A review of Carl Delacato’s groundbreaking work and what place it has in our action plans

One of the most impactful advice I ever got was to read Carl Delacato’s work on speech and reading. In his time working with Glen Doman he realized the importance of looking at these issues through a neurodevelopmental lens.

When our children struggle with reading and speech we usually see the education and speech professionals working on the issues from a problem-based perspective. This means the methods will be focused on the performance aspect of reading and speech.

We know there is only one way to change the brain, through organizing and integrating inputs. Regardless of our children’s chronological age or grade level, neuroplasticity (the brain’s ability to grow and change), is a life long gift and our best bet is to go back and build the neurodevelopmental foundations.

Understanding the Problem

When our children struggle with reading, reading comprehension, and speech, it isn’t about intelligence. It isn’t about behavior, and it certainly isn’t about desire.

As Carl Delacato explains, these issues frequently stem from from deeper challenges of Sensory Integration and incomplete neurodevelopmental patterns.

Consistent with a neurodevelopmental mindset we need not be concerned with what and when, rather, why and how.

For example, focusing on the fact that our child is not at grade level performance for reading comprehension (What and When), we need to look at the status of the child’s visual motor system and the integration of the 22 components of visual perception, and levels of auditory processing, and motor patterns of movement, and reflex integration.

The Neurodevelopmental Approach

This discussion is not about “flashcards vs. phonics,” memorization, or other performance-driven therapy. It’s about helping the brain to organize itself more effectively. By targeting the sensory integration of systems such as visual, auditory, tactile, proprioceptive, and vestibular — we can help our children with Reading and Speech development.

1. Sensory Integration — The most important piece of this discussion is not to be fooled into thinking glasses that address acuity and refractive errors do anything to help the neurological integration of the visual motor system. In fact, when our children put their glasses on and their eyes appear to be working together, we believe the brain is seeing it appropriately. The fact is, there are 22 components of vision that need to neurologically work together before we can expect reading and speech success. In order for this visual input to be received by the brain in an organized fashion, we must address sensory integration. Getting a full evaluation by a Developmental (sometimes called Behavioral) Optometrist is critical.
2. Reflex Integration — Primitive Reflexes that are not intgrated interfere with reading and speech.One of the most impactful things we can do is cross pattern crawl. This is the simplest and most effective way to integrate reflexes. If our children butt-scoot, bear crawl, kind-of-crawl-with-one-leg-sticking-out-to-the-side, the system is not integrated. Continue with the crawling program – for distance – until reflexes are integrated. Once the child can ccrawl on hands and knees with proper head and eye movement – CRAWL some more!!!
3. The Mandate for Frequency, Intensity, and Duration – Glen Doman and Carl Delacato knew this was the secret. It isn’t about “practicing” of performance, or “repetition” of task completion, it is about creating environments, routines, and opportunities, four our children to experience and organize inputs to their brains. Purposeful and organized inputs with frequency, intensity, and duration, rewire the brain.

What We Can Do Today

In addition to understanding How and Why, our next logical step is Where do I begin?

• Observe: We are the experts on our children! If movement patterns don’t look right, we don’t need a formal assessment to tell us why – we know the answer – integration. Pay attention to how they play – Are they overly rough with things or do they hold their crayon so lightly you can barely see it? Do they get in and out of sitting / quadruped / standing, etc., the way you do? Do their eyes move together? Are they able to catch a ball? Throw at a target? If our children struggle with things, traditional therpay tackles them as a problem list with a number of performance based applications – we have one objective. Integrate systems.

• Layer sensation to every activity – Working on auditory processing? dD it standing on a balance board — Reading for enjoyment? Lay on the floor on your belly for integration of the proprioceptive system or put the material on a vertical surface and stand on a step stool for activation of the arousal systems in the brainstem — Walking a Lazy 8 for visual motor integration? Add a metronome and work on stepping to the beat — Not sure where to start? CRAWL or cross-march.

• Integrate reflexes – There are many specific movement patterns and therapies for integration of primitive reflexes that are not necessary for this discussion. A simple activity like being in quadruped while rocking back and forth and on diagonals, and visually tracking across the midline into all vision quadrants is a great choice.

The Best News?

By focusing on integrating what is coming in to our children’s brains with Frequency, Intensity, and Duration, we are not just addressing reading and speech, we are addressing our child’s development and learning as a whole.

And, we are redefining what’s possible.