Seizures, seizure-related factors and anti-seizure medications can affect a young person with epilepsy’s communication. Here, you’ll find some useful learning strategies for addressing the difficulties they can experience.
Communication
The difficulties young people with epilepsy may experience include:
- Listening to, and understanding, what’s being said to them
- Finding the right words to express themselves and make themselves understood
Strategies that you may find useful include:
- Speak clearly and slowly
- Be specific
- Be aware of non-verbal communication
- Allow more time and check that the young person has understood
- Offer models of correct responses instead of correcting incorrect responses
- Repeat things and rephrase them
- Avoid closed questions
- Group work and role play
- Teach keywords
- Use visual prompts to reinforce speech and keywords, e.g. tangible objects, photos, pictures and symbols
- Picture exchange communication systems (PECS), Makaton and Signalong
