When Candi Carter, a producer at "The Oprah Winfrey Show", learned that her son, Emerson, was born with chromosome 8p, which causes heart defects, mental retardation, severe speech delay, and other issues, she was immediately thrust into the world of special needs parenting. Like many in her position, she learned quickly that her child's…

Presents evidence showing that there is no need, in planning or implementing a language program for a retarded child, to exclude nonoral communication. Concludes that consistently supplementing spoken language with nonoral communication systems will not inhibit spoken language development but may well facilitate spoken language by providing a…

The literature regarding cognitive prerequisites to communication development for nondisabled and disabled children is reviewed. Issues related to providing communication teaching programs for severely disabled children are discussed, and specific intervention strategies related to introduction of augmentative and alternative communication systems…

This paper discusses the historical context of communication and language intervention and critiques three widely used interventions. It advocates a cross-paradigmatic approach because its inherent flexibility fits with what is known about language acquisition, the nature of different intervention approaches, and human development. This approach…

An active role is recommended for family members involved in rehabilitation of cognitive communicative impairments of head-injured individuals. The paper discusses family systems theory, dysfunctional family reactions to the cognitive communicative behaviors of the head-injured member, and methods of assisting the family to develop the…

This paper discusses ideas for teachers to increase successful comprehension of their questions by language delayed students. Three kinds of questioning techniques are described. Most often used by teachers are "WH-words" (e.g., who, what, how). Noun-verb reversal (e.g., Can you come to the group?) follows in amount of usage. The least used…

A discussion of language disorders that often occur with learning disabilities focuses on definitions, characteristics, alternative assessment methods, and service delivery models and interventions. Use of standardized test batteries, curriculum-based language assessment, and portfolio assessment is reviewed. Principles and methods to enhance…