Communication is at the heart of WHY we use language. As a Fort Myers child speech therapist, I recognize social communication skills as fundamental in language learning and development.

A significant portion of early intervention speech therapy sessions (especially for children with conditions like autism spectrum disorder) focus on social communication – which may or may not mean actual words. You’ll likely hear your child speech therapist refer to social communication as “pragmatic skills.” This refers to the use of language in social context. Functional social communication enables kids to interact appropriately and effectively with others.

Examples of social communication include:

• Use of language for different purposes in social interactions. Most commonly, these involve greeting, informing, demanding/requesting, and promising.
• Altering language according to the listener’s needs or situation. We don’t speak to small children the way we talk to adults. Kids don’t speak to each other the way they do to their teacher. We don’t use the same tone or volume in a classroom that we do a baseball game. The use of certain politeness markers (ex: please, thank you, excuse me) may be more important in some situations than others. Learning to recognize when our language needs to be adjusted to the listener or situation is a key social communication skill.
• Following rules for conversations or storytelling. This involves things like taking turns in conversations, introducing topics, staying on topic, rephrasing something if misunderstood, use of verbal/non-verbal signals and understanding/using humor, sarcasm and figurative language. Lots of kids struggle with this, but it can be especially difficult for kids with differing abilities.

When kids interact with parents, siblings, peers and teachers, they’re continually learning the nuances of communication. As they develop vocabulary and improve language comprehension, they’re cognitive skills advance and they become more confident in social interactions.

Ultimately, these pragmatic skills factor big time for development, both socially and academically. That’s why your Fort Myers child speech therapist is going to spend a lot of time on it. It’s also fairly simple for parents to incorporate practice opportunities for their kids in everyday interactions and routines.

Child Speech Therapist Strategies for Practicing Social Communication

Some of the at-home strategies a child speech therapist may recommend for a child whose goals include targeting pragmatic skills:

• Modeling good communication. Make the effort to intentionally use eye contact, take turns speaking, demonstrate empathy/understanding different perspectives, etc.
• Engage in role-playing. Dream up scenarios for your child to practice different social situations. Ex: Pretend we’re at a restaurant and I’m the waiter and it’s your turn to order. Adjust for the child’s age, abilities and language goals.
• Read together. This one we cannot underscore enough!! Choose books that are going to highlight social interaction. Discuss the conversations the characters share. Ask open-ended questions about the story. (If they aren’t yet verbal – still ask those questions, and answer them yourself.) Pause longer on the page than you think is strictly necessary. Sometimes kids with language processing issues need a few more beats to connect the words being said with the pictures and situations on the page.
• Encourage play dates. Plan as many play dates as possible. Siblings can be great, but the more social interaction your child has with peers their own age, the better.
• Teach nonverbal communication. Play games that involve guessing emotions based on facial expressions or body language.

Also, we recommend positive reinforcement whenever possible. Praise your child anytime they use good social communication.

Keep in mind too: Language learning is a marathon, not a sprint. It’s going to take time, support, and patience. Working with a Fort Myers child speech therapist from FOCUS Therapy can go a long way toward helping your child reach their goals.

FOCUS offers child speech therapy in Fort Myers, Florida. Call (239) 313.5049 or Contact Us online.

Additional Resources:

In their own words: The impact of subtle language and communication difficulties as described by autistic girls and boys without intellectual disability, July 22, 2021, Autism

More Blog Entries:

Fort Myers Speech Therapist on Cochlear Implants and Speech-Language Development, July 1, 2024, Fort Myers Pediatric Speech Therapy Blog