Non-Speech Communication... We Do It All the Time!

How Do We use Non-Speech to Communicate?

It Looks Like This....

Notice the little signs that others give you!



We Gesture all the time......

• Eye contact or eye gaze- A toddler may gaze at an object of interest out of his reach that he would like to play with.

• Pointing at things to show interest- A child may use a point to indicate he is interested in something.


• Facial expressions-. We all use facial expressions to communicate our feelings to others. A child that is happy will have a different expression than a child who is angry, sad, scared, etc.


• Body Language/Movements- These are SO important! Children with speech delays often use body language or movements to try to communicate.


• Gestures- In addition to pointing, a child may use gestures to try to communicate with you, like gesturing towards the fridge when he is thirsty.


• Tone of voice, vocal volume, pitch and inflection- Even when a child is using little to no real words, often times we can use their tone, volume, pitch or inflection to help figure out what they are trying to say.


• Whining, grunting, and other non speech noises- Often times littles ones with speech delays will use a combination of these with other nonverbal communication to try to communicate. The tone of these grunts and noises (as mentioned above) could give us more information on what our child is trying to communicate.