“What do you mean?”

“Get to the point?”

“Are you being sarcastic?”

“What are you trying to say?”

“Are you joking?”

We hear these questions all the time. Why? Because we constantly use inferences, humor, sarcasm, slang and non-literal language to communicate. The style of language we use paints an auditory picture of our personalities. It helps make us who we are. The tricky thing is, some people have a difficult time interpreting non-literal language, especially those with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

I have the wonderful opportunity to shadow and engage in speech-language therapy with one of my friends at her typical school setting five mornings a week. I find myself wearing many hats as an SLP in order to help my friend succeed but a lot of the time, I consider myself her “Non-Literal Language Interpreter.” Her teachers use TONS of non-literal language embedded in their verbal instructions and especially within their classroom rules. Here are some of my “favorites”:

“Catch a bubble” or even “Bubble” for short
“Who is ready?” “Who is not ready?” “Bobby is ready.” “Katie is not ready.”
“Good choices” “Sad choices”

These phrases are very difficult for my friend to understand. Sometimes she will become upset when she does not understand or will loudly echo the language. Other times she will simply not follow the direction or will ignore the direction. She is sending the signal of, “I don’t understand, help me out here!” I find myself frequently whispering the literal interpretation in her ear. Since my friend thinks in pictures and is a visual learner, I have also made a sort of “Cheat Sheet” of some of the non-literal phrases commonly used in her classroom with the literal interpretation and some stick figure drawings to help with comprehension. So my cheat sheet has:

“Catch a bubble” = “Quiet mouth”
“Ready” = “Good listening”
“Not ready” = “Not listening”
“Good choices” = “Good listening. Good quiet. Good sitting”
“Sad choices” = “Not listening. Loud mouth. Wiggly.”

Sure, it is still difficult sometimes for my friend to be quiet, sit criss-cross and to listen to the teachers at all times but at least she understands what they are saying. This is just the introduction to the non-literal world to my friend and honestly, it scares me to think of where this non-literal world will lead and the challenges it will bring. I then remind myself that there is power in understanding what my friend understands and where her comprehension breaks down. This power will lead to me and her team being able to help her. I have a feeling within the next year or so, she will begin to tell some simple children’s jokes and maybe even use an idiom or two. This will help her fit in with her peers. This will help create an auditory picture of her personality. This will help her be an active part of the world. Will it take work for her to get there? Yes. Will she get there? Yes.

Next time you are with your family or friends, take a note of the endless amount of non-literal language we all use. Then, think about how difficult it would be for a person with ASD to understand you and to be an active part of your conversation. Next time you find yourself with a person with ASD or with language comprehension difficulties, be a good friend/parent/teacher/therapist/grandparent/sibling and “get literal.”

~Laura & Amanda
KidSpeak, LLC
www.kidspeakdallas.com