Autism and Childhood Apraxia of Speech

Book excerpt: Karen Massey is a highly specialist Speech and Language Therapist who is interested in sharing positive clinical experiences that can help others. This book focuses on the co-occurrence of Autism and Childhood Apraxia of Speech (also known as Developmental Verbal Dyspraxia in the UK).Find out how a group of children, each with both Autism and Childhood Apraxia of Speech, moved from being pre-verbal right through to speaking in sentences. Faced with the frustrations of not being able to speak even though they had the desire to talk to others, the children could not express their thoughts and feelings. Explore some of the background research, hear the children's personal stories and learn about the methods used to help each child along the journey. Discover how you can help children with similar needs to develop their speech, whether using their own voice or with the help of an Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) device.