Lesson 3: Expressing Needs with Communication
- Alicia Schott
- Mar 3
- 9 min read
Updated: Mar 27
Introduction
Do you ever feel like pulling your hair out when your toddler does not seem to listen to you or understand you? Does it seem like there is a barrier that is keeping you from being able to communicate successfully with your toddler? If so, you are not alone. Communication can be hard for toddlers with developmental delays. For many parents, a toddler’s tantrum can feel like a mystery. Is your child hungry, tired, or simply overwhelmed? When communication isn’t clear, frustration builds—for both parents and children. Toddlers with lower expressive language abilities have more tantrums (Manning et al., 2019). But what if there was a way to reduce these misunderstandings? By introducing basic sign language and teaching your toddler to point to what they want, you can help them express their needs more effectively, leading to fewer meltdowns and a more peaceful home environment.
Communication
Communication is a vital skill that allows children to express their needs, build relationships, and engage with the world around them. It involves sharing meanings through a variety of verbal and nonverbal methods, including spoken and signed language, written words, symbols, and gestures. For young children, learning to communicate is a social process that starts with close interactions with caregivers and gradually expands to include peers and other adults. From birth, parents can support communication development by responding to their baby's sounds, turning coos and babbles into 'conversations,' and talking about objects and actions in the child's environment (Hoff, 2006). These early interactions lay the foundation for understanding and using language. While typically developing children often adapt naturally to communication cues, children with special needs may need more support and guidance to build effective communication skills.
Children with developmental delays may follow a slightly different path to developing communication skills compared to their peers. While it's a similar process overall, it may take more time and support. The timeline, outcomes, and need for specific teaching methods can vary widely. Researchers suggest that many factors, such as cognitive development, motor skills, sensory processing, attention, social engagement, and motivation, can influence how and when a child learns to communicate (Kaiser et al., 2001). Strong communication skills are especially important for children with developmental disabilities because they reduce frustration, support social interactions, and help with daily routines. Even though communication can be challenging, with the right support, most children with developmental disabilities can make steady progress and develop stronger communication skills over time.
Supporting your child involves creating an environment that meets their specific needs. This might include using tools like visual aids, sign language, or assistive technology. In this lesson, we will explore the importance of gestures and simple sign language in helping to reduce frustration and prevent tantrums that may occur from not being able to communicate. Additionally, repetition and providing opportunities to practice communication in everyday situations are key. By offering individualized strategies and sticking to a constant and supportive approach, you can help your child overcome communication barriers and express themselves more easily.
Take a moment to read these questions and then reflect and record in your journal any thoughts and insights you have. Focus on how you can individualize your toddler’s environment to meet their communication needs.
Do they enjoy sensory play? Do they need sensory input to communicate?
For example, do they need a fidget/sensory toy to help them be focused on what they are feeling or to calm down enough to listen to you?
Do they need a quieter environment to feel comfortable enough to communicate?
Does excess noise cause them to shut down and close in on themselves?
Do they need technological assistance to communicate?
Could a device be used to give them a voice? For instance, there are devices that have symbols, and when the user presses on those symbols, they say what they are. A nonverbal child could use a device such as this to communicate.
Do they need to be taught gestures and signs?
Could your child learn gestures and signs to help them learn how to communicate?
Gestures
Before children start using words, they often communicate using gestures and sounds to express themselves. When my (Alicia) daughters were toddlers, they would reach their arms out for me to pick them up, point to things they wanted, and wave goodbye when someone left the house. Even simple actions like shaking their head ‘no’ or clapping their hands communicated their needs without using words. I also modeled gestures I wanted them to learn. For example, when teaching them that food was hot, I would blow on it and encourage them to do the same. If they wanted something and I couldn’t figure out what, I’d take their hand and say, ‘Show me.’ Before long, they were leading me by the hand and showing me everything they wanted to do and have.
Modeling natural gestures can also enhance communication. Research by Yoder and Warren (2001) supports the idea that early gestures and sounds play an important role in language development. Their study suggests that children who are good at using gestures and vocalizations might have an advantage when it comes to learning actual words because they’ve already been expressing certain ideas nonverbally. Early communication skills, like using gestures and sounds, lay the groundwork for learning language later on. Things like how your child understands and processes information, how complex their vocalizations are, and how much they interact with others all influence how they learn to communicate. These factors work together to help your child build stronger communication skills over time.
Gestures and Sounds
Before using words, kids often use gestures and sounds to get their point across, like pointing to something they want or making noises to show how they feel. Kids who are good at using these gestures and sounds might have an easier time learning words later because they've already been communicating their needs and ideas without words (Yoder & Warren, 2001).
Understanding Communication
Both the way kids use gestures and the way they eventually use words seem to depend on similar ways of thinking. For example, when kids understand that they can get what they want by asking for help or doing something indirectly, it helps them with both gestures and words. Kids who understand these ideas may find it easier to learn words for what they need (Yoder & Warren, 2001).
How vocalizing helps brain development
When kids make more complex and frequent sounds, it helps their brain develop the areas that are important for speech. Research shows that the sounds kids make early on are similar to the words they’ll start using, which suggests that the sounds they make help their brain get ready for speaking (Yoder & Warren, 2001).
Intentional Communication
When kids communicate on purpose, it can lead to more responses from parents, which helps their language grow. Kids who communicate with clear intentions are easier to understand, and parents tend to respond more often, which helps the child develop language faster (Yoder & Warren, 2001).
Now watch this video beginning at 2:17. It provides useful information and tips about incorporating gestures into your toddler's life. Additionally, print and fill out this graphic organizer as you watch the video so you can record your thoughts and insights.
Simple Signs
When working with children who have developmental delays, using a variety of communication methods can make a big difference. According to Shu and Jana (2010) sign language can help in three important ways. First, it helps to reduce frustration by providing your child an alternative way to communicate. Second, it increases the connection between a parent as both can understand each other more clearly. Third, it can support language development, particularly for those with communication delays.
For example, introducing basic sign language can help toddlers express their needs when verbal communication is challenging. Simple signs for common words like "more," "eat," "help," or "all done" can reduce frustration and tantrums by giving children a clear and effective way to communicate their needs. Research conducted by Wright et al. (2013) showed that sign language can be an effective intervention for toddlers with delayed communication skills. Teaching them to sign helped them to begin saying the signed words and to develop their verbal skills.
I (Lauren) had an experience with my niece when she was about 31 months old. She was a bit developmentally delayed compared to other children around her age, and her parents were worried about her. Frankly, all our family was a bit worried because she was not communicating with us yet. She would cry and pout when something bothered her, but we always had to guess the reason for these outbursts. Finally, her parents decided to seek some guidance about how to help her progress in her language skills. They decided to start incorporating sign language into her life. While progress was slow at first, eventually, she began to copy the signs. The relief felt by her parents and everyone else who cared about her was amazing. It was a blessing to see a toddler who has been struggling finally be able to communicate their needs. Sign language may not be the solution for every toddler having difficulty with communication, but it is a useful and effective tool for many.
Trying to incorporate signs into your toddler’s everyday life may seem daunting. There are many signs you could choose to start with. To help you learn some simple beginning signs, watch this video. Even though it mentions that these signs are for babies, the signs are still useful. If your toddler has not learned any signs, then it is good to start with simple ones, such as the ones demonstrated in the video. In addition, a chart from the website Baby Sign Language of signs that can be printed out and used for reference in linked.
Promoting Communication
An essential aspect of communicating with your child is promoting communication. It may sound self-explanatory, but you need to be intentional. You need to motivate your child to communicate. Help them to feel the need to express themselves, and they will try to communicate with you. To help you learn and understand this concept better, read this article and discuss it with someone who is involved with your toddler. Ask them how you can use the tips discussed in the article to help your toddler and promote communication.
Take Action
This lesson is designed to help you apply what you’ve learned into your toddler’s daily life. To help you begin doing this, try to observe the gestures your toddler is already using to communicate. They may be subtle, but if you pay attention, you may be able to notice them. If your toddler is not using any gestures yet, you can begin teaching some of the gestures and simple signs covered in this lesson. Be sure to report in the discussion board your findings and the progress you are making with your toddler. Give an example of teaching your toddler a gesture or sign and then whether or not they learned it. What did you teach them? Were they able to communicate with the sign or gesture? To get to the discussion board, click on the Forum tab.
Conclusion
Supporting your toddler's communication development is a journey filled with patience, creativity, and love. By incorporating simple gestures, basic sign language, and intentional communication strategies into your daily routines, you can help reduce the frustration that often leads to tantrums. Remember, every interaction is an opportunity to model and encourage communication. Celebrate small victories, like when your child uses a sign or gesture to express a need, and build on those successes. With constant support, your child can develop stronger communication skills, leading to a more peaceful home environment. As you participate in the discussion board on the Forum page, reflect on how these strategies can be tailored to meet your child’s unique needs. Your efforts can make a significant difference in helping your child find their voice- whether through words, signs, or gestures.
Continue onto the fourth and final lesson which will focus on the importance of giving choices.
Sources
Hoff, E. (2006). How social contexts support and Shape language development. Developmental Review, 26(1), 55–88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dr.2005.11.002
Shu, J., & Jana, L. (2010, August 27). Baby sign language: These hands were made for talking. HealthyChildren.org. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/These-Hands-Were-Made-for-Talking.aspx
Kaiser, A. P., Hester, P. P., & McDuffie, A. S. (2001). Supporting communication in young children with developmental disabilities. Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews, 7(2), 143–150. https://doi.org/10.1002/mrdd.1020
Manning, B. L., Roberts, M. Y., Estabrook, R., Petitclerc, A., Burns, J. L., Briggs-Gowan, M., Wakschlag, L. S., & Norton, E. S. (2019). Relations between toddler expressive language and temper tantrums in a community sample. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 65, 101070. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2019.101070
Wright, C. A., Kaiser, A. P., Reikowsky, D. I., Roberts, M. Y., & Oetting, J. (2013). Effects of a Naturalistic Sign Intervention on Expressive Language of Toddlers With Down Syndrome. Journal of Speech, Language & Hearing Research, 56(3), 994–1008. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2012/12-0060)
Yoder, P. J., & Warren, S. F. (2001). Relative treatment effects of two prelinguistic communication interventions on language development in toddlers with developmental delays vary by maternal characteristics. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 44(1), 224–237. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2001/019)
Comentarios