They Know What They Want To Say... They Just Don't Know How To Say It.

  A speech disorder that makes it difficult for a child to correctly pronounce syllables and words is affecting children in our hometown.

3 year old youngster Beau Blackwood.  has been diagnosed with Apraxia

Speech Language pathologist Meredith Potts has been working with beau for a year and a half. Helping him to pronounce words.

Potts says that children with Apraxia know what they want to say, but there is a problem with the brain that sends a signal to their tongue and lips and their jaw to move in a certain position to make sounds.

Meredith Potts is helping those to help over come those short circuit problems that prevent him from talking.

He has made tremendous progress thru this therapy.

"He would grope his mouth, like trying to move in a certain way to make the sound. But the sound wouldn’t come out. That's where he was a year and a half ago."> says Pots

Using a speech generating device, beau selects from several functions on a key pad that emits electronic voice.

Potts says that in addition to helping Beau Blackwood, 80% of her case load is helping children with Apraxia.

Most children who have the condition are diagnosed with autism.

Beau's mom notices that his son's behavior was different when he was only 6 months old.

"Hew was a very sweet little boy. Pretty well behaved, but in some respects he was like an animal. He was living on another planet. I have now way to know what was going on in his head to know what was being said." says Laura Blackwood, Beau’s Mom

However in the last 6 months, there has been a tremendous progress his mother says.

Laura Blackwood comments that with this special therapy, beau has said words spontaneously.

Therapist Meredith Potts says that these children be identified early, so that they can get the speech therapy that is necessary for their progress.

 To call attention to this condition, a Walk for Childhood Apraxia of Speech will be held Saturday at 2pm at Riverside Park, meeting at the Texas Zoo.

The hope is that more will become aware of the condition that prevents kids from communicating.