This offer is also extended to Special educators, Psychologists and any persons looking to organize  social skills groups.

Any interested parties should contact Susan Foley at 212-517-2777 for terms and conditions.

Children with communication deficits are unable to use language effectively. Because they cannot express emotion they may revert to negative communicative strategies (e.g. screaming, rocking, hand flapping, self abusive behaviors and biting).

 Children with sensory and communication deficits may have atypical development caused by a lack of the ability to interpret sensory information for use and the inability to process what it is that needs to be done and how to do it. Treatment must focus on all fronts to enhance performance.

Motor Planning  is a complex process of registration of things, people and changes in the environment, the subsequent formulation of a concept or plan and then the ability  to sequence, time and execute the plan or action. This is required of a motor movement and/or the ability to perform a communication skill.

A child with dyspraxia, verbal or developmental, will have difficulty performing the motor movements necessary for volitional (or willful) speech; difficulty in sequencing and timing the articulations for speech; and may  have difficulty moving his/her lips and mouth for speech production.

Dr. A. Jean Ayres (psychologist/author and developer of the Sensory Integration theory and techniques for treatment) describes dyspraxia as a sensory integrative dysfunction that results in the inability to use sensory information from proprioceptive, vestibular and tactile systems effectively, not only for motor planning but for learning. The brain commands the muscles what to do but the sensations from the body enable the brain n to perform this function. Motor planning is the bridge between the sensorimotor and intellectual aspects of brain function.

In the child with hypotonia, or low tone, there is a direct negative effect on the muscles that stabilize the jaw and move the tongue and cheeks needed for sound production. Poor trunk/core control and poor respiratory capacity coupled with decreased strength within the postural flexors (abdominal muscles) contributes to a lack of respiratory support. When endurance is poor there is resulting low volume, omission of final consonants and the lack of sustained vocalizations, and a limited number of word productions or use of single word utterances and poor intelligibility.

We know that children learn thru play. Experiences and quality of play provide the framework upon which language is later based. As capacity for and control over movement increases children develop the motor control required for postural mechanisms and the anti-gravity flexor control which is required for adequate respiratory base and internal jaw and tongue stabilization for language efforts.

Some children have difficulty acquiring the basic concepts afforded children with typical development. They fail to develop the ideas of how to interact with objects and persons in their environment and therefore don’t develop the neuronal models necessary for analyzing new situations. In turn they fail to acquire language for labeling, requesting, or describing play. Some children are ill-prepared for interactive play and the inability to negotiate with their peers and adults adds to confusion, disorganization, and emotional responses. The ability to accurately perceive the physical environment and to act upon it is the basic material required for organization or more complex and social behaviors.

Play is the natural environment for children. Through play they have sensorimotor experiences as he/she learns about the environment and the world and how to move and act upon it. The internal bodymap produced gives the child a frame of reference as he/she formulates concepts to organize, store, and effect changes in his experiences. L ANGUAGE IS THE CEMENT THAT HOLDS THE MATRIX OF CONCEPTS, EMOTION, AND IDEAS IN A COHESIVE, USABLE FORMAT. It is through play that we give the language delayed child the opportunities to practice the requisites of communication and language.

Dyspraxia, the inability to conceptualize a motor plan has a direct impact on speech and language. “Language cannot be taught through isolated exercises and homework but must be integrated into all interactions throughout the child’s daily life. Language drills that are strictly cortical in nature may not help the child generalize the skills, because drills may lack the justright challenge, may not be intrinsically motivating for the child, and may not provide the feedback mechanisms required for learning”

At Coopers Kids we provide a sensory/motor, movement based frame of reference in response to your child’s communication needs. Gym time is incorporated into your child’s speech and language services in order to provide the necessary stimulation required for the best possible outcome. Children are not treated in isolation unless their specific needs require a more calming setting; once focused they are moved into the gym environment where they may interact with their peers in an age appropriate and natural environment.  Our speech and language pathologists are trained to incorporate vestibular stimulation and movement into their sessions.

At Coopers Kids we utilize an evidenced based practice incorporating both occupational and physical therapy into our speech and language protocols. Our years of experience have demonstrated that increased communication occurs when a coordinated an interdisciplinary plan of care is enacted.

The IM program  provides a strucutred  goal-oriented training process that challenges the child to synchronize various hand and foot movements to a computer generated reference tone  heard through headphones (this is not Therapeutic Listening). The child attempts to match the rhythmic beat with motor activities such as hand clapping or foot tapping while wearing an IM glove with a palm trigger. The difference between the child’s performance and the computer generated beat is measured in milliseconds (ms).

IM allows us to objectively measure motor planning and sequencing and assign a level of function in milliseconds (ms).   The ms average score provided for each IM task represents the child’s ability to motor plan and sequence. As the child improves in his/her ability to motor plan and sequence, it is reflected in improving ms averages.

More than a decade of research and case studies on IM have consistently demonstrated gains in motor planning, rhythmicity, timing and sequencing which all tie into  improvements in:

Attention and Concentration

Language and Processing

Behavior ( aggression and impulsivity)

Fine and Grosss Motor Skills

Balance and Gait

Strength, Coordination and Endurance

Academic Performance

This program is not only targeted to children with identifiable diagnoses, it is beneficial to the general population including improvement in athletic ability, musical performance and academics, ( reading, writing and arithmetic).   

 Please contact Susan Foley for protocols, schedules and rates.