[Janine Kearney]

Nonverbal communication, especially gestures of encouragement like a smile, nod, shoulder touch, and eye contact make a huge difference in all relationships, but especially those involving children on the autism spectrum or who have different learning needs. I saw a significant bond forming between myself and a 3 year old boy attending the center where I work. He started learning some basic words, counting numbers, and would grab my hand and bring me to certain toys and books that he was interested in.