The Words We Don’t Say: Why the quietest gestures can be the loudest form of communication

Communication Is So Much More Than Talking: This week in a group session, something happened that really struck me. One of the children I support had recently been in hospital. He still had an NG tube in place, and when it was his turn to share, he spoke about how awful it had been — the endless injections, the procedures, the sheer exhaustion of it all. As he spoke, another boy in the group quietly reached out. This boy always carries three special objects in his left hand. Without a word, he pushed them across so my client could hold them. My client kept those objects with him for the rest of the session. It was such a simple act, but so deeply significant. That gesture said: *I care. I see you. I want to help you feel better.* It was empathy and connection, communicated without speech. What stayed with me even more was that when I spoke afterwards with the two TAs in the room, they hadn’t noticed what had happened. For them, the moment passed by. But to me, it was the very heart of the session. This is the reminder I took away: **communication is so much more than talking.** * For parents, it’s encouragement to notice those quiet acts between children — the way they share a toy, sit a little closer, or offer something meaningful. These are powerful ways of expressing care and belonging, even when words are hard to find. * For professionals, it’s a call to slow down and watch closely. Not every child will communicate in ways that are loud, verbal, or obvious. Sometimes, the deepest messages are in the small gestures we might otherwise miss. Sometimes, the most powerful things said are the things that never need words.