Communication is about much more than speech. It also includes nonverbal methods such as facial expressions and gesture. For successful communication we need to be able to do a number of things including being able to listen, knowing how to take turns and being able to gauge whether the other person is understanding us.

Does Down Syndrome Affect Communication?

Most people with Down syndrome are great communicators. Babies with Down syndrome tend to engage in babbling and turn taking from a fairly early age and most children demonstrate a desire to interact socially.

It is quite common for children and adults with Down syndrome to demonstrate speech difficulties. There is no definitive answer as to why this occurs but possibilities include:

- anatomical differences in the mouth/jaw
- speech motor difficulties
- hearing difficulties
- smaller verbal short term memory spans
- intellectual impairment

Research has shown us that people with Down syndrome often have much better receptive language than expressive language - that is, they can often understand a lot more than they can tell us.

What Can Be Done to Support Better Communication?

- Speech Therapy is recommended for children with speech delays and difficulties. In Queensland this can be accessed free of charge for children with disabilities from birth to 6 years through Family and Early Childhood Services (FECS), a service provided by the Department of Communities. You can find more information about the services provided by the Department of Communities here.

- The use of visual supports can be very useful. Research has shown that children with Down syndrome are often visual learners, so the use of symbols and pictures for communication can be of great benefit. You can download a low resolution version of our guide to visual supports here.

- Many children with Down syndrome use Key Word Sign (formerly Makaton) to support communication. This is a form of sign language that uses only the signs for key words in combination with speech. You can get more information about Key Word Sign at the Key Word Sign Australia website here.

- Many children and adults with Down syndrome are also successfully using technology to support communication. The proloquo2go program is accessible on the iPod Touch or iPad and is a leading development in communication technology. You can find more information about it here.

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