Auditory Processing Difficulties
Auditory Processing Difficulties
Children with an Auditory Processing Difficulties experience difficulty paying attention to, and remembering what has been said. For example they may have great difficulty carrying out a multi part instruction and generally will be better able to carry out instructions when given one at a time. Their teacher or parents may have described them as having poor listening skills. Often children’s academic performance will suffer as a result of their auditory processing difficulties.
Other specific difficulties include not being able to recognise where a sound is coming from and confusing words that sound similar, examples that we often see at Cluas are mixing up “sing” with “thing” or “coke” for “coat”. There can be problems with sequencing sounds and recognising and detecting the spaces between words in running speech and so sometimes feel that others are speaking nonsense or at best unfamiliar words.
Some children with Auditory Processing Difficulties may complain that their classroom is a very noisy place or they find the school yard sounds intolerable. This is due to the fact that they are unable to filter out unneeded sounds. Others will find it very difficult to have a conversation if there is a radio on in the background, for example.
Auditory Processing Disorder (APD), also referred to as Central Auditory Processing Disorder, describes difficulties in the way that children process auditory (i.e. sound) information. It is not a hearing problem, people with Auditory Processing Disorder usually have normal hearing, rather it is a difficulty in how the sound information that they hear is processed. Thus these children process what they hear in a different way to others. It leads to difficulties recognising and interpreting sounds and in particular speech sounds (the sounds of language).
The causes of Auditory Processing Disorder have not yet been clearly demonstrated. However children who have experienced ear infections in their early years may go on to develop it. For other children Auditory Processing Disorder is a part of their over all developmental delay. There is also thought to be a genetic component.
Many Occupational Therapists, Speech and Language Therapists, and Educational Psychologists may recognise it as a part of or the primary cause of a child’s difficulties. Auditory Processing Disorder can play an important role for children who have a wide range of diagnoses, from mild Dyslexia to Attention Deficit Disorder. Auditory Processing Disorder is formally diagnosed by an Audiologist.
Ryan has Auditory Processing Difficulties
Ryan finds it very difficult to follow instructions. He is liable to follow the first or last instruction but never all three. When he was with his friends he said very little because he was not sure what they were talking about. He couldn’t work it out quickly enough. He became more isolated with few friends.
He also has difficulties with reading writing and spelling. He often mispronounces words because he does not hear them correctly. Although Ryan has learned to read, he does not understand what he is reading. His reading age was below that of his peers.
Up to the age of three Ryan had many ear infections and this caused him difficulties in acquiring language. With the help of Speech Therapy Ryan’s speech improved enormously. Ryan however still confuses sounds such as t and k saying ‘coke’ for ‘coat’; ‘p’ and ‘t’ saying ‘hip’ for ‘hit’; ‘t’ and ‘s’ saying ‘touch’ for ‘such’ and other sounds such as ‘th, ‘f’ ‘sh’ etc., He also typically reverses letters and reads the word ‘was’ as ‘saw’, and writes ‘p’ when he should write ‘b’.
Ryan we can say has an Auditory Processing difficulty or in simpler terms a Listening problem, we could also say that he has a specific learning difficulty or is dyslexic.
At Cluas an individual listening program using classical music was designed for Ryan. Ryan’s individual auditory training program retrained his ability to analyze sounds, and his listening.
Ryan’s Mother now reports that he is more interested in reading, it is no longer a chore at home, and that he has taken up his book spontaneously to read, something which never happened before. She also reports that his concentration is better and that he is more ‘with it’.
He is able to follow the teacher’s instruction and come home with the correct homework. While Ryan at times can still reverse words and letters he is doing it now less frequently.
Ryan finds it very difficult to follow instructions. He is liable to follow the first or last instruction but never all three. When he was with his friends he said very little because he was not sure what they were talking about. He couldn’t work it out quickly enough. He became more isolated with few friends.
He also has difficulties with reading writing and spelling. He often mispronounces words because he does not hear them correctly. Although Ryan has learned to read, he does not understand what he is reading. His reading age was below that of his peers.
Up to the age of three Ryan had many ear infections and this caused him difficulties in acquiring language. With the help of Speech Therapy Ryan’s speech improved enormously. Ryan however still confuses sounds such as t and k saying ‘coke’ for ‘coat’; ‘p’ and ‘t’ saying ‘hip’ for ‘hit’; ‘t’ and ‘s’ saying ‘touch’ for ‘such’ and other sounds such as ‘th, ‘f’ ‘sh’ etc., He also typically reverses letters and reads the word ‘was’ as ‘saw’, and writes ‘p’ when he should write ‘b’.
Ryan we can say has an Auditory Processing difficulty or in simpler terms a Listening problem, we could also say that he has a specific learning difficulty or is dyslexic.
At Cluas an individual listening program using classical music was designed for Ryan. Ryan’s individual auditory training program retrained his ability to analyze sounds, and his listening.
Ryan’s Mother now reports that he is more interested in reading, it is no longer a chore at home, and that he has taken up his book spontaneously to read, something which never happened before. She also reports that his concentration is better and that he is more ‘with it’.
He is able to follow the teacher’s instruction and come home with the correct homework. While Ryan at times can still reverse words and letters he is doing it now less frequently.
TESTIMONIAL
Rachel told us about her son, Rory, aged 6 …October '13
Rory found it difficult to understand what he had to do in school and would bring home school work uncompleted.
His concentration has now improved at home and he understands what I’m asking him when it comes to his homework.
He was always quiet at the dinner table but would shout when he wanted to say something. Now we encourage him to have his turn and listen to others – and he is now able to do this. As parents we find he understands what is being asked better now. I don’t have to repeat myself as much with him and he’s more co-operative.
By the last set of sessions of his Cluas program he said he was was ‘tired’ of the program – but once he got the headphones on he responded better than the other earlier sessions.
Rory found it difficult to understand what he had to do in school and would bring home school work uncompleted.
His concentration has now improved at home and he understands what I’m asking him when it comes to his homework.
He was always quiet at the dinner table but would shout when he wanted to say something. Now we encourage him to have his turn and listen to others – and he is now able to do this. As parents we find he understands what is being asked better now. I don’t have to repeat myself as much with him and he’s more co-operative.
By the last set of sessions of his Cluas program he said he was was ‘tired’ of the program – but once he got the headphones on he responded better than the other earlier sessions.
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