Speech Therapy for Non-Verbal Children: Building Functional Communication

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Speech and Language Kids Podcast 28 min 1 speaker 3 chapters transcribed 1 hour ago

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What is functional communication and why is it important for non‑verbal children?

Carrie Clark 0:00

Hey everybody, this is Carrie Clark, and you are listening to episode number 58 of the Speech and Language Kids Podcast. This is the podcast with resources and activities for speech therapists as well as for parents of children with speech and language delays. I am Carrie Clark Clark. Carrie Clark, that's my name today. I am Carrie Clark. I am your host, and I am from the SpeechandlanguageKids.com website. Today we are going to be talking about how to improve functional communication for young children with autism. And when we say functional communication, I'm really talking here about just those basic communication skills that every child needs to get started communicating. So we're talking about being able to ask for something or get one's once and needs met.

Carrie Clark 0:47

Um, being able to follow some some some simple directions, imitate some different actions, and take turns. So that's basically what I'm talking about with functional communication today. And I'm gonna be talking about how you can improve those skills in young children with autism. So that is our focus today. But I do want to go ahead and mention the membership site if you are not familiar with this. So I do have a membership portion of my website that is just for speech therapists. I am working on a portion of it that would be for parents as well. But right now it's just for speech therapists. It's called the speech therapy solution. And basically what this is is every month, well every weekday, I put out one new training video for speech therapists.

Carrie Clark 1:31

And it is an answer to a question from a member. So you can write in with your questions as members and I will create short little training videos that'll show you how to do whatever it is that you're having trouble with or brainstorm some ideas for a tough kiddo that you're having uh trouble with in in therapy. So we do that once a weekday. And also once a month you get a webinar where you can come on live and listen to a one hour presentation about whatever topic you guys pick, you guys being the members. Uh plus you get 30% off of my ebooks. You also get access to a Facebook group where you can collaborate with other speech therapists. So it's got some really good benefits. If you haven't checked that out, go on over to speechandlanguage kids.com slash TSTS and you can get all the information there.

How can I determine if speech is a viable option for a child with autism?

Carrie Clark 2:17

Alright, so let's jump on in with our topic today of improving functional communication in children with autism. So If you know a kiddo, if you are working with a kiddo with autism who isn't really able to communicate basic wants and needs, Don't really have the social skills to participate in social interactions and daily activities, or if you're just looking for more information on how you can improve functional communication in a child with autism, this episode is going to be right for you. This will be relevant for parents as well as for speech therapists, so stick around, even if you're in one of those other groups, also for other educators that are working with kiddos with autism. Autism. Got some good information for you here today.

Carrie Clark 2:59

So The first thing that we need to look at with these kiddos with autism, or even just our kiddos maybe who we suspect might have autism, or we're really not sure why they're not communicating, but they are late to communicate and and are are not really able to do that yet. The first thing that we want to look at is establishing a functional communication system. So all children have the right to communicate. No disorder, no disease, no physical limitation should be able to take that right away from them. Your child has a right to communicate. So for that reason, it is our obligation to make sure that all children with autism have some way to communicate with us. Speaking might actually be too hard for some of those kiddos.

Carrie Clark 3:46

Um, actually getting words out through their mouth. Sometimes can be a challenge. And so we really need to consider other ways of helping these children communicate. Just because they can't talk does not mean that they should not be allowed to have a way to communicate.

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Chapters

3 chapters

1 What is functional communication and why is it important for non‑verbal children? 0:00–2:17 2 How can I determine if speech is a viable option for a child with autism? 2:17–22:28 3 What alternative communication methods (AAC) are available for non‑speaking children? 22:28–28:58

Speakers

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Carrie Clark 26 min

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autism 5 iPad 2 AAC 3 Speech and Language Kids podcast 2 Carrie Clark 4 speechandlanguagekids.com 1 Speech Therapy Solution 2

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Recorded11 Apr 2016

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Show notes

Therapy for Non-Speaking Children: How to Boost Functional Communication SkillsDo you know a child with autism who isn’t able to communicate basic wants and needs? Does the child lack the social skills to participate in social interactions? Do you need a guide for how to improve functional communication in a young child with autism? Well don’t you worry, you’ve come to the right place! I’m going to show you the top four skills to start targeting to improve functional communication in a young children with autism or suspected autism. Let me show you what those four skills are and how to work on them. Click “play” on the player below to hear the entire episode, or scroll down to get the show notes below. Therapy Kits for Non-Speaking ChildrenNo-Prep Activities and Resources for Helping Non-Speaking Children Learn to SpeakJoin the Hub to Access (Free Trial)Click to Download a Free “Speech Therapy for Children with Autism” Cheat Sheet Non-Speaking Therapy 1: Establishing a Functional Communication System All children have the right to communicate. No disorder, disease, or physical limitation should be able to take that right away from them. For that reason, it is our obligation to make sure that all children with autism have SOME way to communicate with us. Speaking may be too hard for them so sometimes we need to come up with other ways of helping them communicate. Here’s how we can do that: Step One: Will Speech Work? The first thing that we need to consider for a non-verbal or minimally-verbal child with autism is whether or not speaking is real option for them. We can do this by asking the child to imitate basic speech tasks, like saying words or making sounds. If the child is able to say words or make sounds in order to get something that he or she really wants, then we can say that speaking is definitely the best way to go to help that child communicate with us. Speech is always the first option and we would love for all of our students with autism to speak to us. However, some children simply aren’t able to talk right now, but that doesn’t mean that we give up on them and don’t provide them with an alternative. If speech isn’t a viable option for the child you’re working with, move on to step two: Step Two: Find an Alternative Means Options for AAC Devices, Methods, and Systems: Gestures/Body Language When the child uses natural gestures or body language to communicate with those around him. This often happens naturally but may need to be taught if the child isn’t even doing this. Sign Language A formal sign language is used where the child forms signs with his hands that convey meaning. These signs are used by the child as well as by the adults who are communicating with the child. Object Symbols Simple objects or small 3D models of objects are glued to cards or a board. The child then touches the object that represents what he wants. This is ideal for children with vision or cognitive problems. Picture Boards The child is given a simple board with a selection of pictures. The child touches the picture that represents what he wants. Picture Exchange The child hands a picture that represents what he wants to the communication partner. Written Messages: The child writes or types a message on paper or on a computer/screen. Single Button Voice-Output Devices The child is presented with a single button. When the button is pushed, a single message is spoken out loud (pre-recorded). Multi-Button Voice-Output Devices The child is presented with a device that contains several buttons. Each button represents a different communication intent and the student pushes the button to hear the message. Dynamic-Display Voice-Output Devices The child is presented with a device that has a touch screen full of buttons. When the child pushes a button, a message is spoken or the entire screen changes to present different buttons based on the one pushed. Step Three: Teach the AAC Method Once you’ve found what works, use these steps to teach it: How to Help a Child Use AAC at Home or in the Classroom (Hint: It’s easier than you think!) Get Familiar with the Child’s Device Model use of the device around the child Encourage the child’s exploration of and attempts to use the AAC Have the device present at all times Set up opportunities for the child to use the device Get all adults on board Non-Speaking Therapy Part Two: Following Simple Directions Click Here to Learn More about Teaching Following Directions Make a list of common directions given to the child throughout the day Take/Make pictures of those directions Teach each direction individually Work those directions into daily routines using picture cues Fade the picture cues Work on following directions with more than one step Non-Speaking Therapy Part Three: Improving Imitation Skills Start with imitation of easy, whole-body actions. Reinforce with highly preferred objects or activities Work on more complex actions like fine motor, speech/communication, or play (depending on what the child needs to work on) Work imitation into daily, functional activities Non-Speaking Therapy Part Four: Basic Turn-Taking and Requesting Help the child take turns with adults by helping the child say or use AAC to communicate “my turn” when it’s the child’s turn Increase the amount of time that the child will tolerate the adult having the item and get the child to communicate “my turn” independently Introduce turn-taking with another child including handing it over when the other child says “my turn” (or saying “in a minute” for older children) Work on games that require each player to wait for a turn and work on knowing whose turn it is Therapy Kits for Non-Speaking ChildrenNo-Prep Activities and Resources for Helping Non-Speaking Children Learn to SpeakJoin the Hub to Access (Free Trial)AAC Starter KitEverything You Need to Trial AAC with a ChildJoin the Hub to Access (Free Trial)About the Author: Carrie Clark, MA CCC-SLPHi, I’m Carrie! I’m a speech-language pathologist from Columbia, Missouri, USA. I’ve worked with children and teenagers of all ages in schools, preschools, and even my own private practice. I love digging through the research on speech and language topics and breaking it down into step-by-step plans for my followers. Connect with Me: The post Speech Therapy for Non-Verbal Children: Building Functional Communication appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

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