Online Speech Therapy For Autistic Children

Who online sessions tend to suit, and who they tend not to

Online speech therapy tends to suit an autistic child when:

• Familiar surroundings help the child settle, and travel or clinic waiting rooms are hard
• A parent can take part, and wants to learn strategies to use through the day
• The goals are about understanding, expressing, playing and connecting, which happen through talk and play
• The family lives far from services, or a clinic appointment would take most of a day

It tends not to suit, at least as a starting point, when:

• The child is very distressed by screens or by a voice coming from a device, even with a parent beside them
• The main need is choosing, setting up or programming a communication device, which usually needs someone in the room
• Eating, drinking or swallowing is the main concern
• No adult can be with a younger child during sessions

The research on coaching parents of autistic children by video is still thin. A 2023 review of nine studies found the evidence on children's social communication insufficient, and every study had a high risk of bias in at least one area. The evidence is set out with its limits on does online speech therapy work? The full list of when in-person help is the better choice is in is online speech therapy right for my child?

How parent coaching works by video

In a coached session the parent plays and Dr Lauren coaches. She watches how your child communicates (where they look, what they reach for, the sounds, words or movements they use) and points out moments you may not have noticed. She suggests one change, such as waiting a little longer or joining in with what your child is already doing, then watches what happens when you try it and talks it through with you.

Coaching by video happens in the place where your child spends their days, with their own things around them, so what you learn is already in the setting where you will use it. With older children and teenagers, Dr Lauren works with the young person directly; see online speech therapy for teenagers.

DIR Floortime by video

Dr Lauren is trained in DIR Floortime and uses it with families online. ICDL, the organisation behind it, describes Floortime as a respectful, playful and engaging way of supporting a child's development through relationships. Following the child's lead is central, and ICDL describes this as following the child's emotions: noticing what interests your child and using it to draw them into longer back and forth.

Floortime suits video because so much of it is done by the parent. ICDL notes that with good coaching, a family does not need a professional in the home all the time. By video, you are on the floor with your child and Dr Lauren coaches you from the screen, reading your child's cues with you.

On a call, that means the relationship between you and your child is where the work happens. The goals are about your child being understood and understanding others, built from what your child already does, rather than about changing who your child is.

Diagnosis, and starting before one

A video session is not an autism assessment, and Dr Lauren does not give a diagnosis: in Australia that is done by a paediatrician, psychiatrist or psychologist-led team. What she looks at on the call is how your child communicates, and that does not depend on a label. She works with autistic children with and without a formal diagnosis, so online sessions can start while a family is on a waiting list.

Funding: the NDIS, Medicare and Thriving Kids

Online Speech Therapy is not a registered NDIS provider. Self-managed and plan-managed NDIS participants are welcome, and NDIA-managed funding cannot be used. Medicare rebates are available with a doctor's referral, and private health may apply. Online Speech Therapy is not a Thriving Kids provider. The guide to Medicare, the NDIS and private health for online speech therapy explains each.

Related areas

For a young autistic child who is not yet talking, much of the work looks like the coaching described on online speech therapy for toddlers and late talkers. For children who are not autistic but find conversation and friendships hard, see online social communication therapy. How the first appointment runs is on online speech and language assessment.