the cooking supplies. Cookie dough can also be used the same way, then baked and eaten.

 

I used these ideas to teach the alphabet to my severely dyslexic son. Just another thought, does your child have a short name or a nickname or is there an abbreviation for his name? Three or four letter names are easier to learn than longer names.

[Ottakee]

Never say NEVER.

 

My 17dd just learned to tie her shoes last year. Her OT had said that they were dropping it as a goal as she just wasn't making progress (and I agreed to drop it as we hadn't made any progress with it at home either) and then suddenly one day dd puts on a pair of hiking books and TIES them herself. I asked her if her OT taught her and she said, "no, I learned myself"......so after 10 years of trying to teach the skill it finally clicked.

 

Have you looked at Handwriting Without Tears program? Even starting with the PreK program and moving along as needed.

[AliR]

The best gift we can give our children is not to give up on them. Experts are so often pessimistic about outcomes, as they feel they are obliged to keep expectations low to avoid disappointment.

 

For early writing skills we used a house painting brush with water to 'paint' very large letters on the concrete path. You can start by doing it with your hand guiding their hand, and then move to working alongside each other. As we progressed, the brush got smaller and so did the letters. Forming letters in wet sand with a finger was good, and then we progressed to using a stick.

 

I also second Handwriting Without Tears. The very earliest level has a chalkboard and little sponges to make the letters. It is great fun too.

[SKL]

My dd was pretty hopeless about forming letters, but vision therapy made a big difference for her. They taught her to focus not on where the line starts, or where the pencil tip currently is, but on where the line is supposed to end.

 

There are books with large raised letters that your child can trace again and again with his fingers. This helps some kids.

 

I've also read that practicing on a whiteboard can help as it involves less friction.

[PeterPan]

http://www.halo-soma.org/main.php?sess_id=a0499b6ffc1439186afa8bc5d959e344 You might also look at the Rapid Prompting method. It's not the same as PROMPT for speech therapy. Rapid Prompting is a teaching method. There are some videos on the website. It gives you a way to teach a non-verbal child. I've talked with someone who used it with her similar-age non-verbal boy with great effect. I got to read the book a while back, and it's quite good.

 

If his speech delay is due to motor control, you could look into PROMPT. http://www.prompinstitute.org

 

And your husband is right. You never know where it will all end up! :)

[Laura Corin]

These predictions can be wrong. One-on-one tuition at home can make a big difference.

 

I was told when Calvin was five that he would never write adequately. The expectation was that he would use a keyboard full time by the age of ten.

 

With a lot of slow work at home he has disproved the prediction. His writing is not beautiful and it's still a bit slow, but it is just fine.

 

Laura

[lmrich]

Keep the faith. Your attitude can be the difference. :grouphug: you are an amazing couple.

[AmyontheFarm]

I was told my son would never be at grade level in any subject and wouldn't complete grade 6 math before high school.

 

He is in Saxon math 5/4 and is just in grade 6 this year, and is picking up steam! The professionals don't know everything!

[PuddleJumper1]

I'll preface this by saying I have no first-hand experience with this type of issue so take this FWIW.

 

I have heard from parents that even if others have "given up" on their children, that the parents refused to and the kids improved. People can do amazing things when surrounded by love and support. It sounds like your son has already done things that the doctors have said he couldn't. :grouphug: to you for what seems like it's a tremendous job.

 

Thanks for the hug and encouragement Debbie :)

 

 

I used these ideas to teach the alphabet to my severely dyslexic son. Just another thought, does your child have a short name or a nickname or is there an abbreviation for his name? Three or four letter names are easier to learn than longer names.

 

Your ideas are all wonderful. Thanks! His name is only 5 letters but we often call him by his first and middle intial. Great idea on focusing on a shorter name.

 

Never say NEVER.

 

My 17dd just learned to tie her shoes last year. .

 

Have you looked at Handwriting Without Tears program? Even starting with the PreK program and moving along as needed.

 

:party: That happy dance is for your daughter! Love to hear stories like hers!

 

You reminded me that I have HWT preschool here buried in my school room. I bought it many years ago at a convention before we realized just what we were up against. I'm going to dig it out and give it a go.

 

The best gift we can give our children is not to give up on them. Experts are so often pessimistic about outcomes, as they feel they are obliged to keep expectations low to avoid disappointment.

 

For early writing skills we used a house painting brush with water to 'paint' very large letters on the concrete path.

 

He loves water and I just bought him some large palm held brushes the other day. He'd love this activity :001_smile:

 

There are books with large raised letters that your child can trace again and again with his fingers. This helps some kids.

 

I've also read that practicing on a whiteboard can help as it involves less friction.

 

We have books with large letters but not raised. I could add textures and such to them. One side of his easel is a whiteboard. We haven't had it out in ages.

 

http://www.halo-soma.org/main.php?sess_id=a0499b6ffc1439186afa8bc5d959e344 You might also look at the Rapid Prompting method. It's not the same as PROMPT for speech therapy. Rapid Prompting is a teaching method. There are some videos on the website. It gives you a way to teach a non-verbal child. I've talked with someone who used it with her similar-age non-verbal boy with great effect. I got to read the book a while back, and it's quite good.

 

If his speech delay is due to motor control, you could look into PROMPT. www.prompinstitute.org

 

And your husband is right. You never know where it will all end up! :)

 

Thank you for the Rapid Prompting link! I'm going to spend some time looking into this. I am always looking for new methods of working with him from a non-verbal perspective. His many doctors really have no idea why he is non-verbal. It is unique in his syndrome peer group (most are delayed but speak by about 4-7 yrs - then then they never stop) He is believed to have motor planning issues along with possible apraxia and possible genetic links to his lack of speech.

Edited October 29, 2012 by StillLearning

[PuddleJumper1]

These predictions can be wrong. One-on-one tuition at home can make a big difference.

 

I was told when Calvin was five that he would never write adequately. The expectation was that he would use a keyboard full time by the age of ten.

 

With a lot of slow work at home he has disproved the prediction. His writing is not beautiful and it's still a bit slow, but it is just fine.

 

Laura

 

I was told my son would never be at grade level in any subject and wouldn't complete grade 6 math before high school.

 

He is in Saxon math 5/4 and is just in grade 6 this year, and is picking up steam! The professionals don't know everything!

 

Laura and Amy - Thanks so much for sharing. It is so encouraging to hear of other kids proving their predictions wrong. :001_smile:

 

Keep the faith. Your attitude can be the difference. :grouphug: you are an amazing couple.

 

Thanks for the :grouphug: and the encouragement.

[PeterPan]

Thank you for the Rapid Prompting link! I'm going to spend some time looking into this. I am always looking for new methods of working with him from a non-verbal perspective. His many doctors really have no idea why he is non-verbal. It is a unique in his syndrome peer group (most are delayed but speak by about 4-7 yrs - then then they never stop) He is believed to have motor planning issues along with possible apraxia and possible genetic links to his lack of speech.

 

If they're thinking his speech is apraxia (that he has communicative intent but can't get the motor control to work), then check out PROMPT. You would definitely want someone certified if at all possible. The therapist we use is working with a teenage boy with autism who was totally non-verbal at 12 when he started. He had been taught by his mother (homeschooled) using the Rapid Prompting method, so he could communicate, learn, using the boards, etc. He just couldn't TALK. He decided that was what he wanted, so they started looking for answers. It has been a really long, hard slog, because of course that's some severe apraxia. Last I heard, (this was after 1-2 years of therapy, similar aged boy), he was beginning to initiate his own thoughts in simple sentences. So he's been speaking with the PROMPTS (which they can teach you to implement at home) but then to be able to initiate, that's a huge deal.

 

The PROMPT Institute I linked you to is where you find a PROMPT therapist. There's level 1,2, Bridging, Certified, and Instructor. Ours is certified and becoming an instructor. People drive from 3 states to use her, and actually we drive 2 1/2 hours each way. It's unbelievable though to sit down with someone who can actually help them get their speech out.