National Autism Awareness Month is an opportunity to raise awareness and speech and communication disorders. When it comes to autism, improved communication is just one of the benefits speech therapy provides. It also helps with a number of other issues. For instance, integrating into the community, building relationships, and everyday interacting with others.
Autistic children can face a number of communication challenges, with varying degrees. From having a difficult time with a typical conversation, understanding phrases in different contexts, to not talking or making eye contact.
How can speech therapy help autistic children?
Techniques
Autistic children are all unique, there isn’t a blanket treatment that can be applied. The techniques depend on the challenges each individual child is facing.
“All children with autism have social communication problems. Knowing which one your child has will help the SLP find the best treatment. While being non-verbal is not considered a defining trait of autism, speech and language delay is often one of the first signs – and SLPs are best equipped to give an in-depth look at your child’s abilities.” American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, ASHA.
Verbal communications involve:
Making sounds and speaking words
Improve articulation and intelligibility
Have conversations
Ask and answer questions
Ask for help
Take turns in a conversation
Start or stop a conversation
Benefits
Speech therapy helps children with autism communicate in both non-verbal and verbal ways. Such as paying attention to what others do, play and get along with others, understand and use gestures like pointing, and following directions.
Understanding social cues is very important. Speech therapy can help a child understand context and idioms, as well as build relationships and integrating into society. This can help your child make and keep friends, play with others, share toys, understand how others feel, focus with someone on the same object or event.
It is always better to start speech therapy as early as possible, but it has been proven beneficial at any age.
Autistic children can benefit from speech therapy in many ways. Improving their ability to form a good rapport with those in their life and improvement in their overall communication skills, both verbally and nonverbally.
First Words Therapy provides a personalized approach to speech care. We support both children and their families affected with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
