It’s April 2nd – World Autism Day, the commencement of Autism Month. We used to “celebrate” with blue lights. I haven’t heard much about them in recent years. What I have heard, however, are the same things over and over: Autism is just a few quirks, and not a real issue (it is!). The autism numbers are due to better diagnosing and the increase isn’t real (it really is!). And, even if the increase is real, it’s nothing to be concerned about (it really, really is!). 

Seen But Not Heard

I too have been saying the same things, forever and ever (and ever and ever and ever). Autism comes with real challenges and families need help. Autism is a crisis and the needs are overwhelming available resources. Severe autism is often glossed-over and overlooked. Our kids are human beings who deserve actual support, not blue lights and bubbles. We autism parents have tried to be a voice for our children (especially those who can’t communicate). But it often feels like our cries fall on deaf ears.

So I thought I’d focus on something a little different this month …

A lot of our nonverbal kids have been using something called Spelling to Communicate (S2C) as a means of communication, with nothing short of miraculous results. I first learned about S2C at the 2018 TACA East Coast Conference at a presentation by Austin Moore from ReClif, a fitness-based therapy center in Georgia. He described how he was having success helping individuals with autism communicate using a letterboard.

A “New” Way To Communicate

Many nonverbal individuals with autism lack the ability to speak because of motor issues. The basic idea behind S2C is that in addition to apraxia of speech, most nonverbal individuals may also have ocular apraxia. Spelling on the letterboard strengthens the ocular-motor pathways in the brain and eventually leads to purposeful communication through spelling. This is an obviously very simplistic explanation, but more information can be found at The International Association for Spelling as Communication and at Spellers. There is also a really good article about how impactful this has been to the nonspeaking community here.

I looked into this for my son Christopher (who has severe autism and is mostly nonverbal) after the conference. We were lucky enough to have S2C available locally, but at the time Christopher wasn’t old enough. So, I added S2C to my list (it’s a long list lol). Then the COVID-related events of the last few years gave us the opportunity to learn more about S2C, to travel to see practitioners that were out of our area, and to begin our own spelling journey. Christopher is not yet “open” (which is the term used to describe when a speller is communicating independently, spelling little prompts or assistance). But we’ve seen so much progress over the last 3 years that we are confident that we will get there! We are already blown away by what he has communicated, and so excited to see what else he has to say.

Listen With Your Heart

For Autism Month, I typically have a theme (Ask the Experts, This is My Autism, Stories of Hope, Hey Have Your Tried) that features guest bloggers, usually autism parents. But I am so encouraged on our spelling journey by what other spellers have shared. So I thought that it would be a great idea to feature THEM this month. So many in the autism community have been without a voice for so long.

I am honored to share what spellers have to say in his month’s series, called In Their Own Words. I hope that you’ll listen, and that the world will listen – not just with ears but with a full heart. Because everyone deserves a voice, and everyone deserves to be heard – now, and forever and ever ♥