Your Questions, Answered
What is spelled communication?
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Spelled communication is a way of expressing thoughts, needs, ideas, and language by spelling words letter by letter, rather than speaking.
It is most often used by individuals who are nonspeaking, minimally speaking, or inconsistently speaking, and who understand language but have difficulty producing speech due to motor planning, sensory, or regulation differences.
The Spellers Method is a specific approach to spelled communication. It is a holistic framework for: understanding nonspeakers, minimal speakers, and unreliable speakers (especially those with autism, apraxia, Down Syndrome, and other related disorders), properly assessing communication needs, appropriately supporting sensory-motor differences, and teaching purposeful motor skills needed to successfully use spelled communication. It is a multidisciplinary approach incorporating expertise from the fields of Occupational Therapy, Developmental Optometry, and Assistive Technology.
Instead of assuming a lack of understanding, the Spellers Method starts with the belief that competence is present, and that many communication challenges are rooted in motor planning, sensory, regulation, and ocularmotor differences—not cognition.
Here’s what that means in practice:
Communication is accessed through spelling (on stencil boards, foam boards, laminated boards, or a keyboard with voice output), which serves as a form of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC).
Providers focus on building the motor skills needed to reliably point, isolate, and sequence movements, rather than expecting speech to emerge first.
Sessions prioritize co-regulation, trust, and relationship, recognizing that communication cannot happen when the nervous system is overwhelmed.
Support is individualized—meeting each speller where they are and adjusting strategies to suit the individual in real time.
Parents and caregivers are coached so communication can continue meaningfully at home, not just in sessions.
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What is The Spellers Method?
This is a common question, and a great one to be asking! While all these methods share the goal of helping nonspeakers access communication, and the methods even share similar tools (like letterboards), they are not interchangeable. There are key differences that are important for you to understand.
FC (Facilitated Communication) is the methodology that came first. Established in the 1970s to help nonspeakers communicate, the most important difference between FC and later methodologies is that the facilitator physical supports the individual’s hand, arm, wrist, or shoulder while they’re spelling.
RPM (Rapid Prompting Method) was developed in the late 1990s–early 2000s by Soma Mukhopadhyay, initially to support her autistic, nonspeaking son in accessing education. As a byproduct, she discovered a method to help her son communicate. Soma paved the way for the next two methodologies that developed, by discovering a critical component: continuous verbal prompting is the key to helping nonspeakers establish, strengthen, and generalize correct motor planning skills. An important distinction: The method is relatively unstructured (in comparison to later methods), allowing providers much more freedom and flexibility in how they support individuals to spell for communication. While that can lead to quicker open communication with the practitioner, it can also make the results difficult to replicate. Many families have reported that while their child can communicate successfully with their RPM practitioner, those skills can be difficult to replicate at home or with other communication partners. As a result, families often transition to the Spellers Method in search of greater structure, parent education, and direct coaching, so communication can be accessed consistently across all environments.
S2C (Spelling to Communicate) was developed in the early 2000s by Elisabeth Vosseller (often referred to as EV), a speech-language pathologist. EV combined her clinical background and expertise with certain aspects of RPM, but sought to standardize the method to make it teachable, replicable for families, and research-friendly. The product was a standardized method with clear steps to progress a student from early skill acquisition to open, robust communication on a letterboard. The key difference between S2C and Spellers Method? Read below.
The Spellers Method was founded in the past decade by Dawnmarie (DM) Gaivin and Dr. Dana Johnson, both originally trained as S2C practitioners. Drawing on DM’s medical background as a registered nurse, her clinical experience as a floor-time provider, and her personal experience as a mother of two autistic sons, alongside Dr. Johnson’s invaluable expertise as an occupational therapist, they shared a passion for helping nonspeakers overcome communication barriers. While S2C has inarguably helped countless nonspeakers worldwide, DM and Dr. Johnson noticed that some complex motor spellers were falling through the cracks. It seemed that the standardized method was too restrictive for some individuals who needed unique accommodations and modifications in order to be successful. Alongside this realization, they also noticed that previous methods overlooked how motor challenges impact not just speech, but also ocularmotor skills—the fine motor control required for scanning and fixating on letters. So, they set out to fill the gaps by creating the Spellers Method. They built on the best of S2C while adding a structured, holistic approach for:
Assessing complex motor differences
Implementing individualized accommodations and modifications
Incorporating expertise from Developmental Optometry to address ocularmotor challenges
Today, the Spellers Method is a teachable, replicable approach for parents, caregivers, and professionals. It supports spellers with complex motor differences, integrating updated practices in motor learning, sensory-motor assessment, and ocularmotor support, all tailored to each individual’s unique profile.
How does The Spellers Method differ from other spelling methodologies (such as FC, RPM, and S2C?)
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Apraxia is a neurological disorder that affects a person’s ability to plan and coordinate purposeful movements, even though their muscles are physically capable of performing those movements. It is not caused by weakness or paralysis, but by a disruption in the brain’s ability to send the correct signals to the muscles to move on-demand. It is often referred to as a “brain-body disconnection”, because although the individual has their cognitive processes intact, they are often unable to carry out the purposeful motor movements needed to show it. It’s important to understand that apraxia is a motor disorder, not a cognitive one. Individuals who have autism and apraxia may have sensory-motor differences, but they are incredibly intelligent, compassionate, and capable individuals who require motor planning support to be successful.
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What is apraxia?
How long will it take for my child to openly communicate?
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Every person’s spelling journey is highly individualized, and there is no one-size-fits-all answer. The process begins with what we call the acquisition phase, during which both the speller and their communication partner (CP) are learning to work together on the letterboard.
For the speller, this involves building the motor skills needed to coordinate brain and body for accurate spelling. For the CP, it means learning how to prompt effectively, follow the speller’s lead, and respond to sensory-motor needs in the moment. Both sides of this partnership are equally important, and each will learn at their own pace.
Key factors that also influence progress include:
Consistency of spelling practice and coaching from a trained provider
Regulation and readiness of both the speller and CP
Additional motor, visual, and health challenges
Overall coordination and sensory-motor differences
While the timeline varies, one thing is indisputable and consistent across everyone: The brain has neuroplasticity and is built to learn new skills. With dedicated practice and guided support, the brain can adapt, and nonspeakers can learn to communicate through spelling.
How old does my child need to be to start this journey?
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We will assess children as young as 7 years old, and work with individuals through childhood, adolescence, and adulthood.
If your child is under 7 years old, we recommend trying traditional speech-language therapy & early intervention services. Occupational therapy that focuses on reflex integration, sensory integration, regulation, and building purposeful motor movement through mind-body connection is also highly recommended.
No matter what interventions you try—always feed your child’s brain with stimulating, age-appropriate materials. Whether it’s reading age-appropriate books or listening to podcasts together, don’t go based off of what your child can show you or how your child performs on IQ or language tests. More often than not, your child is listening, absorbing, and learning from their environment, so always be sure to feed that brain!
While children younger than 8 years old are definitely capable of reading, spelling, and learning, we’ve found that younger spellers often face increased challenges with regulation, coordination, and tolerating motor demands. This can make it increasingly difficult for spelling sessions to be successful. For this reason, we recommend starting at 8 years old or older.
Does my child need to know how to spell?
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Technically, yes—but don’t worry, your child’s ability to spell is already there. Sensory-motor differences such as autism, apraxia, and Down Syndrome prevent your child from being able to fully demonstrate what they have inside. While their expressive skills may need support and strengthening, their receptive skills are likely sharp as a tack (this includes their receptive language skills like reading, listening, and understanding!).
At SoCal Spelling Services, we always start with the presumption that your child already knows how to spell. In fact, we start our very first session together already knowing that your child is intelligent and fully capable of learning, even if they haven’t been able to show it yet. Come in for an assessment, and together we’ll see what is possible for your child.