Home Based Speech Language Consulting and Therapy Services

Kay Ely, MA CCC-SLP  Speech Language Pathologist

Tell me

and I will forget

Show me

and I will remember

Involve me

and I will understand

forever....

Confucius

 Seven Reasons Why Your Child Needs Visuals

Children on the autism spectrum (ASD) are wired differently than you or I.  They have excellent visual learning skills and rote memory skills.  They are a wonderful person trapped in a body that has autistic tendencies.  ASD children have processing delays, sensory challenges and difficulty with self-regulation. Their information is organized and processed differently in the brain.  They have difficulty retrieving and sequencing information, picking out important information, and understanding the concept of time. Their thinking is very literal.  Conversation can be very confusing because it’s always changing and unpredictable. They require structure in their lives because they have difficulty with transitions.  When they become anxious with new surroundings, new people, and new expectations, their anxiety may lead to unpleasant behaviors.

By giving the visual aides to help them understand their environment, you will be giving them a pathway to communication and understanding.

1. Visuals are tools for life.  They can be modified and adapted as your child grows into adulthood.  As adults we use visuals every day.  A few examples are calendars, shopping lists, maps, road sign, and recipes.   My gas gauge doesn’t work in my car and I am lost without that visual!  Visuals can be pictures, text, gestures, or manual signs.

We don’t get rid of visuals in a child’s life unless they are able to say they don’t need them anymore.

2.  Visuals give your child structure to their day so events are predictable and    understandable.  When they see the visuals that show them what their day will be like, they can prepare for each activity, which will greatly reduce their anxiety and behaviors. When your child sees you leave the house, they may cry, scream, or even tantrum because they don’t understand what is happening.  By using visuals, you can show your child what is happening (Dad, car, pizza, home, eat).

3.     Visuals give your child maximum success in learning.  They are symbols to assist in linking an image with a vocabulary word to aid in meaning and recall. It allows them to process language, organize their thinking, and remember information.  Visuals clarify the meaning of spoken language.  They see the visual, take in the

information and respond to it.  With a visual, they can go back to it again and again if they need help to understand or remember the information.  Visuals decrease reliance on verbal prompts and can be used over and over. 

Verbal language disappears into the air and is not remembered.  How many times have we said, “I don’t remember you telling me that.”?

 Just because your child is verbal, doesn’t mean he understands.

4.    Visuals will lessen behaviors. Never forget that there is a reason for every behavior and it is your responsibility to find out what that reason is; bright lights, loud or unusual noises, over stimulated by the environment, scratchy clothes, illness, constipation, tired, etc. When you teach your child to use visuals to communicate, the behaviors will lessen.  The majority of behaviors are because they don’t have a way to communicate, plain and simple.             

5. Visuals allow your child to complete multi-step directions with success.  If your child is unable to follow a simple 2-step direction, “Go upstairs and get your shoes,” give them visuals for the task.  This will allow them to understand what they are being asked to do.  Let them take the visual with them so they can remember what they are supposed to get. Don’t we all wish sometimes, that we had a visual when we walk into a room and forget why we are there? They understand what they see better than what they hear, yet we tend to communicate primarily through talking.

6. Visuals allow your child to become more independent at home.  Use visuals to show them where their toys belong, where their clothes go, where the groceries go, etc.  Your child’s independence is the goal you want to achieve.    A child needs independence so they can become independent in the work environment and instill life long skills.

7. Visuals provide a means of communication.  Children begin with core communication to request, seek help, and protest.  As they become older, they need a way to express their feelings, read others emotions, comment on happenings, initiate, maintain and end a conversation, ask questions, use appropriate social skills, and develop appropriate turn-taking. When they improve socially, this will lead them to greater independence with their lives. 

  Temple Grandin thinks in pictures because words are like a second language to her.

Help Open the Door to Your Child’s Communication

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