COMMUNICATION
and English, he was hesitant to communicate. After I
asked him to describe several pictures in a book, I re-
alized he had very few verbs in his repertoire. Verbs
are the glue required to string words into sentences,
so it was no wonder he had trouble formulating his
thoughts. Keo also had trouble understanding the
basic structure of a sentence in English. I pulled out
a blank piece of paper and wrote out the formula
[WHO = person + ACTION = doing + THING]. Using
this formula, we looked at picture scenes together
and began describing what we saw by filling in the
blanks. A simple strategy, yet so incredibly effective.
During the remainder of my time in Phnom Penh, I
worked closely alongside speech therapists and oc-
cupational therapists to demonstrate the power of
visual supports. Some kids benefitted from a basic
communication board, and others excelled with the
use of an iPad. Immediately, I saw dramatic improve-
ments in every single child that we introduced to
pictures.
Visual language supports—it’s a fancy way of saying,
“using pictures.” My practice has taught me that chil-
dren with autism are visual learners. If they can SEE it,
they can UNDERSTAND it. But when we speak words,
they float around, and children often can’t grasp
their meanings. If you connect words to a concrete
image, children with autism can start understanding
AND using those words. This is why an iPad can be
such a useful tool for communication; it makes lan-
guage visual.
When I arrived in Phnom Penh, I quickly got to work
seeing kids who were struggling with a traditional
approach to speech therapy and began introducing
technology such as an iPad. One of the most mean-
ingful experiences I had was with a 17-year-old boy
named Keo. Keo was mostly using single words in
both English and Khmer (Cambodia’s official lan-
guage), but his parents were convinced Keo was ca-
pable of so much more. They hoped an iPad might
help Keo start formulating his thoughts into more
complex phrases and sentences.
As I began our session, I noticed that Keo was shy
and quiet. Unsure of his responses in both Khmer
In my practice, I can always get a wow factor when I
pull out a communication board or introduce a visual
schedule for the first time because children respond
incredibly well to language made visual. But the key
to long-term success is integrating these types of
supports into a child’s daily environment. Easier said
than done, right? Here are three things I tell parents
to keep in mind:
1.
Basic is sometimes better
Sometimes we don’t need all the bells and whis-
tles of a high-tech gadget to get kids talking.
With Keo, I simply ripped a blank piece of pa-
per out of a notebook. When trying to teach
a child a new word, I am constantly thinking
about how I can represent a word visually. I’m
notorious for whipping out my iPhone and us-
ing Google Images or watching a short clip on
YouTube, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be
this sophisticated. It could be as simple as us-
ing a whiteboard and writing down the word
or drawing a picture.
2.
Pick one routine to start
After one of my coaching sessions, parents
leave feeling empowered and motivated to
get started implementing. Parents often set
lofty goals for themselves, only to be disap-
pointed in themselves when they can’t follow
Autism Parenting Magazine | Issue 71 |
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