January 29, 2024
by Carole Zangari -
Although assistive technology and AAC have been included in US educational policy for decades, there hasn’t been a great deal of guidance for its implementation. Recently, at the ATIA 2024 Conference in Orlando, Glenna Wright-Gallo, Assistant Secretary in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), discussed some of the most recent updates and resources. You can view that recorded session, entitled Assistive Technology and IDEA: New Resources for Schools, Practitioners and Parents, below. Many thanks to ATIA for hosting and live-streaming this important session. You can also access their most recent AT “Dear Colleague Letter“ and a technical assistance document addressing common misconceptions:(“Myths and Facts Surrounding Assistive Technology Devices and Services”). You can also explore their AT and IDEA resource page. Direct link to video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49Zxug5a7uw&ab_channel=ATIA
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
January 28, 2024
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. We have some posts you might want to visit. Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Publishing in AAC Thursday – School Year of Core Vocabulary Words – Older Student Lessons: AAC Resources for February :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Need a few more suggestions? Try these posts from the archives. How We Do It: Incorporating Core Vocabulary Throughout the School Day How We Do It: AAC in the Special Education Classroom – Continuing the Journey PrAACtical Resources: Teachers’ Toolkit For Students With Little Or No Speech PrAACtical Resources: AAC for School Staff AAC and the IEP
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
January 23, 2024
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Tuesday, AAC friends! Once a week, we invite you to share your own AAC-related content, product news, or anything else that you’d like others in the AAC community to know about. It may be a recent post you’ve written, a slide deck from your AAC presentation, a handout, video, or meme that you’ve posted online, an AAC product you’ve created, an announcement for an AAC course or conference, or any other prAACtical content you developed and want to share with the AAC community. To post your own link, scroll all the way down to the bottom of this post and complete the form. Enter the URL and the name/title in the boxes provided below. If you are on a mobile device, click over to the full website version to do this. The AAC Link Up is moderated to keep us from being spammed, so it may take a little... [Read More...]
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
January 21, 2024
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some posts for you to browse. Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Getting Ready for February’s School Year of Core Vocabulary Words Older Student Lessons Thursday – Throwback Thursday: Visual Supports & AAC ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Before you go, here are a couple of other suggestions for posts to explore. Transitioning to the Workplace: Resources for AAC Learners with Significant Disabilities Working with Multiple Symbol Sets Faces of AAC: Making It Work in A Busy Family Supporting AAC Learners in Working with Words Vocabulary Instruction: When Definitions Don’t Work
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
January 18, 2024
by Carole Zangari -
Visual supports are so flexible, easy to create and use, and have such a nice evidence base that it’s something we use in almost every AAC therapy or instructional session. In today’s Throwback Thursday, we’re revisiting a handful of our past posts on what they are, how to create them, and how they can be implemented. Enjoy! Video of the Week: Video Models & Visual Supports for AAC PrAACtically Visual: More Supports for Your Toolbox Visuals, Timers, & Zoom Addressing the Social, Communication, and Behavioral Needs of Secondary Students with ASD using Visual Supports AAC Teaching Tips on Scaffolding and Visual Supports Visual Supports for an AAC-friendly Easter and Passover 5 Visual Supports for Emotions and Feelings
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
January 9, 2024
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Tuesday, AAC friends! Once a week, we invite you to share your own AAC-related content, product news, or anything else that you’d like others in the AAC community to know about. It may be a recent post you’ve written, a slide deck from your AAC presentation, a handout, video, or meme that you’ve posted online, an AAC product you’ve created, an announcement for an AAC course or conference, or any other prAACtical content you developed and want to share with the AAC community. To post your own link, scroll all the way down to the bottom of this post and complete the form. Enter the URL and the name/title in the boxes provided below. If you are on a mobile device, click over to the full website version to do this. The AAC Link Up is moderated to keep us from being spammed, so it may take a little... [Read More...]
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
January 4, 2024
by Carole Zangari -
While the field of AAC has made considerable progress in boosting the accessibility of SGDs and AAC apps in multiple languages, not as much work has been done in the area of dialectical differences. Today’s guest post by Vicki Haddix discusses how she and her graduate students are addressing this issue. Don’t miss the resources they share. Vicki is an AAC SLP and a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Memphis. You can read other posts by Vicki here. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: When I designed the AAC course, I tried to incorporate elements of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) within the class. One of the elements I’m particularly proud of is allowing the students to choose their own final projects, which are worth 50% of their grade. I give them the following guidelines: Your final project should: Collect information from a variety of sources (i.e., not only a survey or only research... [Read More...]
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
December 26, 2023
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Tuesday, AAC friends! Once a week, we invite you to share your own AAC-related content, product news, or anything else that you’d like others in the AAC community to know about. It may be a recent post you’ve written, a slide deck from your AAC presentation, a handout, video, or meme that you’ve posted online, an AAC product you’ve created, an announcement for an AAC course or conference, or any other prAACtical content you developed and want to share with the AAC community. To post your own link, scroll all the way down to the bottom of this post and complete the form. Enter the URL and the name/title in the boxes provided below. If you are on a mobile device, click over to the full website version to do this. The AAC Link Up is moderated to keep us from being spammed, so it may take a little... [Read More...]
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
December 18, 2023
by Carole Zangari -
For over a year, we’ve had an interest in a version of the School Year of Core Vocabulary Words suited for students in middle school, high school, and beyond. Michaela Sullivan and her colleagues have been hard at work at that, and we’re excited to share the addition of those monthly posts starting in just a few weeks. Look for target words for two levels of communicators, symbol grids, activities for teaching and practicing those words, data collection forms, and helpful information on implementation strategies each month. Today, Michaela and Lindsay Dougherty introduce you to their newest version of these wonderful resources. School Year of Core Vocabulary Words: Introducing “Lessons for Older Students” by Michaela Sullivan and Lindsay Dougherty Welcome back to a new School Year of Core Series – SYOC-Older Student Lessons by Michaela Sullivan, M.A. CCC-SLP and Lindsay Dougherty, M.S. CCC-SLP To the parents, teachers, Speech-Language Pathologists, Para... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
December 3, 2023
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some posts you might enjoy. Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: The ABC’s of AAC Thursday – December Year of Core Vocabulary & School Year of Core Vocabulary Words Friday – PráctiCAAmente Conectados: CAA Con Links – Diciembre 2023 Still have time for a little more AAC? Here are some of our suggestions. Assessing Classroom AAC Practices Helping Beginning Communicators Expand Their Sentence Length 5 Ways to Make Semantic Maps More Effective in AAC Therapy PrAACtically Reading with Karen Natoci: The Family Book How I Do It: A Year of Core Words in Action Have a great week, everyone!
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking