Children with autism experience speech and language impairments that range from mild social language impairment to entirely non-verbal. With that in mind, here are some speech therapy approaches available that your child’s SLP may teach you so that you can continue to work with your child at home.
Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)
PECS is an AAC (alternative augmentative communication) method that teaches functional dialogue. PECS is a picture-based communication system for children with autism. The concept is that a child is encouraged to use pictures to ask for something and then trade them for what they ask. PECS can be a relatively simple way to begin, but if the system works well for your child, you can add pictures and eventually build sentences. It can sometimes assist nonverbal children in developing their spoken language. Your child’s SLP will set up the system and guide the family with how to use it.
Play & Social Interaction
Play therapy is an excellent approach to encourage communication in autistic children. Play can assist children with autism in connecting with others and expressing themselves in meaningful ways. Basic floor time is a simple but effective style of play. To foster engagement, sit on the floor with your child and let them play with an object while replicating what they do. The goal is to build a game that you and your child could play back and forth to promote communication. To get their attention, you could play some enjoyable activities like blowing bubbles or rolling a ball. If they enjoy the game, they will try to communicate to you that they are enjoying it and ask for more.
Intensive Interaction Therapy
Intensive interaction is a technique of autism speech treatment that communicates through body language. The concept is that by monitoring and reflecting on the child’s behavior, the person participating in the intensive connection tunes the child in and builds emotional involvement. For instance, if your child moves, you imitate it or replicate it if they make an expression. With turn-taking and response, you should be able to create a connection and develop an interaction. Visit The Kioko Center for more details.
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