Stronger Together: Working Together with Families to Support Social Communication Development
July 6, 2021 By: Sara Silva, STARS Coach
Last month we began the conversation around the critical development of social communication as the precourser to children’s language and literacy development. We explored the First Words Project’s look books that we can access and share with families and staff. Let’s go a step further and engage families in learning more about social communication milestones with the support of Baby Navigator.
Families can register with Baby Navigator to get timely information on their child’s development, watch videos about what different milestones look like, and participate in social communication screenings. Baby Navigator also provides access to the First Words Project’s look books and provides access to printable Social Communication Growth Charts. These growth charts are a great resource for both families and early childhood professions as they provide a picture of milestones for children 1-24 months of age. Each printable chart simply looks at language, play, social interaction, emotional regulation, and self-directed learning developmental milestones.
Baby Navigator was developed by First Words Project and Autism Navigator, so it provides access to great resources on the early signs of autism and educational resources on the autism spectrum. One of their easily accessible resources is the 16 by 16: 16 Early Signs of Autism by 16 Months look book. Soon they will also have 16 by 16: 16 Early Signs of Language Delay by 16 Months. We can also access family informational handouts (available in English, Spanish, and Creole) including:
- Milestones that Matter Most
- How Parents Can Support Social Communication Development
- Everyday Activities of Toddlers and Their Families: Making Every Moment Count
- The Importance of Early Intervention
- Critical Information for Parents of Young Children with Social Communication Delays
- What is Autism Spectrum Disorder and
- Checklist of 16 Early Signs of Autism
Additionally, Baby Navigator can link us to Autism Navigator where we can access free webinars on the autism spectrum, free and paid training courses (for professionals and families), ASD video glossary (which shows examples of typical and red flag behaviors as well as common treatments available for children on the autism spectrum) and virtual community for families.
