Tips for communicating when wearing a face covering.

Pay attention, give time and you'll do just fine.

Here are some things I've learnt from others.

1.Face a person when you talk to them – give them your attention [Lesson from Derek Boardman, BSL tutor, @WestonCollege, early 2000s]

2.Give time and be patient [Alex Nowak - @alex_nowak] https://twitter.com/alex_nowak/status/1284777445493792768?s=20

3.Speak clearly and naturally [Lesson from Pat Chandler – BSL tutor, Langley College @WindsorForestCG, mid-2000s]

4.Use body language – raise your shoulders, your eyebrows, communicate with your eyes! [From twitter discussions with Speech and Language Therapists @JenMurphySLT and @b_the_slt]

5.Point [ @ChloeRuMarshall, @YaaminMoot, @pernipa, @lizwonna, @vigliocco_g ] https://twitter.com/abracabadger/status/1283668382747955200?s=20

6.Enact – gesture as if you are holding or using an object [Gesture research with @AnnaCaute, @LucyDipper, @PritchardMR] https://twitter.com/abracabadger/status/1283672301427458048?s=20

7.Draw – in the air or on your phone or a piece of paper [Learnt from members of Dyscover @dyscoveraphasia and Aphasia Re-Connect @Aphasiareconne1]

8.Write - in the air or on your phone or a piece of paper [Jan via Carly Davey - @carlystroke, thanks Jan for the video demo!]

9.Use speech-to-text on your phone to provide live subtitles for your speech [Charlotte Hyde - @charlhyde]

10. Support words with an action to reinforce your meaning [As demonstrated by Nikki, Evan and Lucinda - @makatonlucinda] https://twitter.com/makatonlucinda/status/1282910262417330176?s=20

Learn from different communicators.

Speaking with a face covering on may take a bit of adjustment but there are so many excellent people out there to learn from.

Pay attention, give time and you'll do just fine.

Best of all, you'll become a more considerate communicator too.

Eep! This made it into the news!
Thank you Lara Keay and @SkyNews for sharing these messages. https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-how-to-make-yourself-understood-while-wearing-a-face-mask-12034762