The New Year is a time when many think about goals for the upcoming year. So we though it might be a good time for you to think about what goal you might have for your child's communication.
First, we have a happy ending to share. A TapToTalk Mom recently wrote us that she would not be renewing her subscription because, "My son has no further use for this way of communication as he now is quite verbal and talks non-stop!"
We were all thrilled to hear this, and there were certainly a few damp eyes here among the TapToTalk team. We love to hear your stories and your successes are why we do what we do.
Success and goals are very much related. We succeed when we meet a goal. And certainly a non-verbal or partially verbal child who now "talks non-stop" is a success story. But so are these quotes from parents of kids who use TapToTalk:
"My daughter with autism is almost eight years old and is nonverbal. She lights up with a big smile when she pushes a picture and hears the voice request something;"
"My son used it at school starting last year. He was 4 then. He has no trouble using it and only needs occasional cueing to attempt speech attempts while using it. Otherwise he is completely independant with it."
"This is a dream come true! I am a mother of a 9-year-old boy who has ASD. He has some speech but is not that great communicating. This is going to help him so much and it won't even point him out as different because it's a game machine that every child has. Thanks so much from the bottom of my heart for finally making my child feel average!"
"With the TapToTalk, he is now communicating independently."
So how do you set communication goals for your child? Or do you do it at all?
Many times what we hear from parents is a goal that can be stated as, "I hope my child keeps communicating better and better." We call this the "forward progress" goal. In this case, success comes when the child keeps making forward progress in communication, with no particular end goal. Just keep communicating better and better.
We don't mean to imply that you should have low expectations. Quite the contrary. But we think it is important for all of us to appreciate all of the forms success can take. Our goal at TapToTalk is to help kids with speech difficulties reach their full potential. But each child's full potential is different, and each child will take his or her own path forward in communicating. To us, each step forward is a success.
So let's celebrate all of our children's successes!
If you have a TapToTalk idea or story you'd like us to share with other TapToTalk users, please email us at blog@taptotalk.com.
The TapToTalk Team
www.taptotalk.com
blog@taptotalk.com
