Everyone needs communication. Communication is the way in which we send and receive messages or tell others what we think and feel. There’s non-verbal and verbal way of communication. Non-verbal is for example laugh, wave, raise your shoulders, hug, or look angry. Some mentally handicapped people can’t read, speak or write. Their family, friends and assistants are looking for another way to communicate.

Ways to learn
There are other ways to show how someone feels or thinks when he or she can’t read or write. They can use signs, sounds, or gestures to show what they think or feel.

Some people who can’t talk in a clear way can use a computer speech synthesizer. Teachers of intellectual handicapped children don’t use difficult words. They use pictures to show what a word means, and they learn some people to use gestures to help them communicate easier. Some mentally handicapped persons prefer to listen to a cassette or a CD instead of reading.

Learning with smiles
The text which you can read beneath is translated from the Dutch book: "Leerstoornissen".
Alexander is mentally handicapped.
His mother is very proud of his communicative application skills.

"My name is Eileen and I’ve got 2 children,
Alexander and Charlotte. They are very special.
Alexander is a good-looking child with beautiful blue eyes and a sweet smile.
He’s mentally handicapped. He can’t walk, talk or look.

This means that he needs more attention than his sister needs, who isn’t mentally handicapped, but has a sweet smile too. Alexander loves it when you touch him or hold his hands. He’s a big fan of Manchester United. Even that it took five years until he could laugh, nowadays he laughs a lot, especially when we call ‘goal!’. "

Body language
There are a lot of different ways to communicate, and they all have a different meaning. We don’t need to talk to communicate. We laugh, frown, and use our hand to wave or indicate something. We can see how people feel, by looking at their gestures and expressions. Some people don’t show their emotions, but there are a lot of ways to communicate with them. So if you do your best to understand an mentally handicapped person it might work.
You can read more about body language at: www.bodylanguage.tk