| Parents understandably want their child not only to be | | | | 2. |
| able to understand them, but to be able to | | | | The third factor which will affect language |
| communicate with them too. Interaction is fundamental | | | | development is direct injury to the left hemisphere of |
| to humanity, - in a way I think it defines who and what | | | | the cortex, around the regions known as Wernicke's |
| we are. We are the only species which uses the | | | | area (responsible for our ability to understand |
| symbolism of language and when a human being | | | | language) and Broca's area, (responsible for our ability |
| cannot, it causes immense distress. So why does the | | | | to produce language). The connotations for injury in |
| language and communication development of children | | | | these areas is obvious and does not need to be |
| with cerebral palsy so often fail? Let's examine some | | | | discussed in depth here. |
| of the major reasons. | | | | 3. |
| (1). Many difficulties with the development of language | | | | When a child suffers a brain injury, invariably the ability |
| and communication begin very early on, when the | | | | of his brain to process information is slowed down. As |
| parents bring the child home from hospital after birth. | | | | a consequence he may simply not be able to process |
| The parents being so weighed down by the worry | | | | the content of meaning of of interaction quickly enough |
| and the crippling stress of having to cope with their | | | | and if he does, he might be unable to respond quickly |
| child's unexpected problems and reeling from the | | | | enough. This can be very frustrating for a child who is |
| shock of being informed that their child has this | | | | desperately attempting to interact as he quite simply |
| problem known as 'cerebral palsy,' do not then interact | | | | keeps missing his turn and as a consequence, in |
| with their child as they would have done had he been | | | | frustration he may simply stop trying. |
| an uninjured baby. They may miss the communicative | | | | The question is, what can we do to assist the |
| signals given out by the child and may not supply baby | | | | language development of the child with cerebral palsy, |
| with input appropriate to the development of language. | | | | or other types of brain dysfunction, such as autism, |
| This is no fault of the parents, who are invariably doing | | | | dyspraxia, learning difficulties and specific language |
| a heroic job in caring for their baby's needs and helping | | | | impairment? |
| him to survive despite sometimes overwhelming | | | | What we do is to treat these four major factors |
| difficulties; - it is merely a set of circumstances | | | | sequentially. |
| produced by the extremely stressful situation in which | | | | First of all, we take parents and their child back to the |
| the parents find themselves. | | | | patterns of initial interaction, which they have possibly |
| So, having missed the early communicative | | | | missed. We teach parents to look for communicative |
| opportunities provided by normal parent – child | | | | signals given by their child and we teach them how to |
| interactions, baby's language and communicative skills | | | | respond to those signals in order to give |
| fail to develop. Instead, baby sometimes completely | | | | encouragement to their child to repeat them and to |
| fails to develop a communicative understanding with | | | | further expand them. Very often, these simple |
| Mum and Dad, with the consequence that an | | | | procedures can 'kick start' language development and |
| understanding of language fails to develop. In the | | | | we can then guide the child through the next stages. |
| absence of an understanding of language, the child | | | | Secondly we address any sensory distortions the child |
| also fails to produce language. In other cases, where | | | | might be experiencing. This might mean the |
| some appropriate but incomplete interaction has taken | | | | construction of an 'adapted developmental |
| place between parents and baby, a partial | | | | environment' as a temporary measure in order that |
| understanding of language develops, with little or no | | | | we might train the parts of the brain which are |
| production of language. | | | | responsible for sensory processing to 're-tune' their |
| | | | activity to a more normal level. Again this can often |
| 1. | | | | provide a boost to language development. |
| Another reason for the failure of language to develop | | | | The third problem, which involves direct injury to the |
| is because the child is experiencing sensory distortions. | | | | areas of the brain involved with language |
| The brain injury which produces what we understand | | | | comprehension and production can be more |
| as cerebral palsy can adversely affect the functioning | | | | problematic, but is certainly not hopeless. The reason |
| of several structures within the brain, which are | | | | these areas of the brain are not functioning correctly is |
| responsible for the processing of incoming sensory | | | | the fact that out of the millions of neural networks |
| information from the environment. Obviously we all | | | | involved with these functions have lost cells due to |
| know that successful language development is | | | | injury. Therefore individual networks are operating |
| dependent upon successful auditory development, | | | | without their full complement of brain cells. The effect |
| quite simply if the child's ability to process sound is | | | | of this is that they operate less efficiently and |
| poor, then his language development will be poor. - If | | | | language comprehension and production is constrained. |
| his ability to process sounds is non – existent, his | | | | We can however use stimulatory techniques to train |
| language development is likely to be non existent. It is | | | | these networks to operate more efficiently and can |
| quite simply a matter of successful sensory reception | | | | utilise the concept of sprouting (dendrites forming new |
| leading to successful motor output (language is an | | | | connections, thereby enhancing neural network funtion), |
| output skill after all). - In other words it is a sensory – | | | | and the concept of neurogenesis (the production of |
| motor loop, the successful development of the motor | | | | new brain cells), in order to encourage neural networks |
| part of the loop being dependent upon the successful | | | | to recruit new cells. |
| development of the sensory part of the loop. So if we | | | | The final problem, the one of slower speed of |
| have a child who hears nothing, we are likely to face | | | | processing is perhaps the most easily addressed. |
| NINO situation (Nothing in – nothing out), or if we | | | | Quite simply, children must be given more time to |
| have a child who is experiencing sensory distrotions, | | | | process information, more time to plan a response and |
| whose hearing is hypersensitive, or hyposensitive, or | | | | more time to respond. In this way they will not miss |
| who is experiencing difficulties in regulating his auditory | | | | their turn in an interaction and will not withdraw into |
| attention, we could well be facing a CICO situation, | | | | themselves in frustration at their failure. |
| (Chaos in, - chaos out). | | | | |