Childhood Apraxia of Speech

Helping Children Find Their Voice with Confidence

Childhood Apraxia of Speech is a motor speech disorder where children know what they want to say but struggle to coordinate the movements needed for clear speech. With the right support, guidance, and consistent practice, children with CAS can build their communication skills and thrive in expressing themselves.

What Is CAS?

When the Voice Doesn’t Sound or Work as It Should

Voice disorders can affect how a child sounds or how comfortable they feel when speaking. This might show up as:

Speech Sound Production

Motor Planning

Coordination

PROMPT Cues

Our Approach to Treating CAS

Therapy for CAS will focus on working on speech sound production, motor planning, coordination, PROMPT therapy techniques, using tactile/visual cues, auditory discrimination activities, integral stimulation techniques, repetitions of sounds, and more.

Tactile/Visual Cues

Auditory Discrimination

Integral Stimulation Techniques

Emotional Support

We create a judgment-free space where children feel heard and understood.

Flexible Sessions, Designed Around Your Child’s Needs

Tic-Talk-Toe offers flexible formats to meet your needs—whether that’s from the comfort of your home or in our engaging learning spaces.

01

In-Person Therapy

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Virtual Therapy

Effective strategies and exercises from the comfort of your home.

What Is Childhood Apraxia of Speech?

Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) is a motor speech disorder — not a muscle weakness issue, but a problem with how the brain plans and coordinates the movements needed for speech. Children with CAS know exactly what they want to say, but their brain has difficulty sending the right signals to their lips, tongue, and jaw to produce sounds consistently and correctly.

CAS is different from other speech disorders. A child with CAS may say a word correctly one moment and completely differently the next. They may have more difficulty with longer words and sentences than shorter ones. Without specialized therapy, CAS does not resolve on its own — but with the right intervention, children with CAS can make significant progress.

At Tic-Talk-Toe Speech and Language Therapy in Raleigh, NC, we are trained in evidence-based approaches specifically designed for CAS, including PROMPT techniques and integral stimulation.

Signs Your Child May Have Childhood Apraxia of Speech

CAS can be difficult to identify, especially in very young children. Common signs include:

Limited babbling as an infant
First words are late or missing
Difficulty combining sounds and syllables into words
Inconsistent speech errors — saying the same word differently each time
Difficulty imitating words, even simple ones
Longer words are harder than shorter words
Your child understands language well but struggles to speak
Groping movements of the mouth when trying to speak
Speech that improves with practice but falls apart in conversation

If you notice several of these signs in your child, an evaluation at Tic-Talk-Toe Speech and Language Therapy in Raleigh, NC is a critical first step.

What Does CAS Therapy Look Like at Tic-Talk-Toe?

CAS requires intensive, specialized therapy — and that’s exactly what we provide. Treatment at Tic-Talk-Toe Speech and Language Therapy is built around the most current evidence-based approaches for childhood apraxia of speech.

Your child’s therapy will be frequent, consistent, and highly individualized. Sessions focus on motor learning — practicing speech movements repeatedly in a structured, supportive environment until they become automatic. We use a combination of:

PROMPT techniques — physical prompts that guide the mouth, jaw, and tongue into correct positions
Tactile and visual cues — helping children feel and see what correct speech looks like
Integral stimulation — a method of modeling and practicing speech in a carefully sequenced way
Auditory discrimination activities — helping children hear the difference between correct and incorrect productions

We also work closely with parents to provide home practice strategies, because consistent practice between sessions is one of the most important factors in CAS progress.

We offer in-person sessions at our Raleigh, NC clinic as well as teletherapy options for families across the Triangle area.

Is Your Child Struggling to Find Their Voice?

Childhood Apraxia of Speech is one of the most challenging — and most rewarding — conditions we treat at Tic-Talk-Toe Speech and Language Therapy. Early intervention makes a significant difference in outcomes. If you’re in Raleigh, Durham, Cary, Wake Forest, or anywhere in the Triangle area of North Carolina, we’d love to connect with you. Book a free screening today and let’s take the first step together.