Makaton

Makaton is a language programme designed to provide a means of communication to individuals who cannot communicate efficiently by speaking. The Makaton language programme has been used with individuals who have cognitive impairments, autism, Down syndrome, specific language impairment, multisensory impairment and acquired neurological disorders that have negatively affected the ability to communicate, including stroke patients.

The name "Makaton" is derived from the first letters of the names of three speech and language therapists who helped devise the programme in the 1970s: the researcher Margaret Walker, and Katharine Johnston and Tony Cornforth, colleagues from the Royal Association for Deaf people.

Makaton is a registered trade mark of The Makaton Charity, which was established in 2007. The original trademark application for Makaton was filed in the UK on 28 August 1979, with registration approved as from that date under UK trade mark registration no. 1119745.

In 2004 the Oxford University Press included Makaton as a common usage word in the Oxford English Dictionary. The entry states "Makaton, n. Brit. A proprietary name for: a language programme integrating speech, manual signs, and graphic symbols, developed to help people for whom communication is very difficult, esp. those with learning disabilities."

The Makaton Language Programme uses a multimodal approach to teach language and literacy skills, through a combination of speech, signs, and graphic symbols used concurrently, or, only with speech with signs, or, only with speech with graphic symbols as appropriate for the student's needs. It consists of a Core Vocabulary of roughly 450 concepts that are taught in a specific order (there are 8 different stages). For example, stage 1 involves teaching vocabulary for immediate needs, like 'eat' and 'drink'. Later stages contain more complex and abstract vocabulary such as time and emotions. Once basic communication has been established, the student can progress in their language use, using whatever modes are most appropriate. Also, although the programme is organised in stages, it can be modified and tailored to the individual's needs. In addition to the Core Vocabulary, there is a Makaton Resource Vocabulary of over 7,000 concepts which are illustrated with signs and graphic symbols.

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