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Language for every person is made up of two skills: receptive and expressive. Receptive language skill is the ability to take in and process other's language around you. Expressive language skill is our ability to communicate to those around us. Writing is considered a part of expressive language.
Expressive communication is a skill deficit that goes along with autism. This might look like: delayed language skills in young children, lose of verbal skills under anxiety, nonverbal communication, and struggles with writing. It is also difficult to express yourself to other's when you assume that they have the same thoughts and feelings that you do. You may leave out important details and find it difficult to convey the intended message to your listener. You may not even be aware that your listener is not following your train of thought because individuals on the spectrum struggle with nonverbal communication (body language, personal space, recognizing facial expressions, gestures, etc.). |
Sign language is an alternative mode of communication, that can be utilized for receptive and expressive language. When using as a receptive language support, sign language is a great visual support for verbal directives. For expressive language support, sign language is especially beneficial for students who have limited or no verbal communication, to request basic needs and wants. Basic signs can be found with a Google search for American Sign Language (ASL) Dictionary. ASL is recommended due to it being most universal. For parents who are wondering how to teach some basic signs to their child, check out "Fathering Autism's" video: "How To Teach Sign for Nonverbal Autism" by clicking on the button to the right. The "FatheringAutism" channel also has great videos that show life day in and day out living with autism, in which many parents can probablly appreciate the authenticity of.
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PODD: Pragmatic Organisation Dynamic Display
PODD is a picture communication book that teaches the organization of language within categories, to create a systematic organization of language. Basic communication behaviors, such as getting your listener's attention with the "I have something to say" picture (located on the very first page) is a foundation of PODD. This program allows students to learn a variety of communication functions, so that they are able to move beyond using communication simply to request (as is used in a picture exchange system. "Our children learn they can ask questions, comment, complain, pretend, tattle, and cajole." says blog writers Erin Sheldon & Magali Barthere. Books can be ordered in varying sizes based on the number of pictures per page, and there is an app available as well. Click on the button below to read more of Sheldon & Barthere's "What Is PODD?" on Assistiveware.com. |
Want to see a quick demonstration of the PODD book in action? Click on the button below which will take you to "We Speak PODD" Youtube channel. This specific segment is called "PODD Video Model: I Draw A Picture!"
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Want to learn about communication behaviors?
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Core Words
Core Words are a set of 50-400 words that make up the majority of what we say. Click here to read more on Core Words.
Other communication resources on this site...To communicate our message to an individual with autism (receptive language) use the following
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