What is dyspraxia? How does it impair development?

Developmental dyspraxia is an impairment or immaturity of the organisation of movement. It is an immaturity in the way that the brain processes information, which results in messages not being properly or fully transmitted.

It can create a clumsy child that is more uncoordinated, slower to walk and develop good motor and hand to eye skills.

Praxis
The term dyspraxia comes from the word praxis, which means 'doing, acting'. (The largest DIY retail hardware outlet is named Praxis.) Dyspraxia affects the planning of what to do and how to do it. It is associated with problems of perception, language and thought.

Dyspraxia is thought to affect up to ten per cent of the population but like many disorders the child may experience only minor disorder. Unfortunately, some children will experience severe symptoms but they are only two per cent.

Males v Females
Males are four times more likely to be affected than females. Dyspraxia sometimes runs in families and like other developmental disorders, the child may experience other related conditions. If you are concerned then simply seek the advice of a qualified consultant.

Name magic
Other names for dyspraxia include Developmental Co-ordination Disorder (DCD), Perceptuo-Motor Dysfunction, and Motor Learning Difficulties. It used to be known as Minimal Brain Damage and Clumsy Child Syndrome.

Statistically, it is likely that there is one child in every class of 30 children. We need to raise the awareness of this debilitating condition and make sure that everyone understands and knows how best to help this significant minority.