How to Make Communication Boards:

Communication boards are a great, inexpensive way to provide someone with a means to communicate who may not be able to speak yet.  Each board contains several pictures that represent different message that the person may want to say.  The person using the board will then point to what he or she wants.

There is no right or wrong way to make a communication board.  All you need is some pictures that represent basic words or thoughts that a person might want to communicate.  You can grab our pre-made AAC Communication Boards inside The Hub or make your own by grabbing pictures from Google Image Search and copy/pasting them onto a word document.

Who Can Use Communication Boards?

Communication boards are used by children and adults who have a hard time speaking.  This includes children with autism or apraxia as well as adults who have aphasia as a result of a stroke.  Communication boards are easy and cheap to put together so they are a great option when you’re not sure what type of alternative communication method will be right for the person you’re working with.

AAC Starter Kit

Pre-Made Communication Boards

Communication Boards and Training Videos on How to Use

How to Make an Inexpensive Communication Board from a Baking Sheet:

This video will teach you how to create a simple communication board from a cookie sheet, magnetic tape, and pictures.  You will also learn how to use a communication board to help those who cannot speak, such as those with autism, apraxia, or aphasia.

Words to Include on Communication Boards

It’s important to include words on a communication board that can be used in a lot of different situations.  We call these “Core Words”.  For example, a word like “go” can be used to make a whole lot of different things go, or to indicate that the person themself wants to go somewhere.  But the word “cookie” can really only be used to indicate that one very specific food.  Instead, we could use a word like “eat” that would allow the person to communicate about a variety of foods.

Here are some great examples of Core Words to use on communication boards:

  • I
  • you
  • want
  • look
  • my turn
  • eat
  • hurt
  • where
  • I like
  • I don’t like
  • drink
  • bathroom
  • what
  • help
  • no
  • happy
  • mad
  • sad
  • tired
  • go
  • stop
  • more
  • again
  • leave
  • all done

How Do I Teach Someone to Use Communication Boards?

You can teach someone to use a communication board by simply showing them how to do it.  When you’re speaking to the child, point to some of the pictures as you talk.  This will give the child a great model of how the board is meant to be used.  For example, you can say “do you want a banana?” as you point to the banana picture, or even the “want” picture and then the “banana” picture.

For more information and help, check out my other post all about teaching a child to use a communication device or system:

How to Teach Communication Devices to Children

AAC Starter Kit

AAC Starter Kit

Everything You Need to Trial AAC with a Child

AAC Devices Course

AAC Devices Course

Guide to Using AAC with Non-Speaking Children

 

Free Therapy Materials for Teaching Words with AAC:

Check out the freebies that we have inside our Free Therapy Material Library!

Tips for Encouraging Children to Use an AAC Device/System

6 Tips for Encouraging a Child to Use their AAC System

AAC Cheat Sheet

AAC Cheat Sheet

AAC and Autism Resource Guide

AAC and Autism Handout: Giving a Child a Voice with AAC

Carrie Clark, Speech-Language Pathologist

About the Author: Carrie Clark, MA CCC-SLP

Hi, I’m Carrie! I’m a speech-language pathologist from Columbia, Missouri, USA. I’ve worked with children and teenagers of all ages in schools, preschools, and even my own private practice. I love digging through the research on speech and language topics and breaking it down into step-by-step plans for my followers.

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