🧠 Communication (Key Focus) May Communicate via Sounds, Movement, Facial Expression Autism Level 3

When speech is limited or unavailable, communication happens through the body and senses.
Sounds, movements, and facial expressions are intentional messages, not random actions.

👉 Behaviour is communication.

• Humming, squealing, groaning, crying
   
• Changes in volume, pitch, or rhythm
   
• Repeated sounds (often for regulation or meaning)
   

What they may mean:

• Need for comfort or regulation
   
• Pain, fear, hunger, or overload
   
• Joy, interest, or connection
   

• Approaching or moving away
   
• Pacing, rocking, flapping, freezing
   
• Guiding someone’s hand
   
• Blocking, pushing away, or fleeing
   

What they may mean:

• “I want this / I don’t want this”
   
• “This is too much”
   
• “Help me regulate”
   

• Tension, grimacing, widened eyes
   
• Smiling, laughter, relaxed face
   
• Avoiding eye contact when overwhelmed
   

Facial cues often change before behaviour escalates — they are early signals.

1️⃣ Observe first

• Pause and watch
   
• Look for patterns
   
• Ask: What changed just before this?
   

2️⃣ Respond as if it’s meaningful

• Meet the need (reduce noise, offer food, provide calm)
   
• Don’t ignore or dismiss attempts
   

3️⃣ Mirror & label gently (no pressure)

• “I see you’re uncomfortable.”
   
• “That was loud — let’s make it quiet.”
   

This builds understanding without demanding speech.

4️⃣ Reduce verbal input

• Fewer words
   
• Calm tone
   
• Let the body settle first
   

Music matches sound, rhythm, and movement — the same channels already in use.

Benefits:

• Provides emotional expression
   
• Regulates the nervous system
   
• Creates connection without speech
   

🎧 Familiar music often becomes a conversation of safety.

If someone uses sounds, movement, or facial expression to communicate,
they are already doing their best.

Our role is to listen differently — and respond kindly 🌱

Under high stress or sensory overload, the brain shifts into survival mode.
Language, symbols, and even gestures can temporarily disappear.

This is not refusal and not regression — it’s a protective response.

• No sounds or vocalisation
   
• Reduced movement or frozen body
   
• Loss of gestures or pointing
   
• Blank or tense facial expression
   
• Increased self-regulation behaviours (rocking, humming)
   

The more stressed the nervous system, the fewer communication tools remain available.
 

• Too much talking
   
• Asking questions
   
• Demanding eye contact or responses
   
• Rushing or insisting on tasks
   
• Introducing new strategies during distress
   

1️⃣ Stop talking

• Silence is supportive
   
• Use presence, not questions
   

2️⃣ Lower the sensory load immediately

• Dim lights
   
• Reduce noise
   
• Remove demands
   

3️⃣ Use only familiar supports

• Same calm space
   
• Same music
   
• Same routine
   

New = stressful.

4️⃣ Wait for regulation before interaction

• Communication returns after calm
   
• Don’t push for responses
   

Music works when words don’t.

Best practice:

• One safe, familiar track
   
• Low tempo, predictable pattern
   
• Same volume, same device
   

🎧 Music helps the nervous system come back within reach of communication.

1️⃣ Remove demands
2️⃣ Reduce sensory input
3️⃣ Start familiar calming music
4️⃣ Wait quietly
5️⃣ Re-engage only after calm signs appear

When stress is high, communication is not the priority.
Safety and regulation come first.

Communication will return when the body feels safe again 🌱

When speech is limited — especially under stress — visual and body-based communication stays accessible.
Pictures, real objects, and gestures reduce language load and make meaning immediate and concrete.

• Picture cards: eat, drink, toilet, rest, pain
   
• Now / Next / Finished schedules
   
• Emotion or comfort symbols
   
• One image = one message
   

Tips

• Keep visuals simple and uncluttered
   
• Use the same symbols everywhere
   
• Place at eye level
   

Real objects can communicate better than pictures.

Examples

• Cup = drink
   
• Spoon = food
   
• Towel = bath
   
• Shoes = going out
   
• Blanket = rest
   

Objects are especially helpful when stress is high or vision/attention is limited.

• Pointing
   
• Nodding or shaking head
   
• Hand over hand (only if accepted)
   
• Open palm = stop / wait
   

Important: Accept any natural gesture as valid communication.

Show → Wait → Respond

1️⃣ Show the picture or object
2️⃣ Pause (give processing time)
3️⃣ Watch the response (look, reach, move away)
4️⃣ Act on it immediately

No verbal pressure needed.

Music can anchor meaning when paired consistently.

Examples

• Same song before bath
   
• Same tune for leaving home
   
• Same calm track for rest
   

Over time:
🎶 Sound + visual = understanding

Communication isn’t about words — it’s about being understood.

Visuals, objects, and gestures honour how the brain works right now, not how we wish it worked 🌱

For Autism Level 3, the brain learns through repetition, not explanation.
When words, order, and timing stay the same, the nervous system can predict what’s next — and prediction creates safety.

Change = stress.
Sameness = calm.

• Use one short phrase for each task
   
• Don’t swap words or add extras
   
• Say it the same way, same tone
   

Examples

• “Sit.” (not “Come sit down please”)
   
• “Drink.” (not “Do you want a drink?”)
   
• “Finished.” (always the same end word)
   

Familiar words become signals, not language to process.
 

• Same steps
   
• Same sequence
   
• Same time of day
   
• Same place when possible
   

Example: Morning
1️⃣ Calm music
2️⃣ Wash
3️⃣ Dress
4️⃣ Eat

No reordering, no surprises.

• One picture per step
   
• Same picture every day
   
• Keep visuals visible until the step is done
   

Words + visuals = stronger understanding.

Music is naturally repetitive — perfect for routine-building.

Use:

• Same song for the same activity
   
• Same volume, same device
   
• Start music → do task → stop music
   

🎶 Over time: sound = routine = safety

• Changing phrases
   
• Adding “helpful” explanations
   
• Rushing or skipping steps
   
• Introducing new methods during stress
   

Even small changes can feel big.

Consistency is not rigidity.
It’s kindness for a nervous system that needs certainty.

When words and routines stay the same,
communication improves, overload drops, and trust grows 🌱