Unlocking Voices: The Benefits of Augmentative and Alternative Communication for Autistics

Finding a therapist, teacher or school for a child with special needs that is a perfect fit, is like striking gold. Suffice to say, parents who have the tough choice to make between affording the best and finding the best affordable option, will resonate with this feeling. Nevertheless, it is quite important to recognise certain red flags when selecting a school or therapist for a child with special needs.
“I want my child to speak.”
All parents want that. As a Speech and Language Therapist (SLT), I want to help parents achieve this goal as well. However, is this a choice for us to make? It is estimated that about 25-30% of children diagnosed with autism are non-verbal or minimally verbal (NVMV)
This is a combination of 3 pieces first published on Speech Sisters’ blog. The Speech Sisters are Brooke and Bridget who have more than 20-years of combined experience a Speech Therapists, working with children who have communication disorders and delays. Learn about imitation and symbolic play with tips from speech therapists.
We learn differently and the identified learning styles are visual, auditory, reading/writing and kinesthetic as developed in 1992 by Neil D. Fleming and Coleen E. Mills. We do have a preferred learning style or a preferred combination of learning style. For younger children and children with special needs, pictures or images is a method of communication.
An augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device, is used to help non-verbal or minimally verbal people communicate. Augmentative means to add on to speech, while alternative means to be used instead of speech.
There is no parenting book or blog that can prepare you for the moment you have to utter the words “My child has autism”. A week after I received this official diagnosis, it suddenly dawned on me – What did I know about autism? The answer scared me: Not enough.