Resource Manual for Children with Communication Disorders (3 - 8 Years) on Multi sensory Skills

Abstract

Multi-sensory instruction refers to any learning activity that includes the use of two or more modalities to receive or express information. Children with communication disorders often demonstrate deficits in one or more sensory modalities. Multi sensory approach capitalizes on their strengths to stimulate learning by engaging students on multiple levels. The sensory modalities often focused in multi sensory training include visual, auditory, tactile, kinesthetic and olfactory modalities. In India, where there is a large population of persons with communication disorders, such a training package is not available in any of the languages. Speech therapists and parents involved in treating children with communication disorders do not have access to any ready-made material that incorporates a multi sensory approach. Hence, there is a need to develop a resource manual that acts as a guide and enables the therapist and parents I caregivers to improve or train multisensory skills in children with communication disorders. The manual is one of the first attempts at helping parents and caregivers help their children develop multi sensory skills. The structure of the manual has been so arranged so as to facilitate the parents/caregivers to first assess their child's sensory strengths and weakness in various senses. The assessment has been made easy through a simple questionnaire that assesses the various sensory skills. This will give the parent/caregivers a good idea about which sensory skill is lacking/ deficient and needs to be worked upon. They can move onto the appropriate sections in the subsequent part to develop/improvise the respective sensory skill using activities and suggestions in the section.