Autism Communication

Autism communication – what does this mean?

Astonishingly up to 50 percent of children with autism will never develop speech, whilst the others will develop some form of early communication skills.
However, autistic children rarely engage in effective communicationWhen we think of speech – language we refer to the body of words, the formations of sounds, as well as the structures and forms used to construct speech.

Communication on the other hand can occur either verbally through speech or non-verbally through the use of spoken words, gestures, signs, or by pointing to printed words or symbols.
To communicate effectively, we must firstly be able to understand why we need to communicate with others, have the desire to communicate, have somebody to communicate with, have something to communicate about, and have a means of expressing ourselves.

With autism communication, sometimes this inquisitiveness is missing, the lack of interest in their surroundings and the lack of effective eye contact make learning communication very difficult.

By the time a non-verbal autistic child starts school, they may already have seen a speech therapist to establish a program to aid with the development of effective communication. The speech therapist will need to determine some appropriate objectives and goals, a base level of communication will be established by carefully observing the child within the school setting.

Autistic children tend to be visual learners, which is why studies have shown that autism social stories are an excellent aid in developing good foundations for behavior and social skills for autistic children and adults. As well as excellent tools for helping develop communication skills.