Pronouns

Also called Personal pronouns, I and you, Possessives

I, you, me, mine: often missing from vocabularies and essential to identity. Without them a person can name everyone in the room except themselves.

What it is

Pronouns are the words that stand in for people and things: I, you, me, he, she, they, we, it, mine, yours, his, hers, theirs. They let a person talk about someone without a card for them, and, crucially, talk about themselves at all.

A board without "I" produces a person who says "want drink" and never "I want drink", who can point to Mum but not say "me". Speaking children get "I" and "mine" early and use them constantly, usually to claim things. People who use boards deserve the same tools for the same purpose.

Who it can help

Anyone combining words, from the two-word stage onward. Pronouns are the words of ownership and agency ("mine", "I do it"), of reporting ("he hit me"), and of relationship ("you and me"). They matter in safeguarding, where "he" plus "hurt" plus "me" is a complete disclosure, and in self-advocacy, where "I" is where the sentence starts.

They are confusing on any device, because "you" spoken by the device means the listener, while "you" spoken by the listener means the person. Expect mistakes, which are normal in speaking children too, and do not withhold pronouns until they can be used perfectly.

How it works

Pronouns are drawn as pointing figures: an arrow at the speaker for "I", at the listener for "you", and so on. As with all abstract words, the label carries them, and the position on the board carries them more; "I" is usually top left because sentences start there.

The useful set is small: I, me, you, mine, yours, he, she, they, it, we. Many boards put "I" in the sentence starters ("I want", "I feel") so that it is used automatically before the person understands it, which is how speaking children learn it too.

Gendered pronouns should reflect the person's own. A person who uses a board has the same right to be "they" or "she" as anyone else, and the card should say what they say.

Getting started

This week, model "I" and "me" about yourself on the person's board: "I" plus "tired", "give" plus "me". Then "you": "you" plus "do it", handing over the task. Play "mine" and "yours" with actual objects, because ownership is the pronoun lesson everyone enjoys.

Add "he", "she" and "they" alongside the people set so the person can talk about someone who has left the room.

Do not correct pronoun reversal ("you want" for "I want"). Recast it: press "I want" and say it, then move on.

Where to get help

Speech and Language UK covers pronoun development in children. Communication Matters for AAC vocabulary. A speech and language therapist can target pronouns explicitly if reversal persists.