11/13/2025
💬Communication is the process of sharing information, thoughts, and feelings between two or more people through verbal, nonverbal, written, or visual means.
🫱🏽🫲🏾Developing functional communication is one of the most important goals for our learners. Not everyone communicates with words, so our role is to find the method that works best for each individual—empowering them to advocate for themselves and gain independence in their environment.
📓Some key areas of communication programming include:
Manding/Requesting – Expressing wants and needs
Tacting/Labeling – Describing the environment and identifying emotions
Intraverbals – Answering questions or filling in blanks during conversation
Advocacy Skills – Requesting help, asking for a break, or responding “yes” and “no”
🙅🏻♀️Communication is not “owned” by any single profession. Suggesting that we shouldn’t target such a fundamental skill because it’s considered “an SLP’s job” does a disservice to our learners. Every professional supporting a learner plays a vital role in fostering meaningful communication.
🫶🏽When we teach communication, we’re not just teaching words—we’re giving our learners a voice, a choice, and the power to connect with the world around them.
