46 c o m m u n i c a t i o n
How vision problems affect communication
A young baby can send messages about
what he thinks or feels by moving his
body (like turning his head), by
making sounds (like crying), and
by changing the look on his face
(like frowning). Family members
learn to understand what their
baby’s messages mean and they
respond.
You must
be hungry.
Ali’s such a quiet baby.
Maybe he doesn’t like
to play.
All babies want to play.
But this baby needs help
to begin.
A baby who cannot see well may
seem too quiet. He may send fewer
messages because he may be
trying to understand the sounds
around him. His family can help
him communicate by sending
him messages in ways he can
understand and by learning
to understand the different
messages he sends.
Parents must learn to notice the different kinds of
messages their babies send. A baby who can see,
for example, uses eye contact to show he is paying
attention. But a blind baby may move his hands
or body to send the same message. Or he may
get quiet so he can pay attention to what is
happening around him.
Parents must also send different kinds of
messages back to their babies. It is easy to
forget that a baby cannot see his parents’
looks or smiles, and that they must
send messages to him through touch
and sound.
When I
smile, I
wish he’d
smile
back.
If she tickles her baby,
he may smile back.
helping children who are blind