# DCD vs Childhood Apraxia of Speech in Children Canonical: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-the-difference-between-developmental-coordination-disorder-and-childhood-apraxia-of-speech-in-children Publisher: Pinnacle Blooms Network / Bharath Healthcare Laboratories Private Limited Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) affects how a child plans and carries out physical movements — clumsiness with whole-body and hand tasks like dressing, writing or catching. Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) is a motor-speech difficulty where the brain struggles to plan the precise mouth movements for clear speech. Both are difficulties of motor planning rather than weakness, a child can have one or both, and both respond well to therapy. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional. *Two very different challenges that share a similar root word — both are about how the body learns to plan movement, but one shapes how a child moves, the other how a child speaks.* ## In short **Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)** affects how a child plans and carries out *physical movements* — things like running, dressing, using cutlery or catching a ball feel clumsy and harder to learn than expected. **Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS)** is a *motor-speech* difficulty — the brain struggles to plan the precise movements of the lips, tongue and jaw needed to say sounds and words clearly, even though the muscles themselves are strong. A child can have one, the other, or both — and both respond well to the right, skill-building therapy. ## Telling them apart **Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)** is about whole-body and hand movement: - Clumsiness — bumping into things, frequent falls, dropping objects - Difficulty with everyday motor tasks — buttons, zips, laces, using a spoon or pencil - Trouble learning new physical skills like riding a bike or catching a ball - Movements look effortful or poorly coordinated rather than smooth **Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS)** is specifically about *speaking*: - Inconsistent errors — the same word said differently each time - Groping or visible effort to position the mouth for sounds - Difficulty stringing sounds and syllables together, especially in longer words - Speech that is hard to understand, even though the child clearly knows what they want to say The key difference: **DCD is movement of the body; CAS is movement for speech.** Both are difficulties of *motor planning* (telling the body what to do), not weakness or low intelligence. Because they share this planning root, some children show features of both — which is exactly why a skilled, joined-up assessment matters. ## When to seek a check Seek a developmental check if your child is markedly clumsier than peers, struggles with everyday self-care movements, is very hard to understand for their age, or seems to *know* a word but cannot say it consistently. The earlier the support, the more confidently a child builds these skills — and a proper assessment is what tells you which difficulty (or combination) you are looking at. ## The Pinnacle way AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional — never from an app, checklist or online form. Our clinicians look carefully at both motor and speech planning to build a precise profile and the right plan, drawing on [occupational therapy](https://www.pinnacleblooms.org/best-occupational-therapy-center-india-proven-improvement-rate) for coordination and daily skills and [speech therapy](https://www.pinnacleblooms.org/top-speech-therapy-center-india-proven-improvement-rate) for motor-speech work. You can learn more about [how the AbilityScore® is assessed](/ask/what-is-the-abilityscore-and-how-is-it-calculated) or start [here](/). ## Trusted sources WHO ICD-11 framing of developmental motor coordination disorder; American Speech-Language-Hearing Association guidance on Childhood Apraxia of Speech and motor-speech difficulties; American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org) developmental guidance. **Next step —** Unsure which challenge fits your child? [Book an assessment with a Pinnacle clinician](/ask/what-is-the-abilityscore-and-how-is-it-calculated) for a clear, caring answer. This is general information, not a diagnosis — individual assessment and diagnosis require an appropriately qualified healthcare professional. ## Sources - ASHA — Childhood Apraxia of Speech: https://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/childhood-apraxia-of-speech/ - AAP HealthyChildren.org — developmental guidance: https://www.healthychildren.org - WHO ICD-11: https://icd.who.int ## Connected topics and perspectives - Conditions: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/conditions - Parent: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/stakeholder/parent - Adaptive: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/domain/adaptive - Support: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/intent/support - Screen: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/lifecycle/screen - Special Education: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/route/special-education - Early Clarity: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/empowerment/early_clarity ## Related question paths ### Understand the subject - DCD vs Childhood Apraxia of Speech: the difference: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-the-difference-between-developmental-coordination-disorder-and-childhood-apraxia-of-speech-in-young-children - Childhood Apraxia of Speech vs Motor Planning Difficulties: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-the-difference-between-childhood-apraxia-of-speech-and-motor-planning-difficulties-in-young-children - Childhood Apraxia of Speech vs Social Communication Difficulties: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-the-difference-between-childhood-apraxia-of-speech-and-social-communication-difficulties-in-young-children - DLD vs Childhood Apraxia of Speech in Young Children: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-the-difference-between-developmental-language-disorder-and-childhood-apraxia-of-speech-in-young-children ### Explore therapy & support - DCD vs Childhood Apraxia of Speech: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/how-do-i-know-if-my-child-has-developmental-coordination-disorder-or-childhood-apraxia-of-speech - Developmental Language Disorder vs Childhood Apraxia of Speech in Children: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/what-is-the-difference-between-developmental-language-disorder-and-childhood-apraxia-of-speech-in-children