Supporting Children's Communication The Play Way: Neurodiversity-affirming, Connection-focused Speech and Language Strategies

This book offers a neurodiversity-affirming speech, language and communication therapy, with accessible strategies that nurture new skills by embracing the characteristics and behaviours that are core to each individual child. Therapy that is truly inclusive needs to be more than just setting language targets and getting children to tick boxes. Supporting Children's Communication The Play Way puts forward a holistic, child-centred therapy that takes into account each child's emotional wellbeing, focus and regulation, allowing for a meaningful connection during each session. The author offers guidance on understanding behaviour, supporting regulation and identifying different play patterns, combining theory with everyday examples to create practical strategies that will easily translate into the daily lives of parents, teachers, therapists and support staff. The book includes accessible information on both language and play development, and how this can be used to create child therapy ideas that nurture new skills in a safe environment, encouraging all children to reach their full potential. By discovering each child's play passions, the reader is shown how these can be incorporated into a neurodiverse-affirming therapy that regulates the nervous system, allowing learning to occur within a happy brain. Aimed at teachers, therapists and support staff in early years childcare settings and schools, as well as parents and carers looking for accessible strategies to support their child at home, this book supports the reader to develop an understanding of neurodiversity and a compassion for difference.