Talking and understanding
Learn how to improve communication skills, self-advocate, and better understand others. Get tips for talking about learning and thinking differences like ADHD, dyslexia, and dyscalculia. Find conversation starters that can help.
Jump to section:
Key articles
Tips and strategies
- Quick tipRole-play conversations.
Some people need more practice with conversations. Role-play different scenarios to help make conversations easier.
- Quick tipPractice “stop, look, and listen.”
Show kids how to stop every few sentences and look to see how others in the conversation are reacting.
- Quick tipUse phrases that show attention.
People want to know that others are paying attention when they talk. Use words or phrases like “right” or “that’s great.” Mix them up to avoid saying the same thing over and over.
Podcast
How to talk to your child after a tantrum or meltdown
Talking can help you find out what caused the outburst. But timing is crucial. Learn how to tell if your child is ready to talk and what to say.
More resources
Listen
Read
All articles
- Why did my fourth grader suddenly stop talking to me?
- Anti-racism resources for families and educators
- 10 ways to improve your high-schooler’s communication skills
- How to respond when kids say “I can’t do it”
- How to get your child to talk about school
- Why kids have trouble finding the right word to say
- Conversation starters to use with your child’s teachers
- Download: Feelings wheel
- Printable: Help families prepare for parent-teacher conferences
- How to show empathy to your students with compassionate curiosity
- 4 tips to help Spanish-speaking families communicate with teachers
- 5 things not to say to your child about dysgraphia
- 6 self-advocacy sentence starters for grade-schoolers with ADHD
- 5 self-advocacy sentence starters for grade-schoolers with dyslexia
- What “I’m not a math person” means to me
- 8 tips for talking to your child’s teacher about dyslexia
- 5 conversation starters for discussing supports and services with teachers
- 5 conversation starters for discussing an evaluation report with teachers
- Writing trouble: Conversation starters to use with your child’s teacher
- Building positive relationships with students: What brain science says
- 7 tips for talking to your child’s teacher about ADHD
- How to talk to your child about learning and thinking differences
- Teacher to teacher: How racial identity work makes us better advocates for our students
- Conversation starters for pediatricians to use with families whose kids are struggling
- Reading trouble: Conversation starters to use with your child’s teacher
- Math trouble: Conversation starters to use with your child’s teacher
- Trouble with focus: Conversation starters to use with your child’s teacher
- Back-to-school making you and your child anxious? These strategies can help
- Why it’s important to support LGBTQIA+ kids with learning differences
- ADHD and self-esteem: What to say to your child
- 6 phrases to use when asking your professor for support
- Teaching with empathy: Why it’s important
- Teacher to teacher: Use a daily warm-up to build empathy
- 5 tips for employee communications about disability inclusion
- 5 self-advocacy sentence starters for middle-schoolers with ADHD
- Classroom accommodations for slow processing speed
- ADHD and oversharing
- Conversation tips for kids who struggle with social skills
- 5 self-advocacy sentence starters for middle-schoolers with dyslexia
- 10 things for teachers to know about English language learners
- Understanding empathy and compassionate curiosity
- Why do some kids always interrupt people?
- 5 things not to say to your child about going back to school
- How to help if English language learners are struggling in school
- Teens with ADHD and lying
- Empathetic sentence starters for teachers
- 5 self-advocacy sentence starters for grade-schoolers with dyscalculia
- 5 self-advocacy sentence starters for middle-schoolers with dyscalculia
- Conversation starters for teachers to use with families
- Perspectives: How to make sure families of color are heard by the school
- Questionnaires for connecting with students and families
- 7 secret fears about dyslexia
- Sorry, ADHD made me leave your texts on read
- What to say when kids fail a test
- Ditching good cop, bad cop: How to put up a united parenting front
- 10 ways to improve your grade-schooler’s communication skills
- Why kids have trouble understanding what people say
- 5 conversation starters for discussing teaching approaches with teachers
- What to do if you notice learning and thinking differences in other people’s kids
- 7 ways to communicate with your child without yelling
- 9 tips to ease tough talks with your partner about your child’s challenges
- Talking about work challenges with co-workers is a game-changer. Here’s how to do it.
- I’m having communication issues at work. What’s going on?
- Trouble making conversation: Why it happens
- Teacher tip: Use animated videos to help your child learn to make inferences
- How having mentors can help kids who learn and think differently
- 6 common myths about nonverbal learning disabilities
- 3 ways I’m trying out Universal Design for Learning at home with my kids
- 7 tips for talking to your child’s teacher about sensory processing challenges
- 8 tips for telling family members about your child’s challenges
- How to explain sensory processing challenges to friends and family
- 7 ways to boost your child’s vocabulary
- What is phonological awareness?
- 6 self-advocacy sentence starters for grade-schoolers with DCD
- What is word retrieval (or word finding)?
- Why pediatricians want to know how your child is doing in school
- Conversation starters to use with your partner about signs you’re seeing in your child
- How to talk with your child about signs you’re noticing
- Why kids grieve in unexpected ways
- Trouble with self-control: Conversation starters to use with your child’s teacher
- How to talk with kids about their sibling’s challenges
- What is social communication disorder?
- Social and emotional trouble in school: 7 things to ask your child’s teachers
- Speech therapy: What it is and how it helps with language challenges
- Behavior challenges: Conversation starters to use with your child’s teacher
- 5 ways a child’s issues can impact a relationship
- What to say to your child about trouble with focus
- What is auditory processing disorder?
- Classroom accommodations for auditory processing disorder
- How speech-language pathologists work with kids
- 5 self-advocacy sentence starters for middle-schoolers with DCD
- 6 ways kids use flexible thinking to learn
- How to help your child learn to read facial expressions
- How to help your child notice voice pitch and tone
- How to help your child understand body language
- The importance of showing empathy to kids who learn and think differently
- 9 important terms to know for school visits
- 10 ways to improve your middle-schooler’s communication skills
- Assistive technology for auditory processing challenges
- Anxiety and slow processing speed
- How to help tweens and teens talk with friends about challenges
- Crucial conversations: Collaboration with families and educators
- 6 ways talking about your child’s challenges can help
- How to talk to your child about slow processing speed
- Video: What to do when you and your child don’t “get” each other
- Perspectives: Talking with kids about racial injustice
- Download: Parent-teacher conference surveys
- Video: The emotional journey of one family with many learning and thinking differences
- Self-advocacy sentence starters for kids who learn and think differently
- How to say it: Helping your teen manage 6 common fears about the future
- My 5 tips for talking with doctors about learning and thinking differences
- Why some kids talk nonstop
- Why some kids don’t listen