# How to Work on Nonverbal Cues and Gestures at Home

Canonical: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/how-can-i-work-on-nonverbal-cues-and-gestures-with-my-child-at-home
Publisher: Pinnacle Blooms Network / Bharath Healthcare Laboratories Private Limited

You can grow nonverbal communication at home by getting face-to-face, modelling clear gestures, pausing expectantly, and warmly rewarding every cue your child gives. Make gestures useful — put toys just out of reach, offer choices, play turn-taking games. A little, often, beats long sessions. Seek a developmental check if pointing, waving or shared eye contact aren't emerging by around 12 months.

*Long before words arrive, children speak with their eyes, hands and faces — and you can grow that language at home, every single day.*

## In short
Nonverbal cues and gestures — pointing, waving, reaching, eye contact, facial expression and body posture — are the foundation of communication, and you can build them at home through playful, repeated, face-to-face moments. The simplest recipe is to get down to your child's level, pause expectantly, model the gesture yourself, and warmly reward any attempt. A little, often, woven into daily routines, beats long formal sessions.

## Activities you can try at home
**Model and pause**
- Point clearly at things you name — "Look, a *dog*!" — so your child learns pointing carries meaning.
- Use big, friendly gestures: wave bye-bye, blow kisses, clap, shrug, "all gone" hands. Children copy what they see often.
- After you ask something, *pause* and look expectant for a few seconds. That silence invites your child to respond with a look, reach or sound.

**Make gestures useful**
- Place a favourite toy just out of reach so reaching or pointing genuinely *gets* the toy — communication that works gets repeated.
- Offer choices held up in each hand ("banana or apple?") so a look or point becomes the answer.
- Play turn-taking games — peek-a-boo, rolling a ball, [pat-a-cake](/nonverbal-cues-and-gestures) — that build the rhythm of back-and-forth.

**Tune in and respond**
- Get face-to-face, at eye level, so your child can read your expressions and you can read theirs.
- Notice and respond to every cue — a glance, a frown, a stretch toward something — as if it were a full sentence. This teaches that cues matter.
- Name feelings with your face and voice: big smile for happy, surprised eyes for "wow". Children learn expression by mirroring.

## When to seek a check
Gestures usually bloom in the first 18 months. It is worth a developmental check if, by around 12 months, your child does not point, wave or show things to share interest, or if eye contact and back-and-forth engagement feel consistently hard across settings. Asking early is a strength, not an alarm — most children simply need richer, more responsive practice.

## The Pinnacle way
At Pinnacle Blooms Network, gesture and shared-attention goals sit at the heart of early [speech therapy](https://www.pinnacleblooms.org/top-speech-therapy-center-india-proven-improvement-rate), guided by play your child loves. A clinical [AbilityScore®](/ask/what-is-the-abilityscore-and-how-is-it-calculated) and any diagnosis are formed only at a Pinnacle Blooms Network centre under qualified clinician care — never from an online read or a single observation. With 25 million+ therapy sessions and 4.95 lakh+ families supported across 70+ centres, our therapists can show you exactly how to fold these moments into your day. Explore more on [nonverbal cues and gestures](/nonverbal-cues-and-gestures).

## Trusted sources
Guidance here reflects the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association on early communication, the CDC's developmental milestones, and the American Academy of Pediatrics' healthychildren.org resources on how gestures and shared attention develop before speech.

**Next step —** book a developmental check or message our team on WhatsApp at +91 91001 81181 to learn home activities matched to your child's stage.

This is general information, not a diagnosis — individual assessment and diagnosis require an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.

## Sources
- ASHA — how early communication and gestures develop: https://www.asha.org/public/speech/development/communicationdevelopment/
- CDC — Learn the Signs developmental milestones: https://www.cdc.gov/child-development
- AAP healthychildren.org — early development: https://healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/Pages/default.aspx

## Connected topics and perspectives
- Parent: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/stakeholder/parent
- Communication: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/domain/communication
- Find Activities: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/intent/find_activities
- Family Empowerment: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/lens/empowerment/family_empowerment

## Related question paths

### At home & in everyday life
- How to Work on Non-Verbal Cues at Home: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/how-can-i-work-on-nonverbal-cues-with-my-child-at-home
- How can I work on Gesture and Non-Verbal Communication with my child at home?: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/how-can-i-work-on-gesture-and-nonverbal-communication-with-my-child-at-home
- How can I work on NonVerbal Gesture Communication with my child at home?: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/how-can-i-work-on-nonverbal-gesture-communication-with-my-child-at-home
- How to Work on Non-Verbal Gestures at Home: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/how-can-i-work-on-nonverbal-gesture-with-my-child-at-home
- How can I work on Gesture and Verbal Communication with my child at home?: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/how-can-i-work-on-gesture-and-verbal-communication-with-my-child-at-home
- How to Work on Gestural Communication at Home: https://pinnacleblooms.org/ask/how-can-i-work-on-gestural-communication-with-my-child-at-home