Yoga for Breath Support for Speech 79All of the foregoing breathing exercises, which provide a point of
focus, can assist children with AD/HD to sustain attention.
Furthermore, as school-age children typically enjoy group
activities, breathing exercises can be performed with one or more
partners. For example, by sitting back-to-back, two children
can tune into and synchronize their breaths (Goldberg 2013).
Practicing breathing exercises in a group setting can promote
socialization and communication. Due to their difficulties with
social-relatedness, partner or group breathing activities can be
particularly beneficial for children with ASD. At the age ranges
discussed, verbal praise, such as “I like your smooth, soft breath,”
can be used to reinforce the proper execution of any of these
breathing practices.
Benefits of yoga breathwork for speech sound disorders
For children with articulation and phonological issues, breathing
exercises can enhance breath support for the production of
sounds which require sustained airflow, such as /s/ and /z/ (Flynn
2013). Children with apraxia of speech can also benefit from
breathwork. Apraxia is a speech sound disorder characterized
by impairment in the precision and consistency of movements
for speech in the absence of neuromuscular deficits. Children
with apraxia of speech exhibit difficulty planning the spatial and
temporal parameters of movement sequences, causing speech
sound and prosody errors (ASHA 2007). In terms of respiration,
these children can demonstrate difficulty coordinating the breath
support needed to drive phonation. Repeatedly utilizing these
breathing exercises could help children with apraxia of speech
more accurately, consistently, and automatically produce sounds
and sequences of sounds.