If you’ve ever felt unsure about identifying Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS), this episode is for you. I’m breaking down what to look for, how to approach assessment with clarity, and what truly matters in a diagnosis.

Whether you’re a speech pathologist wanting to refine your clinical eye or a parent trying to make sense of mixed messages, this episode will help you feel more confident about what CAS looks like in real life.

We’ll talk through key red flags, how to differentiate CAS from phonological delay, and why trust in your clinical judgment matters more than ticking every box on a checklist.

By the end of this episode, you’ll walk away knowing:

✅ What to pay attention to during assessment

✅ How to describe CAS clearly and confidently

✅ And how to trust yourself in the diagnostic process

Hit play, and let’s take the mystery out of CAS assessment together.

Research mentioned:

Namasivayam, A. K., Li-Han, L. Y., Moore, J. G., Wong, W., & Van Lieshout, P. (2022). The articulatory basis of phonological error patterns in childhood speech sound disorders.

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 16, 1079289.

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/human-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2025.1635096/full

Xu, Y. (2025). Syllable as a synchronization mechanism that makes human speech possible.

Brain Sciences, 15(1), 33.

https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci15010033

© 2024 by the author. Licensed under CC BY 4.0.

University College London, Department of Speech, Hearing and Phonetic Sciences (yi.xu@ucl.ac.uk)

Vihman, M. M. (2019). Phonological templates in development (Oxford Studies in Phonology and Phonetics, Vol. 4).

Oxford University Press.

https://global.oup.com/academic/product/phonological-templates-in-development-9780198793564?cc=au&lang=en&

Vihman, M. M. (2013, November 20). Early Speech Workshop 2013 [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-S110j9xJo&t=1430s

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