While the More Than Words® Program for parents of autistic children used to be offered in person only, many Hanen Certified SLPs now also offer it online. But what do parents think of the virtual version of the program? The Hanen Centre partnered with researchers at Western University to find out.

We’re excited to announce that we’ve updated More Then Words® – The Hanen Program® for Parents of Autistic Children or Children Who May Benefit from Social Communication Support. Part of this update involved doing research on what constitutes a neurodiversity-affirming approach and then analyzing the More Than Words® Program in terms of the fundamental elements of this approach.

Parents sometimes wonder what the best toys are for helping their young autistic child interact and communicate. The research might surprise you!

Reading with your autistic child helps to build both their early literacy skills and communication skills. But did you know that the way you read with your child can make a big difference? Use these fun, simple tips to make the most of book reading to encourage your child to interact and learn.

When you have back-and-forth interactions with your child, you have many opportunities to support their social communication skills. However, you may not always be sure how to join in what your child is doing to get an interaction started. Try this fun and easy way to join in your child's play.

Sometimes you may not be sure how to get an interaction started with your child, especially if they often play alone or have specific or unique interests. Here’s a Hanen strategy to help you start the kinds back-and-forth interactions that encourage social communication learning.

Many parents of autistic children wonder about the best way to help their child learn two languages, and whether a second language will help or hinder their child’s development. Here’s what the latest research says.

Joint attention is a key skill that helps children develop interaction and language skills. For autistic children, research shows that better joint attention skills early on lead to better communication skills later in life. Learn more about joint attention and how you can encourage it during everyday interactions with your child.

If your child uses echolalia, it can be tricky to figure out what they're trying to tell you. But by using some specific interaction techniques, you can discover what they might be trying to say more easily, and also help them learn other ways to communicate their message.