July 24, 2025 • 7 mins
Today we will be discussing using multimodal activities to support instruction and communication.
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Episode Transcript
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Penelope Webb (00:10):
Welcome to The Exceptional Humans Podcast,
where we discuss questionsrelated to language, identity,
education, and behavior.
I'm your host, Penelope and Ihave a background in education,
linguistics, and behavioralscience.
Today we will be discussingusing multimodal activities to
support instruction andcommunication.
(00:31):
As human beings, we have a hugeneed for inclusive and
accessible communication.
However, that starts to getcomplex when we have classrooms
(00:52):
and other environments withindividuals with different
communication needs.
Whether those needs arelanguage-based, whether those
needs are due to sensorypreferences, whether those needs
are due to a diagnosis, we ofteninhabit environments where
(01:20):
verbal communication is not themost effective style of
communication for allindividuals in that environment.
This is particularly concerningbecause the environments that we
spend the large majority of ourtime, such as schools and
(01:44):
workplaces, and often homeenvironments, often don't
include more inclusiveapproaches to instruction and
communication.
Unfortunately, a lot of people'sunderstanding in these
environments of inclusivecommunication is limited to
(02:10):
resources such as visualprompts, use of visual
timetables, and use of gesture.
Which is very limiting for thoseindividuals who require a more
diverse and inclusive approach.
(02:31):
So I thought I'd share somedifferent approaches, different
strategies that can be used tosupport individuals with more
diverse communication needs.
These strategies are tailoredmore towards use in schools.
However, they are easily adaptedfor other situations.
(02:56):
The first one is using a rangeof texts, so regardless of the
situation, using a combinationof both fiction and nonfiction
texts can actually help peopleaccess more nuanced or
complicated concepts.
(03:17):
Especially if you can find textsand tools that allow you to
adjust the lexicon, so thelanguage complexity of the text.
Also of importance isopportunities for individuals to
(03:37):
access these resourcesindependently and with their
peers.
Another strategy is toincorporate games, quizzes, and
other fun learning experiencesto deepen knowledge and
consolidate learning.
(03:57):
Use of audio, video, and otherdigital tools, including things
like websites, online resources,even things like ChatGPT can be
very enabling for individualswho experience barriers to
communication.
(04:18):
Additionally, opportunities forhands-on learning, use of
unlikely resources andenvironments can also help
consolidate learningexperiences.
An example of an unlikelyresource and environment would
(04:41):
be using desks and a whiteboardmarker to show working out of a
maths concept or using a schoolplayground to teach students
prepositions.
It is also important to considerwhether or not it might be
(05:06):
appropriate to presentinstructions and communicate in
more than one language.
So in school context, this mightbe using mathematical language
or scientific language as wellas plain English.
(05:27):
In other contexts, you might bedoing translanguaging, which is
use of more than one language aspart of a learning experience.
You might also be usingnonverbal resources alongside of
(05:50):
verbal communication, this mayinclude complete languages such
as Australian Sign Language.
The real challenge for a lot ofpeople when it comes to
supporting instruction andcommunication for individuals
(06:14):
with diverse communication needsis getting our head around the
concept that we need to beconsidering and prioritizing
others communication needsalongside our own.
(06:35):
We all have communicationpreferences and learning
preferences, and it's reallyeasy to forget that others
preferences and needs may notalign with our own and may
differ quite significantly fromwhat we consider to be the norm
(07:03):
based on our own personalexperiences with language,
communication and learning.
The Exceptional Humans Podcastis written and recorded on Kabi
Kabi and Jinibara lands.
We would like to pay ourrespects to their elders past,
present, and emerging, and payour respects to all Aboriginal
(07:25):
and Torres Strait Islanderpeoples listening today.
Welcome to The Exceptional Humans Podcast,
where we discuss questionsrelated to language, identity,
education, and behavior.
I'm your host, Penelope and Ihave a background in education,
linguistics, and behavioralscience.
Today we will be discussingusing multimodal activities to
support instruction andcommunication.
(00:31):
As human beings, we have a hugeneed for inclusive and
accessible communication.
However, that starts to getcomplex when we have classrooms
(00:52):
and other environments withindividuals with different
communication needs.
Whether those needs arelanguage-based, whether those
needs are due to sensorypreferences, whether those needs
are due to a diagnosis, we ofteninhabit environments where
(01:20):
verbal communication is not themost effective style of
communication for allindividuals in that environment.
This is particularly concerningbecause the environments that we
spend the large majority of ourtime, such as schools and
(01:44):
workplaces, and often homeenvironments, often don't
include more inclusiveapproaches to instruction and
communication.
Unfortunately, a lot of people'sunderstanding in these
environments of inclusivecommunication is limited to
(02:10):
resources such as visualprompts, use of visual
timetables, and use of gesture.
Which is very limiting for thoseindividuals who require a more
diverse and inclusive approach.
(02:31):
So I thought I'd share somedifferent approaches, different
strategies that can be used tosupport individuals with more
diverse communication needs.
These strategies are tailoredmore towards use in schools.
However, they are easily adaptedfor other situations.
(02:56):
The first one is using a rangeof texts, so regardless of the
situation, using a combinationof both fiction and nonfiction
texts can actually help peopleaccess more nuanced or
complicated concepts.
(03:17):
Especially if you can find textsand tools that allow you to
adjust the lexicon, so thelanguage complexity of the text.
Also of importance isopportunities for individuals to
(03:37):
access these resourcesindependently and with their
peers.
Another strategy is toincorporate games, quizzes, and
other fun learning experiencesto deepen knowledge and
consolidate learning.
(03:57):
Use of audio, video, and otherdigital tools, including things
like websites, online resources,even things like ChatGPT can be
very enabling for individualswho experience barriers to
communication.
(04:18):
Additionally, opportunities forhands-on learning, use of
unlikely resources andenvironments can also help
consolidate learningexperiences.
An example of an unlikelyresource and environment would
(04:41):
be using desks and a whiteboardmarker to show working out of a
maths concept or using a schoolplayground to teach students
prepositions.
It is also important to considerwhether or not it might be
(05:06):
appropriate to presentinstructions and communicate in
more than one language.
So in school context, this mightbe using mathematical language
or scientific language as wellas plain English.
(05:27):
In other contexts, you might bedoing translanguaging, which is
use of more than one language aspart of a learning experience.
You might also be usingnonverbal resources alongside of
(05:50):
verbal communication, this mayinclude complete languages such
as Australian Sign Language.
The real challenge for a lot ofpeople when it comes to
supporting instruction andcommunication for individuals
(06:14):
with diverse communication needsis getting our head around the
concept that we need to beconsidering and prioritizing
others communication needsalongside our own.
(06:35):
We all have communicationpreferences and learning
preferences, and it's reallyeasy to forget that others
preferences and needs may notalign with our own and may
differ quite significantly fromwhat we consider to be the norm
(07:03):
based on our own personalexperiences with language,
communication and learning.
The Exceptional Humans Podcastis written and recorded on Kabi
Kabi and Jinibara lands.
We would like to pay ourrespects to their elders past,
present, and emerging, and payour respects to all Aboriginal
(07:25):
and Torres Strait Islanderpeoples listening today.
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