This chapter provides evidence-based supports for communication, social skills, and for using restricted patterns of interests and activities educationally for students with autism. Supports for receptive language, expressive language, Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS), visual supports, social narratives, and augmentative and…

The effects of adult questioning on children's novel word acquisition during storybook reading were investigated. Three-year-olds were assigned to one of three conditions: vocabulary eliciting questions, noneliciting questions, and no questions (control). General vocabulary comprehension and novel word knowledge were equivalent across the groups…

Describes a method of altering auditory input (Altered Auditory Input) and a structured set of listening tasks (Language Webs) for use with children who have language delays or impairments. The parameters of rate, prosody, and pattern of pausing are modified in the Altered Auditory Input (AAI) technique and Language Webs offer redundant,…

The subject of this case report is a two-year, seven-month-old girl with de Lange syndrome, normal intelligence, and age-appropriate language skills. She demonstrated initial delays in gross motor skills and in receptive and expressive language but responded well to intensive speech and language intervention, as well as to physical therapy.…

The monograph describes a systematic attempt to develop language behavior in a nonverbal autistic 4.5-year-old boy who was essentially unresponsive to environmental stimuli of any kind. The 45-session intervention focused on teaching him to attend, increasing his responsiveness to people, effecting discriminative responses to a variety of…

Landau-Kleffner syndrome is characterized by difficulty in receptive or expressive language, abnormal electroencephalograms, and seizures. This article describes the primary and secondary characteristics of children with this syndrome and offers educators a framework for intervention techniques. These include using predictable language, creating…

The article describes language development techniques used with a 5-year-old autistic boy to increase his verbal behavior. Intervention consisted of 1.5 hour sessions four times a week over an 8-month period. The intervention focused on increasing nonvocal imitation, vocal imitation, verbal labeling, and verbal discrimination. Development of…

This final report summarizes the activities and findings of a research project which developed a model program for preschoolers "at risk in language." A total of 22 children, including 17 children "at risk" and 5 peers, participated in the program; the children served by the project showed increased facility with language in…

This report presents the activities, accomplishments, and outcomes of a study of the long-term outcomes of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) interventions with individuals with severe communication disabilities. The study evaluated long-term outcomes for 7 young men (ages 19-23 years) who had used AAC systems for at least 15 years.…