What Traveling Taught Me About Communication

I've been lucky enough to travel to a handful of places where I didn't speak the language, and every single time, it reshapes how I think about my job. There's something about being the one who can't quite communicate that makes you appreciate how much work communication actually is and how many ways there are to do it.

Words are only part of the story

On our travels in 2021 to remote WA, I was trying to order food with a combination of pointing, hand gestures, and a lot of enthusiastic nodding. It worked. Not perfectly, but it worked. And it was a good reminder of something I tell families all the time: communication isn't just words. Gestures, facial expressions, tone, context, they're all doing real work, especially for kids who are still building their verbal skills.

Repair is a skill, not a failure

When a conversation breaks down abroad, you don't just give up. You try again a different way. Slower. Simpler. With a picture, a gesture, a different word. In speech therapy, we call this "communication repair," and it's a genuine skill we teach. Watching myself do it clumsily in real time made me a better coach for the kids I help build that same skill.

Confidence matters as much as accuracy

Some of my best interactions on this trip weren't with people who spoke perfect English. They were with people who were willing to try, laugh at the mix-ups, and keep going. That willingness to communicate imperfectly, without shame, is something I want for every kid I work with. Perfect speech isn't the goal. Confident, effective communication is.

I came home with a full camera roll and, as usual, a renewed appreciation for how much effort and creativity goes into simply understanding each other.