Special Education

Some children with FAS/E excel in motor skills, particularly in individual sports such as swimming, skiing and roller-blading. Success in these areas is a great way to build self-esteem and develop lifelong leisure pursuits. Other children with FAS/E have significant problems with gross and fine motor skill development. In their early childhood, people may have used terms such as “mild cerebral palsy.” In more severe cases, children with FAS/E may have had problems with chewing, swallowing and drooling. The coordinated movements required for physical activities — running, riding a bike and playing ball games — may be delayed. Physical therapy can help; so can physical activities such as swimming, dancing and gymnastics provided that the goals set for the student in these activities are appropriate.

The delayed development of some fine motor skills, such as tying shoelaces and handwriting, can cause additional stress for a school-aged child. One of the neurological outcomes of FAS can be poor muscle tone. The child may not have the strength to perform activities such as pouring milk from a carton. Some children have a condition that prevents them from rotating their wrists and elbows. This makes handwriting cumbersome and tiring. These children have difficulty sustaining the motor activity required in a typical school day without adaptation to reduce the demands on their muscles.

As children learn motor skills, the motor skills become automatic, but it often takes longer for children with FAS/E to reach this automatic state. The effort it takes to remember what a letter looks like and how to form it detracts from writing the message or remembering how to spell the word.