Tag Archive: preschool

AAC Posts from PrAACtical Week # 35: August 2018

August 26, 2018 by - Leave your thoughts

AAC Posts from PrAACtical Week # 35: August 2018

It’s a beautiful day to catch up on some AAC reading. Here are some posts from our prAACtical week. Monday – Letters from Camp, Day 1 Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday –  Video of the Week: AAC on the Move Thursday – Building AAC Facilitation Skills with Tabi Jones-Wohleber: MASTER PAL Training, Module 1 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Still have an appetite for some AAC? Check out this sampling of past posts. SGDs for People with ASD “What Should I Program on the SGD?” Feature Match Chart 5 Features to Look for in SGDs and AAC Apps Making a Back-up for High-tech AAC :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Join us in January for a full day of preschool AAC! Use the slider on the right side of the graphic for more information. You can also download a PDF of it here.

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Using Vest Displays with Preschoolers on the Autism Spectrum

June 28, 2018 by - Leave your thoughts

Using Vest Displays with Preschoolers on the Autism Spectrum

We’re so pleased to welcome back Dr. Carol Goossens’, an AAC pioneer who is an internationally-recognized consultant, SLP, and Special Educator from New York. Throughout her career, she has consulted extensively in a variety of classrooms serving the full spectrum of children with special needs. Dr. Goossens’ has presented both nationally and internationally about her collaborative work with teachers, therapists, and families. In today’s post, she shares a treasure trove of ideas on using wearable AAC. Learn more about her approach to using vest displays in this extensive post. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Using Vest Displays with Preschoolers on the Autism Spectrum When working with students on the spectrum, we often struggle to gain and maintain their attention, especially during group activities such as Circle Time/Morning Meeting. The songs offered during Circle Time, however, create a great forum for working on a variety of communication skills, e.g., claiming a turn, announcing a song, choosing... [Read More...]

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10 Tips for Starting AAC Therapy with Little Ones

January 16, 2018 by - 6 Comments

10 Tips for Starting AAC Therapy with Little Ones

It’s exciting to see so many graduate student SLPs and new graduates who are interested in working with people with AAC needs. We hear from them frequently with questions about how to be effective in their therapy and the practical aspects of running a good therapy session. Here are some tips we frequently share with those who are starting to implement AAC with young children. Use a visual schedule for every session. The operative word there is ‘use.’ Making a schedule for our therapy is a great start, but unless we really use the schedule all throughout the session, it’s unlikely to provide many benefits. Go to it as soon as you get into the room, AND before and after every activity. (For those who are interested, there is more on making and effectively implementing visual schedules here. Trust the process. You will need to do this at least 4-8... [Read More...]

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Site of the Month: Preschool AAC and Visual Supports from Orange County Public Schools

May 8, 2017 by - 3 Comments

Site of the Month: Preschool AAC and Visual Supports

Where can I go to get AAC-friendly resources for preschool children? Join us as we explore the Wiki sharing space by the Exceptional Student Education Program of Orange County Public Schools in the Orlando, Florida area.  Over the years, their AT team and others have compiled an impressive group of materials that can be used by teachers, therapists, and parents. You can see guest posts on Essential Tricks for Supporting AAC in Schools by some of the team here and here. In this post, we feature one of their webpages that is used for resource sharing. Many of the files are in Boardmaker format, but there are also some in Word and PDF document formats. Most of the resources are available from the menu on main page (click here). Highlights from this site include: Unit-based Resources (including classroom and therapy materials, parent letter, & more) are accessible from the main page Me &... [Read More...]

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PrAACtical Resources: Behavioral Supports for Young Children

April 6, 2017 by - 1 Comment

PrAACtical Resources: Behavioral Supports for Young Children

One of the biggest stressors for therapists and educators who work with AAC is dealing with challenging behavior. In today’s post, we share a wonderful set of resources on positive approaches to preventing, minimizing, and de-escalating instances of challenging behavior. The Technical Assistance Center of Social Emotional Intervention for Young Children produced a number of resources that are available on their website here. Topics include: Tips and forms for getting started Using a Buddy System Teacher tools Turtle Technique Visual supports Using scripts Circle time tips Dealing with feelings Strategies for families to use at home There is also a helpful Tool Kit that can be accessed via the image below.  

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Video of the Week: Supporting Preschoolers with AAC Needs-A Case Study

January 18, 2017 by - Leave your thoughts

Video of the Week: Supporting Preschoolers with AAC Needs-A Case Study

What’s something that both AAC novices and experienced interventionists have in common? We all appreciate the opportunity to see AAC in action, particularly when we get some insight into how communication and language develops over time. In today’s featured video, we return to TASN Autism and Tertiary Behavior Supports in Kansas for a case study. Be sure to check out the accompanying resources on their site after you view the video. Enjoy!  

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Video of the Week: A School-based Approach for Supporting the AT Needs of Young Children

January 11, 2017 by - Leave your thoughts

Video of the Week: A School-based Approach for Supporting the AT Needs of Young Children

We’re excited by the growing number of professionals who support the AT needs of young children, and, like many of you, always appreciate learning more about the practices of agencies and school systems that have initiatives in this area. It takes a lot of courage to share your practices and approaches, and we respect those organizations willing to do so. In today’s video, we learn about the processes in place in Fairfax County, Virginia which serves approximately 25,000 special education students. Dr. Cheryl Temple and her colleagues Celeste Rodrigo and Malia Waller, explain their process for supporting young children with AT needs, including AAC, in early childhood and preschool classrooms.  Many thanks to the Center on Technology and Disability for hosting this webinar and making the recording available. AT Assessments and Interventions: Tots Can Tech, Too   You can access the handouts for this session from the CTD website here... [Read More...]

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Site of the Month: Miami Dade County PreKindergarten Program for Children with Disabilities

June 18, 2015 by - Leave your thoughts

Site of the Month: Miami Dade County PreKindergarten Program for Children with Disabilities

These days, there are so many wonderful websites for resources and AAC-related information that sometimes it is hard to remember where to look. When I decided to feature some of my favorite sites, I wanted to start with a site that has been helping SLPs, teachers, and families for a long time. The website for preschool special education program at Miami Dade County Public Schools has been a ‘go-to’ resources for many years. The AT team, which serves over 200 preK classrooms, has evolved over the years, but what has not changed is their commitment to helping children learn to communicate. If you work with little ones, you may want to spend some time exploring their site. Here are some of the AAC-related highlights to get you started. Implementing AAC in the Preschool Classroom Using the daily routine as a framework Motivating messages Modeling  AAC Using cues and wait time Using... [Read More...]

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AACtual Therapy: AAC Goes to the Zoo

January 10, 2013 by - 2 Comments

AACtual Therapy: AAC Goes to the Zoo

Welcome to AACtual Therapy, a new series on PrAACtical AAC that we’re undertaking in order to give you an up-close-and-personal look at SLPs who ‘do’ AAC. Each of these posts will feature one of our prAACtical friends, some of whom have been AAC interventionists for awhile and others who have come to it more recently. Each one is passionate about giving people a voice no matter what their age or ability level. They’ll be giving us a peek into an AAC therapy lesson that they use, and telling us about the strategies that make it successful. They’ll share a bit about the goals and objectives the lesson was designed to address, and what sorts of AAC their clients are using. Hopefully, we’ll see them in action Here’s what NOT to expect: Perfection. It doesn’t exist, so we don’t even bother looking for it. We’re featuring these clinicians because we want... [Read More...]

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