Guest guest Posted July 7, 2010 Report Share Posted July 7, 2010 The short answer is, yes, swimming requires a LOT of motor planning & coordination! Hence why your son is having difficulty. In my experience, many kids have difficulty learning to swim. That is why they teach it in parts: blowing bubbles in water, then legs kicking, then arms reaching, then all together. Breathing is a foundational skill for speaking. It is the first one I work on with my clients! You can practice w/him by lying him down on the bed or floor, putting your hands on his belly (diaphragm) & teaching him to put air in his " balloon " (belly) via his nose, then to blow it out w/his mouth using an /h/ sound (quietly-no voicing). Remind him not to lift/use his shoulders to breathe. It will take lots of practice but he can get it. Once he does well on the floor (supine), then do the same standing w/his back on a wall. Next, progress to sitting. Don't move to fast! Kids w/apraxia tend to HOLD their breath! Remember, it's more motor planning. Practice belly breathing 1st. Then u can teach him mouth breathing for swimming. He should get the " belly " concept 1st so that he is using diaphragmatic breathing & not shallow breathing. Good luck! Warmest wishes, Barbara A , M.S., CCC-SLP,Executive Director, Help Me Speak, LLC 410-442-9791 www.helpmespeak.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2010 Report Share Posted July 7, 2010 Hi Barbara -  I have to say that Josh never held his breath until just recently - now he holds his breath while talking and, obviously, it is making the words very difficult to come out. Before recently, he would just talk quietly (again, obviously because of the breath-support thing) but now he's talking louder, just holding his breath!  I keep reminding him to " breath his words " but it doesn't always happen - got any other suggestions?  Also, I used to teach flute and would teach breathing exercises to my young students - having them " fill the balloons " in their tummy always worked but also, have them lay on their tummy on the floor or on all fours - it is physically impossible to breath from the shoulders in either of those positions. Also, if they lay on their back, have them put their hand on their tummy and watch it rise with each balloon!  Sherry and Josh From: Barbara <helpmespeak@...> Subject: Re: [ ] Swimming and apraxia? Date: Wednesday, July 7, 2010, 7:12 AM  The short answer is, yes, swimming requires a LOT of motor planning & coordination! Hence why your son is having difficulty. In my experience, many kids have difficulty learning to swim. That is why they teach it in parts: blowing bubbles in water, then legs kicking, then arms reaching, then all together. Breathing is a foundational skill for speaking. It is the first one I work on with my clients! You can practice w/him by lying him down on the bed or floor, putting your hands on his belly (diaphragm) & teaching him to put air in his " balloon " (belly) via his nose, then to blow it out w/his mouth using an /h/ sound (quietly-no voicing). Remind him not to lift/use his shoulders to breathe. It will take lots of practice but he can get it. Once he does well on the floor (supine), then do the same standing w/his back on a wall. Next, progress to sitting. Don't move to fast! Kids w/apraxia tend to HOLD their breath! Remember, it's more motor planning. Practice belly breathing 1st. Then u can teach him mouth breathing for swimming. He should get the " belly " concept 1st so that he is using diaphragmatic breathing & not shallow breathing. Good luck! Warmest wishes, Barbara A , M.S., CCC-SLP,Executive Director, Help Me Speak, LLC 410-442-9791 www.helpmespeak.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2010 Report Share Posted July 7, 2010 I don't know if it's apraxia or just kids getting used to the water. My son Tanner was diagnosed severe/profound apraxia when younger (hyptotonia -motor deficits in the body etc) but we just kept putting him in swim lessons and as I recall he took a bit longer but he eventually was able to master more and more. I believe he didn't have as many kids his age as most in his class were younger -but I didn't care and Tanner didn't seem to notice as he was little too. Like anything it can take a bit longer with apraxia and the motor planning but that doesn't mean you'll teach swimming that much different than any other -I mean I know for sure for Tanner he went to a regular swim class and again eventually picked it up. One thing that we got Tanner used to as soon as possible was putting his head under water...that is a huge one for any kid =but for Tanner and I think lots of our kids it's even bigger for some reason. How you may ask did we do this? You know those throw toys that sink to the bottom? We started in shallow water and just kept getting them into deeper and deeper water. Tanner has always been competitive and we made a fun game out of it of course " who can get the most? " and would throw most right near Tanner Tanner knows how to swim great now and has for years -and in fact now that we are in Florida he swims sometimes daily- he's right now jet skiing and rafting in our backyard -and has no fear of going under and in fact deliberately jumps in water and goes under! Times do change! So again keep in mind that while apraxia may affect this area too...it doesn't mean that a child with apraxia can't master the breath control needed if provided a bit more time and patience. I recall that is exactly what Tanner's instructors provided (and yes I shared about his apraxia with them...they were not professionals for special needs but they did GREAT!!!) It's funny because when you are used to paying for therapy and then you sign your child up for something like swim lessons and hear the price you're like " for the entire season? That's what I typically pay for an hour!! " to yourself...I mean you don't want them raising the price or anything!!! Below are some learning to swim and breath basics courtesy of Youtube Pop up Roll over Rhythmic breathing How to get out of pool if they fall in ===== Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.