19 Appendices

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Appendix A - Common Features Present in Children with DCD

Recognising children who have difficulty with movement and with specific aspects of learning

Developmental Co-ordination Disorder explained

Developmental Co-ordination Disorder

What is DCD – It is an impairment, an immaturity, or disorganisation of movement. Associated with this there may be problems with language, eye movements, perception, thought, specific learning difficulty, personality and behaviour, and variability.

Other Names – Clumsy Child Syndrome, Perseptuo-motor Dysfunction, Minimal Brain Dysfunction, Motor-learning Difficulty, Sensory-integrative Dysfunction, Spatial Problems, Visuo-motor Difficulties or more specifically Dysparaxia or Dyslexia.

Movement – Gross and fine motor skills are unintelligible in early years. Language may be impaired or late to develop.

Eye Movements – There may be difficulty with controlling movements of the eyes to follow a moving object or difficulty looking quickly and effectively from object to object. This may effect eye/hand coordination.

Perception – There is poor registration and interpretation of the messages that the senses convey, and difficulty in translating those messages into appropriate actions.

Thought – The child may have normal intelligence, but have great difficulty in planning and organising thoughts. Those with moderate learning difficulties may have these problems to a greater extent.

Specific Learning Difficulty – There may be problems with reading; writing; spelling; reversals e.g. formation of numbers/letters, or reverses order of letters in words; numbers e.g. rote learning.

Personality and Behaviour – They may display behaviour problems, e.g. restless and lacking controls, and/or unhappiness, loneliness, poor self-esteem, lack of confidence, or behaviour problems due to frustration. Secondary emotional problems may develop.

Variability – Children have “good days and bad days” where they can do things better than at other times.

If you think your child is excessively clumsy, discuss it!

Where do I go for help?

Pre-School – Talk to your GP and Health Visitor. A referral should be made to a community paediatrician at the Child Health Dept. Assessment can then be made by an occupational therapist, a physiotherapist, a speech and language therapist or a psychologist, whichever is deemed appropriate.

School Age Children – Talk to your GP, school nurse or school doctor (community paediatrician). Referrals for assessment can be made through your GP or school medical officer. Hospital referral may be required for special tests or treatment.

How would I recognise a child with Developmental Co-ordination Disorder?

The Pre-school Child may show some of these features:

• Late motor milestones e.g. sitting, crawling, walking.
• Balance problems i.e. unreasonably afraid or conversely unaware of danger in precarious situations.
• Poor coordination e.g. crawling, pedalling a bike, catching and kicking a ball etc.
• May not be able to run, hop or jump.
• Poor pencil grip.
• Poor at dressing i.e. organisation and/or fastening buttons or tying shoe laces.
• Drawing is very immature or avoided.
• Persisting immature speech.
• Has difficulty learning anything instinctively, must be taught skills.
• Slow and hesitant in most actions.
• Cannot do jigsaws or shape sorting games.
• Has no understanding of in/on/behind/in front of etc.
• Commonly anxious and distractable.
• Finds it difficult to keep friends or judge how to behave in company.

The School Age Child

• All the problems of the pre-school child may still be present with little or no improvement.
• Difficulty learning to use scissors or rulers.
• 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 reacts to all stimuli without discrimination.
• May have trouble with maths and reading.
• Great difficulty may be experienced in copying from the blackboard.
• Writing is laborious and immature.
• Unable to remember and/or follow instructions.
• Generally poorly organised.
• The child is not clearly right or let handed i.e. reaches with whichever hand is nearer.

What about the future?

There is no magic “cure”, though the child may improve in some areas with growing maturity and with access to the appropriate therapy to develop skills.Some children respond more completely to treatment than others. Learning will take time and lots of practice and encouragement will be needed. Success leads to success; children work best when they do well.

Parents will find it helpful to talk to others.

What is the Highland Developmental Co-ordination Disorder Group?

The group is a registered charity.

The objectives of Highland Developmental Co-ordination Disorder Group are:

• To promote the awareness and understanding of Developmental Co-ordination Disorder.
• To support individuals and families affected by Developmental Co-ordination Disorder.
• To organise social events for individuals and their families.

The Highland Developmental Co-ordination Disorder Group:

• Publishes information about Developmental Co-ordination Disorder in “Children in the Highlands Information Point" Newsletter.
• Organises talks about Developmental Co-ordination Disorder and related topics for parents and professionals.
• Hold regular evening meetings at the Birnie Child Development Centre where parents can educate and support one another.
• Organise a wide range of activities for children and families.

For further information please contact:

Highland Developmental Co-ordination Disorder Group
Unit 6
15 Lotland Street
Inverness
IV1 1ST

Tel: 01463 709907

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