Children with Dyspraxia

Dyspraxia in the Pre-School Child

Indicators may include:

• History of lateness reaching milestones e.g. rolling over, sitting, walking and speaking
• May not be able to run, hop or jump
• Appears not to be able to learn anything instinctively but must be taught skills
• Poor at dressing
• Slow and hesitant in most actions
• Poor pencil grip
• Cannot do jigsaw or shape sorting games
• Art work is very immature
• Has no understanding of in / on / behind / in front of etc
• Unable to kick or catch a ball

Dyspraxia in the School Age Child

Indicators may include:

• All the problems of the pre-school child may still be present with little or no improvement
• PE is avoided
• The child does badly in class but significantly better on a one-to-one basis
• Attention span is poor and the child may react to stimuli without discrimination
• May have trouble with Maths, copying from the blackboard
• Writing is laborious and immature
• Unable to remember and / or follow instruction
• Generally poorly organised
• Commonly anxious and distractible
• Finds it difficult to keep friends or judge how to behave in company
• Difficulty sitting for long periods