Autism Speech Therapy Activities at Home — Communication Ideas
Communication differences in autism range widely. Some autistic children are hyperlexic — reading fluently before they communicate expressively. Others are minimally verbal. Many are somewhere between — they have words but use them less flexibly than their vocabulary suggests. Some have rich expressive language but significant difficulty with the back-and-forth of conversation.
The activities below are organised by communication area rather than by verbal ability — choose the activities most relevant to your child's current profile. For a broader view of developmental support alongside communication, the developmental activities guide covers language alongside all other domains.
Present a desired item and wait. Accept any communicative attempt — a look, a reach, a point, a sound, a word, a sign, or a PECS card — as a request, and give the item immediately with a specific response: "You want the car! Here's the car." Mand training (requesting) is the highest priority language target in ABA-based speech therapy because requesting is intrinsically motivated — the child communicates because they want something, not to comply with a demand.
Frequently Asked Questions
What speech therapy activities can I do with my autistic child at home?
Speech therapy activities for autistic children that can be done at home include: mand training (presenting a desired item and waiting for a communicative attempt — a reach, sound, word, or PECS card exchange — before giving it); parallel talk (narrating the child's actions without questioning: 'You're rolling the ball'); expansion (responding to the child's communication by expanding it by one word: child says 'juice', adult says 'more juice'); turn-taking conversation practice (modelled back-and-forth exchanges on a preferred topic); and AAC support activities (practising PECS exchanges, symbol board use, or speech-generating device navigation). Home practice between speech therapy sessions improves generalisation of speech and communication skills — this is the generalisation principle central to ABA and speech therapy.
What if my autistic child is non-speaking or minimally verbal?
Approximately 25 to 30% of autistic children are minimally verbal or non-speaking (American Academy of Pediatrics). This does not mean communication is absent — it means speech is not the current primary modality. Home communication activities for minimally verbal children include: PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System — developed by Bondy and Frost, 1994), which builds intentional requesting through picture card exchanges without requiring speech; core vocabulary symbol boards (laminated boards with high-frequency words represented by symbols); aided language input (the parent models language by pointing to symbols on the board while speaking, without demanding the child do the same); and response to any intentional communication — a gesture, a look, a reach — with immediate acknowledgement and expansion.
What is PECS and how do I use it at home with my autistic child?
PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System), developed by Andy Bondy and Lori Frost (1994), is a systematic communication approach where the child learns to exchange a picture card for a desired item or activity. Phase 1 (the starting phase): place a picture of a highly desired item face-up near the child. When they reach for the real item, physically guide them to pick up the picture card and hand it to you. Immediately give the item and respond verbally: 'Oh, you want the biscuit! Here is your biscuit.' The exchange teaches intentional communication agency. Do not demand eye contact or speech during the exchange — the exchange itself is the communication target. PECS is one of the most researched AAC approaches in autism and is appropriate for any age, including adolescents who are minimally verbal.
How do I build language at home with an autistic child who has some words?
For autistic children who have some words but limited expressive language, home activities to build language include: expansion (respond to every communicative attempt by expanding it by one word without correcting); create communication opportunities deliberately (keep preferred items slightly out of reach so the child needs to request them; pause during routines to create an expectation gap); use visual supports alongside verbal (show the picture card for 'more' when asking if they want more food); and prioritise requesting (mands) above labelling (tacts) in early language work — requesting is more functionally motivating and generalises faster.
What are articulation activities I can do at home with my autistic child?
Articulation activities for autistic children at home include: blowing activities (blowing bubbles, blowing a pinwheel, blowing a feather across a table) that build oral motor awareness and breath control; exaggerated sound play during sensory or physical activity (making the sounds of vehicles, animals, or actions in an animated, playful way); reading aloud together with clear, slightly exaggerated articulation of target sounds; and specific sound games where the target sound is repeated in a motivating context — if the child is working on the 's' sound, practise it during a snake-themed game. Articulation work in autism is often complicated by motor planning differences — always work with a speech therapist's guidance on specific articulation targets, and focus home activities on the sounds already being targeted in sessions.
How do I support receptive language at home for autistic children?
Receptive language — understanding what others say — is built at home through: body parts activities (touch your nose, show me your ears — starting with one familiar body part at a time); object fetch routines (place 2 to 3 objects on a tray and ask 'give me the cup' — wait 5 seconds before helping); simple action commands embedded in routines ('sit down' before dinner, 'stand up' after nappy change, 'come here' before bath); following instructions within familiar books (point to the dog — pointing to pictures in a book the child knows); and two-step instructions once single-step instructions are reliable ('get your shoes and bring them here'). Receptive language is the foundation for expressive language — most speech therapists recommend targeting receptive skills alongside expressive ones.
Is there an app that gives speech therapy activities for autistic children at home?
Yes. GrowthCopter assesses your child's receptive language, expressive language, and social communication across dedicated domains and generates structured daily activities matched to their specific communication profile. Activities include expressive vocabulary building, receptive instruction following, functional communication, and AAC support — all written with step-by-step instructions for parents. The assessment can be retaken every two months as your child's communication develops.
How do I know which speech activities match my autistic child's current communication level?
The right speech activity targets the next skill your child is not yet using independently. GrowthCopter's assessment identifies your child's current receptive language, expressive language, and social communication levels separately — since a child may understand far more than they can express, or have strong single words but no two-word combinations. Activities are generated calibrated to each domain's specific level, not a generic communication age.