Speech Therapy for Non-Verbal Neurodivergent Children: Moving Towards Communication

Explicit

Let’s start with a question: Have you ever noticed your child pointing at something they want but not saying a word? Maybe they’re looking at their favorite snack on the table and you know exactly what they want, but they just can’t verbalize it. That’s where Augmentative and Alternative Communication, or AAC, comes in.

Let’s imagine you have a child named Sam. Sam is 5 years old and he’s non-verbal. You’re in the kitchen, and he walks over to the fridge and points at it. You know he’s probably thirsty, but he doesn’t say anything. Now, this is a moment where we can introduce AAC to help Sam communicate more effectively.

You could have a picture board on your fridge, maybe one with pictures of different drinks—juice, water, milk. When Sam points to the fridge, you  ...