Communication facts for kids
Communication is when information is passed from a sender to a recipient using a medium. There are different media that can be used:
- Visual communication (using body language or gestures)
- Communicating with sounds (like human language, but may also be the barking of a dog)
- Communication using touch
- Using smell
- Using writing
Communication can be spoken (a word) or non-spoken (a smile). Communication has many ways, and happens all the time. Not only humans communicate, most other animals do too. Some communication is done without thinking, such as by changing in posture.
Communication that tries to change somebody's mind may be called persuasion or propaganda.
Contents
How communication works
Communication works by exchanging information or messages. In very basic terms
- The sender makes a message, from an idea. This is usually called encoding
- The sender transmits the message through the medium.
- The recipient receives the message and decodes it.
Besides the content of the message, there are other things that are important. These are not part of the message itself, but rather of its context
- Who is communicating, and what status does the communicator have?
- Communication messages usually do not come alone, but are accompanied by other messages. These are also interpreted.
For a message exchange to be successful, the sender and the recipient must have agreed on a vocabulary that avoids ambiguity. For example, the word hedge can mean completely different things based on the context. In botany a hedge is a row of shrubs or trees that make a barrier or form a border. In finance, a hedge is an investment made to reduce the risk of another investment. In linguistics a hedge is a word or set of words that make other words less important. Without information it is therefore very difficult to know which hedge is really meant by the speaker.
What exactly is a message?
A message is a discrete unit of communication and can be information, facts, opinions, feelings, sensations, stories, news or ideas. A message can be verbal (have words) like an email.
A message can also be non-verbal (have no words) like these emojis. An emoji can be a facial expression or a hand gesture.
Sometimes, facial expressions and hand gestures are used together like this emoji.
Non-verbal communication
Signs and symbols are types of non-verbal communication. For example:
 |
This sign means curvy road ahead. |
 |
This flag symbol means there are scuba divers below. |
Braille is a verbal system of “touch” reading and writing for blind people. Raised dots represent letters of the alphabet.
Body language
When people have a conversation, they use many facial expressions and hand gestures, too. This is called body language.
Hand gestures have different meanings in other countries. To prevent misunderstanding, it is a good idea to be aware of the meaning of hand gestures before visiting another country or talking to a person from another country.
Sign language is used by and with deaf people. Sign language is non-verbal and combines hand gestures, facial expressions and body movements to symbolize words. It is used along with verbal finger spelling where various hand gestures represent letters of the alphabet. Some deaf people are also able to "read the lips" of speaking people.
Communication through art
Music and art can convey emotional messages and are also forms of communication.
A song can be a combination of lyrics (words) and a voice or instruments that can convey emotion.
A comic book can have words and also pictures.
Communication media
The way messages are transmitted is called the medium. Examples include:
| Electronic Medium | Non Electronic Medium |
|---|---|
| Regular mail letter | |
| Text | Newspaper |
| Radio broadcast | Book |
| E-Book | A baby on your lap cooing |
| Digital news | Shaking hands |
Related pages
| Article author: Diane Nelson. Diane taught communication and other subjects in public school for 23 years. She is also a public health nutritionist, and taught nutrition at NYU. Diane has traveled extensively throughout the world. She presently teaches ESL part time. |
See also
In Spanish: Comunicación para niños
