October 13, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends! We have some AAC posts that might be of interest. Monday – 5 Things You May Not Know About the Early Days of AAC Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Fostering Emergent Writing in AAC Users Thursday – From Wheelchair to Hands-free Walker for Preschool Children with AAC Needs ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Still have an appetite for some AAC reading? Here are a few more suggestions. PrAACtical Ideas: AAC Core Vocabulary Practice for Workshops and Inservices How I Do It: Working with Multiple Symbol Sets PrAACtically Reading: Over on the Farm with Karen Natoci & Karen Baca 5+ Ways to Make Page Fluffers and Spacers Classroom CORE Book by Tabi Jones-Wohleber (Downloadable file)
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: summary post
October 10, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
We are excited to share the second post in Christine Wright-Ott’s series on promoting hands-free independent mobility in young AAC learners. Christine is an Occupational Therapist and consultant at The Bridge School in Hillsborough California. She authored the chapter “Mobility” in the 4-7th editions of the book, Occupational Therapy for Children. She lectures at universities and conferences including ATIA, Closing the Gap, ISAAC, ISS, and AAC by the Bay. Enjoy! Support Walker Mobility at the Bridge School I would like to share with you an innovative hands-free Support Walker Mobility Program developed at The Bridge School, which is a private school for preschool and elementary children with complex communication and physical disabilities located on the district’s public elementary school campus. It is dedicated to ensuring that students achieve full participation in their communities through the use of augmentative & alternative means of communication (AAC), mobility and assistive technology (AT) applications. ... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: mobility, mobility impairment, physical disability, young children
October 7, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Given that October is AAC Awareness Month we thought that some of you AAC lovers would appreciate a stroll down memory lane. Here are a few things you may not know about the early days of AAC. The first papers that focused on AAC intervention were published in the 1950’s. In 1952, Goldstein and Cameron wrote about their use of communication boards with people with aphasia, and, a few years later, Sklar and Bennett discussed their experiences in using communication charts with this same population. Toward the end of the decade, professionals began describing their efforts in using communication boards with people with physical disabilities (e.g., Feallock,1958; Goldberg & Fenton, 1960). While speech-language pathologists and occupational therapists were among the first to disseminate their AAC work, professionals from many backgrounds contributed to its growth. In the early days, some of the strongest contributors to the field of AAC were rehabilitation... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: AAC history
October 6, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. We have a couple of things to share with you today. One is an invitation to join me in Orlando in January for a full day of language intervention and AAC. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to present a full-day pre-conference workshop with Gail Van Tatenhove and Gloria Soto, two of the biggest names in AAC and language learning, at ATIA 2020. You can find out more about that using the slider on the graphic below or visit this site for an overview and registration link. Also, we kicked off AAC Awareness Month (#AACaware19) with a number of posts that contain resources for you to use. Take a look. Monday – Spreading the Word About AAC Awareness Month Tuesday- AAC Awareness Month Ideas Wednesday – Video of the Week: Connection – The Heart of Communication Thursday – AAC Assessment Corner: Evaluating Skills For... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: #AACaware19, AAC Awareness Month, ATIA, summary post
October 3, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
We are so very pleased to welcome Vicki Clarke back to these pages for another installment in our AAC Assessment Corner. Vicki is the CEO of Dynamic Therapy Associates and Director of DTA Schools, is back with another wonderful edition of AAC Assessment Corner. In addition to their clinic, Vicki and her team support school districts in AAC evaluation, equipment procurement, and implementation for individual students in the academic environment. DTA Schools also supports district-wide AAC implementation through the Classroom Communication Goals Project, training, and supporting all team members in classroom AAC implementation. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Evaluating Skills For the Use of Comprehensive AAC Systems: CORE WORD USE ACTION/OBJECT REQUESTS-RECURRENCE, CESSATION, ACTION More, Stop, Go and Want Once we have assessed our student’s ability to understand and use photos and symbols for concrete, motivating items, it’s time to take a look at their ability to understand and use more abstract, generalizable core vocabulary. ... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: AAC assessment, Vicki Clarke
October 1, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
In our part of the world, October brings pumpkin spice lattes, Halloween costumes, and apple cider. But no matter where you live October is more than pumpkins and Halloween. It’s internationally recognized as AAC Awareness Month and it offers a wonderful opportunity for spreading the word as to how we can support people with complex communication needs. Here are a few ideas to get you started. Make an AAC Awareness Bulletin Board in your school or clinic. These materials can be used to create an AAC Awareness display. Download the files, print on color paper, and you are ready to assemble your display. Punch up the display with an AAC poster, like Lauren Enders’ AAC Boot Camp-Getting AAC Users to Communicate or Kate Ahern’s The Periodic Table of AAC . Other ideas: Print, hang, or give someone an AAC awareness image 10 Commandments of AAC Devices Spice up your AAC instruction with... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: AAC Awareness Month
September 30, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
It’s prAACtically AAC Awareness Month and we have plenty of resources to help you spread the word. If you’re on a mission to help people with complex communication needs get access to AAC, join our efforts to boost the presence of AAC on your social media feeds. Today’s post has a selection of AAC Awareness Month graphics to choose from. (These are not branded or watermarked so you can use them freely.) And if social media is not your preferred way to spread the word about AAC options, stay tuned. We have lots more to share this week. Download the latest Facebook banners and profile images for AAC Awareness Month 2019 by clicking on the images below. Facebook Banner Image Facebook Profile Image Facebook Banner Image Facebook Profile Image You can grab another style of Facebook banner here. Is Instagram your jam? We’ve got you covered.... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: AAC Awareness Month, Facebook, Instagram, twitter
September 29, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some AAC posts that may be of interest. Monday – How I Do It: Teaching the AAC Helpers Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Stepping Stones to Switch Access, Part 2 Thursday – PrAACtically October: AAC Resources for A Year of Core Vocabulary Friday – PrAACtically October: A Month of AAC Ideas ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: We’re excited for the start of AAC Awareness Month and grateful to Lauren Enders for continuing the tradition of helping us stay aware of the discounts on AAC apps. In the mood for some more AAC exploration? Here are a few suggestions. Building AAC Awareness: Using AAC to Express a Range of Functions From Activity-based AAC to Robust Language: Part 1 From Activity-based AAC to Robust Language: Part 2 Social Stories and Narratives PrAACtically Reading with Karen Natoci: Apples Have a great week, everyone!
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: AAC apps, summary post
September 27, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
We know how many of you love Rachael Langley’s calendars with prAACtical suggestions for infusing core vocabulary. If you are following along with the Year of Core Vocabulary or are just wanting to add more core word activities to your day, this perpetual calendar for October will come in handy. Perpetual calendars are designed to be used year after year. At the start of the month, just write in the numbers in the blank squares, and you are good to go. You can click here or on the image to download a copy. Many, many thanks to Rachael for making these resources and sharing them so that they can be used by families, teachers, and therapists.
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: A Year of Core Words
September 26, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Know any AAC learners like these? Jeremiah has an SGD with thousands of core and fringe words, but he uses less than 100 of them in day-to-day life. Bella used an AAC app with visual scene displays to interact at playtime and during daily routines for the past several months. Her team just added an app with a grid-based vocabulary so that she can begin to create novel sentences and expand her language abilities. Mason was recently evaluated for an AAC device, but it will likely take a few months to get the funding situation straightened out. In the meantime, his team created a manual communication board that mirrors the main screen of the SGD’s language software. Each of them needs lots of practice to become fluent with the core words in their AAC systems. Are you looking for resources to support your use of core words in therapy, in... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: core vocabulary, downloads