A few years back I took in a child who was 4 years old and didn’t speak.  During the initial interview, his parents told me they had spoiled him, and felt he wasn’t speaking because they babied him and he really had no need to speak.  The child was very busy during the interview, but not unruly. 

The child started with me the next Monday, and boy was I unprepared.  Not only did the child not speak, but he didn’t listen to anything that anyone said to him.  He bit, he pulled hair, he screamed, he tried to carry food and drinks all over the house; he had no boundries nor did he have any communication skills whatsoever.

I spoke with his parents later that evening when they arrived, and they told me that they were in the process of getting approval from their insurance to have him tested and evaluated for autism, but that it would be some time before they would have any information.  I told them that I wished they would have told me this during the interview, and that I wasn’t trained to care for a child with autism, but that I would do what I could for them in the mean time.

There was no doubt about it, I needed to find a way to communicate with this child.  After some research, I found a wonderful sign language program called, “Signing Time - The best baby sign language videos!“  This program opened up an entire new world for this child.  With the bright, vibrant colors, bouncy music, and hand motions, he was completely intrigued and found a wonderful way to communicate with others.  He caught onto the signs very, very quickly and began using them immediately.  It was amazing to watch the temper tantrums disappear and see a happy child emerge.

Now, I don’t suggest that sign language is the key to communicating with all autistic children, but it certainly was for this child.  He is no longer in my care as he did need special help that I couldn’t give, but the sign language still plays a huge part of his life.  I’m thankful that I had the privilege to be a part of that.