Creating Opportunities for Communication

Patient Information Leaflet for Carers and Parents

• As adults, we often anticipate children's needs because we want the best for them and want their needs to be met.
• However, if we always anticipate their needs, they do not have a reason to communicate with us.
• We can create situations that encourage communication in lots of different ways.

Using bubbles

• Open the bubbles & blow a few.
• Once your child is interested and is looking/popping the bubbles, close the pot.
• Wait until your child asks you, in some way, for you to blow them again.

Placing things out of reach

• Put your child's favourite toy/food somewhere they can see it but not reach.
• Wait for them to request that they want it.
• This may be by eye contact/pointing/sign/words.

Using balloons

• Blow the balloon up and then let it go.
• Retrieve the balloon and wait for your child to ask you to blow it up again.
• As you are blowing you can pause and wait for them to ask for you to blow it again.

Offering choices

• Give your child a choice of two items at snack time/when playing e.g. "apple or banana?".
• This allows you to model the language and your child an opportunity to communicate their choice

Give toys/food bit by bit

• When playing with toys that have pieces/parts, hold items back and give them to your child one at a time.
• Give your child a little bit of food/drink at a time e.g. only one crisp.
• Wait for your child to request that they want more.

Using books

• Look through a book a few times and name the same pictures each time.
• Once your child is familiar with the book, point to one of the pictures and say nothing, wait for them to communicate in some way either by naming it or looking at you to name it.

Singing

• When singing familiar nursery rhymes, stop and wait at a particular point, waiting for your child to communicate that they want the song to continue or fill in the gap.

Creative stupidity - do something silly!

• When giving food - give a yoghurt without a spoon/unopened crisps/cup with no juice and wait for your child to communicate that something is missing.
• When dressing your child 'accidentally' put an item of clothing on wrong e.g. sock on hand and wait for them to communicate something is wrong.

Remember: Accept your child's communication whether it is eye contact, pointing or a spoken word but always model a verbal request back.