Primary reflexes and their influence on motor and speech development

Abstract

Development of motor skills, primary reflexes and speech development are interconnected. But how? I work with children daily with persistent primary reflexes. These children experience problems at school (learning disorders, attention deficits), with motor skills (inferior gross and fine motor skills, inferior graphomotor skills, coordination of movements), autistic symptoms, speech delay and articulation disorders, which are the topic of this article. I like to work together with Speech Therapists to offer children with these problems the most comprehensive approach and care. The aim of this article is to explain concisely and clearly the link of primary reflexes to motor development and their influence on speech development. In conclusion, I briefly mention the possibilities of intervention, which (clinical) Speech Therapists can include in their speech therapy practice.

Keywords

• psychomotor development
• speech development
• gross motor skills
• fine motor skills
• primary reflexes
• neurodevelopmental therapy
• neurodevelopmental stimulation