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icommunicate Guide Child Information Special Needs Behaviour
icommunicate Guide Child Information Special Needs Behaviour
| Behaviour & Communication |
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Many children with communication delay or learning difficulties often display inappropriate or challenging behaviour. Although there are many reasons for this type of behaviour, it can often be linked to a breakdown in communication when the child is unable to express himself, or he does not understand what he has to do. Often a lack of understanding is overlooked as a cause of challenging behaviour because the individual appears to understand what is going on around him. Some individuals become adept at following contextual clues and have a memory of certain routines, and they are not necessarily following the verbal instruction. For this reason it is important that we monitor our own language and use other cues such as gesture or visuals when giving instructions. We can also follow the Minimal Speech approach and just use one or two key words in an instruction or request. There are many ways to adapt your communication to help individuals understand. You must have an awareness that the individual’s receptive language may be more delayed than you realize. It is important to get the child assessed by a qualified speech and language therapist / pathologist and an educational psychologist. However, there are many things we can do to try and change or replace challenging or inappropriate behaviour. To start with we, can observe and note when challenging behaviour occurs and look for the triggers. This might mean keeping a record of events. We must also look for subtle cues that the child may give prior to exhibiting a behaviour because there may be warning of a tantrum before it happens. Through Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) we can find triggers and then develop strategies to replace unwanted behaviours. Although this website is about communication, we recognise the connection between communication and behaviour. icommunicate is keen to develop strategies to facilitate communication and behaviour through the use of ABA. To find out more about strategies relating to communication and behaviour visit our Downloads Centre and look for articles such as, the use of Visuals, PECS, Intensive Interaction, the Minimal Speech approach. To find more information and resources relating to Special Needs and communication visit our Resource Centre. You can also look at, and purchase a large variety of books relating to Children with Special Needs, and facilitating the communication, learning, and behaviour of individuals with special needs, at our Online BookShop. |
