22 Search Results for toddlers
January 14, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
We are occasionally asked how old children have to be before you can begin teaching AAC. Our answer: There is no set minimum age. Nor is there any research evidence that one has to use an oral-language only approach for a set period of time before beginning AAC. Today, we’re delighted to be able to share an article on this topic with you. This article describes a research review in which Branson and Demchak identified a dozen research studies looking specifically at the use of various AAC tools and strategies with infants and toddlers. Data from 190 children up to 36 months of age were examined. Of the 12 studies reviewed, 7 met criteria for having conclusive findings. In 97% of all cases, the children’s communication skills improved. Looking only at the 7 most rigorous studies is even more encouraging: All 135 babies/toddlers demonstrated improved communication skills following AAC intervention.... [Read More...]
January 10, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. We have some posts that may be of interest. Monday – AAC in Secondary School: Research Project AACtivity Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: A District-wide Core Vocabulary Initiative Thursday – Throwback Thursday: Considerations in AAC Intervention Friday – PráctiCAAmente Conectados Con Links – Enero 2021 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Ready for a few more posts to browse? Here’s a sampling that you might enjoy. Does AAC Really Work with Infants and Toddlers? Research Tuesday: Photos Versus PCS – Babies Weigh In AAC & AT Supports in Early Intervention AAC Mythology v2.0: A Few Misconceptions About AAC Intervention PrAACtical Intervention Ideas: AAC Learning with the Toys, Websites, and Apps You Love
February 17, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Today, we welcome back guest author Dr. Kathy Howery for another wonderful discussion of an important AAC research article. Dr. Howery’s work in AT and special education spans three decades and her research uses phenomenological methods to increase our understanding of the lived experience of people who use AAC. She works with the Ministry of Education low incidence team, and as a consultant to schools and school districts across Alberta focusing primarily on children and youth with complex communication needs. In this post, Dr. Howery reviews an important article describing research on recasting in AAC mediated conversations. Recasts in AAC Mediated Interaction Soto, G., Clarke, M. T., Nelson, K., Starowicz, R., & Savaldi-Harussi, G. (2020). Recast type, repair, and acquisition in AAC mediated interaction. Journal of Child Language, 47, 250-264. https://doi.org/10.1017/S03035000919000436 What this article is about (the focus of the research)? This article focuses its attention on the power of... [Read More...]
August 5, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Looking to create a sustainable AAC program in your school? Today, we learn about the way one school district in Illinois created a core vocabulary initiative that has been up and running for almost a decade. Kelly Key, the Assistive Technology (AT) Coordinator for Barrington School District 220 serves as our tour guide. Kelly is passionate about giving students a voice through core vocabulary and empowering others to support students. She has been in the field for over 22 years as a special education teacher, an administrator, and AT Coordinator. Kelly presents at local, state, and national conferences and colleges on various AT topics including core vocabulary and AAC implementation. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: How We Do It: Getting to the CORE of Communication (Part 1) Rolling Out a Core Vocabulary Initiative- How this District has been going strong for a decade! The Importance of Using Core Vocabulary As we all know, individuals with complex... [Read More...]
March 13, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Over 100 young children with AAC needs and their parents participated in research to look at the ways that their communication changed when families were trained to provide support. For today’s featured video, we turn to the Edmonton Regional Learning Consortium (ERLC) and the Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia (ARPDC) to learn more about what research teams led by Drs. Maryann Romski and Rose Sevick found out. Learn about the methods and strategies they used in this archived webinar. Many thanks to the ERLC. the ARPDC, and Drs. Romski and Sevcik for making Parent-Coached Augmented Language Intervention for Toddlers available. Direct Link to Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=373&v=rnILKJu_ai0
January 13, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some posts from our prAACtical week. Monday – PrAACtical Resources: Explore AAC Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Raising a Child Who Uses Eye Gaze AAC Technology Thursday – Throwback Thursday: Engaging AACtivities for AAC Learning :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Ready for a few more posts to browse? Here’s a sampling that you might enjoy. Does AAC Really Work with Infants and Toddlers? Research Tuesday: Photos Versus PCS – Babies Weigh In AAC & AT Supports in Early Intervention AAC Mythology v2.0: A Few Misconceptions About AAC Intervention PrAACtical Intervention Ideas: AAC Learning with the Toys, Websites, and Apps You Love
October 4, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Welcome back to our AAC partner training series, Model as a MASTER PAL, created by SLP Tabi Jones-Wohleber. Today, we continue with materials to help communication partners interact with AAC learners in a supportive fashion. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Model as a MASTER PAL Module 7: Engage Naturally Facilitator Guidelines This module covers a lot of territory. From the behaviors of communication partners that support the process of language development to creating communication opportunities, to the language we use with a child to talk about their device, to fostering communicative competence, naturalistic engagement is shaped in many ways. The importance of this conversation lies in the fact that genuine engagement and mutual respect are where learning happens. It is also how meaningful social relationships are built. This module invites participants to reflect on factors that shape the quality of interactions in order to maximize the potential for communicating, learning and creating meaningful social,... [Read More...]
September 6, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Our training series continues with West Virginia-based SLP Tabi Jones-Wohleber, who works with the AT Team for Frederick County Public Schools in Maryland and provides services to infants and toddlers in the West Virginia Birth to Three programs. In the first two posts, Tabi shared the Overview and Modeling modules and their accompanying resources. In today’s post, the training focuses on an important topic, motivation. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Model as a MASTER PAL Module 3: Motivate Facilitator Guidelines Genuine motivation goes well beyond gummies and goldfish; reinforcers are only one small part of the picture as we endeavor to understand what truly drives an individual’s desire to learn and communicate. So much of the time it is the quality of the relationship and the meaningfulness of the interaction. This module discusses the importance of motivation in learning and engaging, whether intrinsic or extrinsic, as well as the undesirable consequences that occur when lack of motivation... [Read More...]
May 31, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Aided language input, the practice of modeling AAC when speaking to those who are trying to learn AAC, is a pivotal intervention strategy. It has been shown to support comprehension and expression, and the development of early sentence forms. The evidence suggests it may also support the development of certain grammatical morphemes and verb combinations. You can learn more about the implementation of aided language input here. Here are some of the research studies that support the use of this evidence-based practice. Binger, C., & Light, J. (2007). The effect of aided AAC modeling on the expression of multi-symbol messages by preschoolers who use AAC. Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 23, 30–43. Binger, C., Maguire-Marshall, M., & Kent-Walsh, J. (2011). Using aided AAC models, recasts and contrastive targets to teach grammatical morphemes to children who use AAC. Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research, 54, 160–176. Dada, S., & Alant, E. (2009). The... [Read More...]
January 18, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
For several years, those who specialize in supporting AAC learners have stressed the need to develop AAC systems and programming that go beyond the communicative function of requesting in order to target the ability to protest, reject, comment, etc. This has been an important trend that will empower users of AAC to express themselves in much fuller ways. What other things should we be targeting in order to help our clients and students become more linguistically competent? Here are some ideas for goal areas to consider. Temporal Markers: While no one can overstate the importance of talking about our current needs, interests, observations, and preferences, we have to be careful not to get stuck in the moment. It is also important for our AAC learners to develop the language skills to be able to talk about things that already happened or that will/might be happening. Why? Among other things, this... [Read More...]