In my last blog I discussed each of the four Hanen conversational styles; the social style, the reluctant style, the own agenda style and the passive style. In this blog I will go over some strategies that are most effective for each communication style.
Conversational Styles:
The Sociable Child
Children with this communication style are typically easy to engage in play and conversation. You can choose to be as directive as necessary to achieve the goals set for therapy. Imaginative play such as pretending to eat at a tea party or fly characters through the air can be really engaging tasks for children with this style. These tasks often fit with the stage of communication and play that these early communicators are in.
The Reluctant Child
As children with the reluctant style seldom initiate conversations, it is important to follow their lead in play and find out what they are interested in playing with. That way you can engage them in a toy they have chosen which will increase the chances of them staying with that task.
The Own Agenda Child
Children with their own agenda like to play by themselves and show little interest in engaging with others. For this reason a turn taking game that requires your input is a good way to get them interested in a task that you can also be involved in. These types of tasks also help to improve their social skills and help to develop turn taking and eventually conversational turn taking.
The Passive Child
As a passive child seldom responds to others attempting to initiate conversation, it is often necessary to ‘Intrude’ into their world and make yourself a part of their game. People games such as peek-a-boo can be a great way to do this!
For more information on this topic or any speech related fields, contact the ENT Clinic on 1300 123 368 and make an appointment with our speech pathologist Ashleigh Fattah.
