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Not speaking is not the same as not understanding as having nothing to say.
This guide is the framework behind every XoBug Non-Verbal Edition. If you want to use any XoBug material — any guide, any strategy, any activity — with a child who communicates without spoken words, this is where you start.
What's inside:
The five communication modes — a plain-language explanation of each one, how to recognize it, and how to support it: AAC (speech-generating devices and apps) · PECS (picture exchange) · Sign language · Pointing and reaching · Eye gaze
The non-verbal prompting ladder — how least-to-most prompting changes when your child communicates without speech. Every prompt level adapted: "say ___" becomes "show me ___," "tell me" becomes "find," "good talking" becomes "good showing."
Language swap reference — a quick-reference table of the most common verbal instructions used throughout XoBug guides, and the non-verbal equivalent to use instead. Use this alongside any guide in the library.
Wait time adjustments — why the standard 3-second wait extends to 5 seconds minimum for non-verbal children, and how to protect that window from the urge to fill it.
What counts as a successful communication act — a reach, a point, a gaze, an exchange, a button press, an approximated sign. This guide makes it explicit so you recognize success when it happens.
How to model without demanding — Aided Language Stimulation explained for parents: how to model language on the device throughout the day, without expecting imitation, so the words are there when your child needs them.
Data tracking adaptations — how to add a Mode Used column to any XoBug data sheet, and what to record (AAC, PECS, sign, point, gaze).
Communication profile worksheet — 15 fields covering your child's current communication modes, strongest modality, consistent communicative acts, preferred vocabulary, and how to brief any new person on your child's system.
Use this guide alongside any XoBug material. Every Non-Verbal Edition in our library was built on the principles in this document.
© 2026 XoBug®. For personal and family use only. Created by a physician-parent. Informed by behavioral science. Built for real life.
Not speaking is not the same as not understanding as having nothing to say.
This guide is the framework behind every XoBug Non-Verbal Edition. If you want to use any XoBug material — any guide, any strategy, any activity — with a child who communicates without spoken words, this is where you start.
What's inside:
The five communication modes — a plain-language explanation of each one, how to recognize it, and how to support it: AAC (speech-generating devices and apps) · PECS (picture exchange) · Sign language · Pointing and reaching · Eye gaze
The non-verbal prompting ladder — how least-to-most prompting changes when your child communicates without speech. Every prompt level adapted: "say ___" becomes "show me ___," "tell me" becomes "find," "good talking" becomes "good showing."
Language swap reference — a quick-reference table of the most common verbal instructions used throughout XoBug guides, and the non-verbal equivalent to use instead. Use this alongside any guide in the library.
Wait time adjustments — why the standard 3-second wait extends to 5 seconds minimum for non-verbal children, and how to protect that window from the urge to fill it.
What counts as a successful communication act — a reach, a point, a gaze, an exchange, a button press, an approximated sign. This guide makes it explicit so you recognize success when it happens.
How to model without demanding — Aided Language Stimulation explained for parents: how to model language on the device throughout the day, without expecting imitation, so the words are there when your child needs them.
Data tracking adaptations — how to add a Mode Used column to any XoBug data sheet, and what to record (AAC, PECS, sign, point, gaze).
Communication profile worksheet — 15 fields covering your child's current communication modes, strongest modality, consistent communicative acts, preferred vocabulary, and how to brief any new person on your child's system.
Use this guide alongside any XoBug material. Every Non-Verbal Edition in our library was built on the principles in this document.
© 2026 XoBug®. For personal and family use only. Created by a physician-parent. Informed by behavioral science. Built for real life.