13. Speech and Rhythm

People with autism may have damage to the speech processing areas of the brain – understanding speech (Wernicke’s area) and speech production (Broca’s area). In addition, communication between these two areas may be compromised. Using objects of reference can bypass such miscommunication between the speech areas of the brain by providing physical, external clues. Some autistic people may understand what is said to them but be unable to organise the muscles needed for speech to produce a response. Phoebe