I speak fluent “Jonah.”
I can tell you what he means when he says “I want broken the windy!” (Make the wind stop)
I know what it REALLY means when he says “I want French Fries!” (I need immediate redirection or I will have a meltdown)
Or “All done working!” (This thing isn’t working and I want it fixed!)
When Jonah was completely nonverbal, I could interpret the sounds of his grunts and decipher the intonation of his shrieks and squeals.
I knew his nonverbal cues SO well that when he was laughing in his sleep, I could tell you exactly why.
It’s important to be able to understand what Jonah is saying…
But the most important thing to communication is listening to what’s NOT being said.
[love this from Stories About Autism]