Communication and Children with Cerebral Palsy


Original Editor - Roelie Wolting
Top Contributors - Michelle Lee, Kim Jackson, Naomi O'Reilly, Laura Ritchie, Tarina van der Stockt, Admin, Simisola Ajeyalemi, Lauren Lopez, Olajumoke Ogunleye and Evan Thomas


 Introduction 

The information on this page has developed for you from the expert work of Roelie Wolting alongside the Enablement Cerebral Palsy Project and Handicap International Group.

Communication

Communication occurs when a sender transmits a message and a receiver understands the message. An effective communicator independently alternates as a sender and a receiver regardless of the demands of a conversation, including settings (e.g., community, school, work, home), conversational partners, and topics. All methods of communication performance are considered in determining the CFCS level. To find out more about the GFCS have a look at this page.

Methods and Challenges of Communication 

Here are a list of methods of communication and what challenges a child with cerebral palsy may come across:

Method	Challenge
Speaking	Coordination of mouth and tongue muscles/ people do not listen to them
Listening	Concentration
Writing	Fine motor skills
Showing / pointing at pictures	Fine motor skills / hand - eye co-ordination
Making gestures / sign language	Fine motor skills / motor planning
Body language / facial expression	Muscle control of body / face

Here are some examples of specific problems that some children with CP can have when communicating:

Floppy children:

• These children can have problems speaking with a clear voice, because the muscles of the trunk are weak and this influences also the loudness of the speech.

Children with complex disabilities (CP and Intellectual disability):

• They will have problems with understanding as well

If children who have problems with speaking are not given an alternative to speech, they may have difficulty sending a response, and the communication cycle will break down.

Other Methods of Communication 

Here are some other common methods of communication used in society today: