There are five basic things that need to be in place for communication to occur.

They are:

How – A way… forms
Why – A reason … functions, intents
What – Something to talk about… content
Where – Everywhere … context
Who – A sender and a receiver … partners

Forms . . . The How
Form is how the communication happens. It is the behavior used to communicate. Forms can be:

Vocalizations
Movement cues
Natural context cues
Tactile Cues
Object Cues
Gestures
Pictures (whole/part)
Line drawings
Miniatures
Tangible symbols
Visual sign
Tactile sign
Speech
Written Words
Braille

It is important to learn about communication forms. Once we recognize the communication we can respond to it and begin shaping it into a more formal or easier to understand form of communication.

Functions . . . The Why
What is the purpose? Is it to share information, direct another's attention, request something, ask or answer a question? There has to be a reason “why” we communicate and why children communicate with us.

Early functions or reasons why we communicate are:

Calling or Accessing People
Protesting
Requesting Continuation
Making a Choice

Later developing functions are:

Social greeting
Offering or transferring objects
Repeating
Answering question
Naming or labeling
Commenting
Replying
Requesting information
Additional (joking, lying, convincing, etc)

Content . . . The What
There needs to be something to communicate about. Children first communicate about the here and now, what motivates them and what happens frequently. Content is made up of different people, objects, locations, attributes, states, and actions.

Here are some ways to find more topics or things to talk about.

Talk about now
Talk about past and future
Memory boxes
Experience books
Remnant Books
Calendar
Follow their lead
Observe
Respond
Provide choices
Encourage turntaking

Context . . . The Where
Look at the communication environment. Are there social interactions? Make up a list of inhibitors and facilitators (see form in this section); things that prevent and things that help communication. Consider the child’s health status. Evaluate the environment. Look at things like:

Lighting
Acoustics
Layout of room
Positioning
Distance
Materials
Clutter
People
Time

Partners . . . The Who
Who can and should communicate with the child? Everyone. Communication partners should look for and create opportunities to communicate.

Communication Basics
• Your child must be motivated to communicate.
• Your child must be successful in his/her attempts to communicate.
• Communication is a turn-taking activity.
• Communication occurs with many different persons and in many different contexts.
• Communication is learned during social interactions with another person.
• Social interactions and opportunities to communicate must occur frequently.
• Communication is learned in familiar routines and activities.

This communication introduction was adapted from: “Communication Development” NTAC Parent Workshop, Kathleen Stremel, August 12-14, 1999

The following articles are about communication. Communication is one of the most vital things for our children and is impacted the most by deafblindness.

“CUEmmunication” - written by Sharon Barrey Grassick from the West Australian Deaf-Blind Association. It is a great article on how to communicate with children who are deafblind. 

"NTAC Communication" - Communication helps from over one hundred parents across the nation.

“NTAC Communication Fact Sheets” 28 fact sheets for parents with strategies on communication

"Conversations without Language" - A comprehensive article about how to communicate without words and ways to increase communication.

"Non-verbal Communication: Cues, Signals and Symbols" - An explanation of cues, signals, symbols and the hierarchy of symbols from concrete to abstract.

California Deaf-Blind Services has several facts sheets on communication.
“Creating a Need to Communicate”
“Teaching Body Language”
“Communication: What is he trying to tell me?”
“Touch Cues”
“How to Create a Communication Dictionary”

California Deaf-Blind Services annual communication newsletters
Spring 2002
Fall 2000
Summer 1999 Be sure to read, “Communicating with Bruno” a story from a parent

"Communication Interactions: It Takes Two"- a DB-LINK publication on the basics of communication.

“Expressive Communication" and "Receptive Communication" are two more DB-LINK publications on receptive (what the child receives) and expressive (how the child 'talks' to you) communication. For most of our children the expressive communication is on a different level than the receptive communication. Therefore it is important to understand both 'sides' of communication.

DISH stands for Deafblind Intervention Strategies for the Home,
click here for the intro and index page