My previous blog summarized the 3 key principles to stimulate communication. Here are actual examples for each of the 3 key areas:

I. ‘Get what you want’.

1.    ‘Oh my, this is yummy / fun!’

Eat (Relish!) his favourite snack or play his favourite toy without offering.

Wait for your child to indicate interest and prompt him to make his best attempt (sign, gesture, sound, word, or sentence) to ask for it and reward him with it immediately.

2.     Visible but not reachable.

Put his favourite toys or objects somewhere visible but not reachable. Control access to toys, food, and computer mouse or touchscreens.

Wait for your child to indicate interest and prompt your child to make her best attempt (sign, gesture, sound, word, or sentence) to ask for it and reward him with the toy immediately.

3.     Interrupt an activity she is enjoying (favourite song, playground activity, video etc).

Wait for your child to indicate her wish to continue. Prompt her to make her best attempt (sign, gesture, sound, word, or sentence) to ask for it and reward her with the toy immediately.

II. ‘Avoid what you don’t want.’

4.     Offer a food you know he doesn’t like.

Prompt your child to make her best attempt (sign, gesture, sound, word, or sentence) to refuse it and reward him by removing the food immediately. (You can replace it with his favourite food!)

5.     Continue with an activity that he no longer wants e.g. staying at the table when he wants to leave, playing with the same toy when he is no longer interested etc.

Prompt your child to make his best attempt (sign, gesture, sound, word, or sentence) to refuse it or ask for an alternative (e.g. “Go!”) and reward him by discontinuing the undesired activity immediately.

6. ‘Hey, it’s mine!’

Take your child’s belonging for yourself, or give it to someone else e.g. put on his cap, or give his shoes to his sister.

Prompt your child to make his best attempt (sign, gesture, sound, word, or sentence) to protest or stake his claim (e.g. “It’s mine!”) and reward him by returning the object immediately.

III ‘You’re smart, tell me what to do.’

7.    Play a familiar toy a wrong way e.g. assemble a toy the wrong way, give him a puzzle that doesn’t fit etc

Prompt your child to make his best attempt (sign, gesture, sound, word, or sentence) to enlighten you and reward him by doing what he says!

8.    ‘Forget’ something. ‘Forget’ to give him an object he needs, or pretend you don’t know which object to use e.g. give him ice cream without a spoon, or ask him what to use to cut his favourite cake etc

Prompt your child to make his best attempt (sign, gesture, sound, word, or sentence) to enlighten you and reward him by giving him what he needs!

9.     ‘The earth is flat.’ Say something he can refute, call him by his sister’s name, refer to yourself with a different name etc

You now know some of the best therapy techniques for stimulating speech!

You know what to do to get your child to talk and interact with you.

As you put them into practice, you will get a better sense of the finer points of how to apply the techniques.

Please remember to apply the techniques with love and support- they are not meant to be forced or negative. Having a say in life should be a positive experience.

Please share your successes as you make the techniques a part of your life. It’s a great way to validate yourself and your child.

To your success!