November 7, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. We have a handful of posts for you. Monday – AAC at Upcoming Professional Conferences: 3 Online Learning Opportunities Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Implementing Comprehensive Literacy Instruction for Students Who Use AAC Thursday – AAC Fair Testing Practices: Test Administration Procedures Friday – PráctiCAAmente Conectados Con Links – Noviembre 2021 :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: While you’re here, why not sample some of these past posts? Organizing Vocabulary for Communication Books: Getting Started More on Teaching Core Vocabulary Join Together Core and Fringe AAC In the Classroom: Considerations for Modeling Core Vocabulary PrAACtical Resources: Mini Communication Boards
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
November 5, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
On the first Friday of every month, we feature a Spanish version of our AAC Link Up, CAA con Links. If you have AAC-related announcements, materials, or videos in Spanish that you would like others to know about, we’d love to have you add that information below. Also, please share this with anyone who might be interested in contributing to or using the materials that get added to these posts. In today’s post, Claudia Marimón shares the work of some friends who use AAC. They have a lot to say! ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Damos la bienvenida a Noviembre compartiendo links en español como una excelente forma de aportar conocimientos, experiencias y recursos a la comunidad hispano hablante. Acabamos de terminar el mes de Octubre donde la CAA se hace más visible que nunca, profesionales, familias y usuarios queremos que todos conozcan acerca de la CAA sus principios, beneficios, conceptos claves, sus estrategias... [Read More...]
Filed under: AAC Link Up, Featured Posts
November 4, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
Without a thoughtful assessment plan in place, people who use AAC may be at a disadvantage when taking tests. Fatigue, excessive anxiety, comprehension difficulties, motor challenges, limited access to robust language, and other factors may make it difficult for them to demonstrate what they know. Today, we continue our series on AAC Fair Testing Practices with a discussion of test administration practices. In formal testing, any changes to testing procedures invalidate the use of normative data. If we modify the directions or response options provided to an AAC user, we can’t compare their scores to the scores of individuals who took the test without any modifications. That means we aren’t pouring through the tables at the back of the test manual to find age or grade equivalency scores. Still, we have to be thoughtful in when and how to make adjustments to testing practices. In this post, we consider two... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
November 2, 2021
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: AAC Link Up, Featured Posts
November 1, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
If you’re new to the practice of AAC or just want to expand your knowledge base, consider making plans to attend a conference where you can learn from a variety of AAC stakeholders and make connections with like-minded individuals. Here are some suggestions for upcoming events with virtual options. NOVEMBER: #TalkingAAC DECEMBER: ASHA’s Expanding AAC: Accessible Strategies for Functional Communication JANUARY: Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA) Hope to see you there!
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
October 31, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Halloween, AAC friends. If AAC reading is on your agenda, here are some suggested posts. Monday – November Year of Core Vocabulary & School Year of Core Vocabulary Words Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – AAC Video of the Week: Getting to Know You Thursday – AAC Fair Testing Practices: Test Materials ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: If you have more time, check out these past posts from the archives. 5 AAC Tips for Talking About Halloween After it is Over EET + AAC = OMG Top AAC Videos
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
October 28, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
For individuals with AAC needs to be able to demonstrate what they know in assessment situations, we need to think carefully about the test materials and consider what adjustments are needed. In this continuation of our series on AAC Fair Testing Practices, we’ll explore this in some detail. TOPIC 9: Test Materials There are two categories of test materials for us to consider: those that are part of the assessment process for all learners and those that may be needed primarily by students who use AAC. In both cases, teams should discuss what is relevant, fair, and helpful to a particular student. Detailed notes should be kept to aid in replicating the set-up for re-testing at a later point in time or for use in other assessments. Additionally, teams will want to keep the purpose of the assessment in mind as they address this topic. Knowing why we are conducting... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
October 26, 2021
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: AAC Link Up, Featured Posts
October 25, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
It’s prAACtically November and we’re reprising some past posts in two popular series, Year of Core Vocabulary Words and School Year of Core Vocabulary Words. The initial series was based on a small set of core words for each month (see that post here). We followed that with a second set of Year of Core Vocabulary Word resources for a new list of words (click here for that post). Among the many resources are the activity calendars created by AAC SLP and co-founder of Talking AAC, Rachael Langley. There were many other contributors over the years who added to these efforts. The School Year of Core Vocabulary Words, authored by guest contributors Michaela Sullivan, Alisa Lego, and Beth Lytle, was first published in 2020. If you’re following along and utilizing these resources, which were developed by quite a few people in the AAC community, you can access the content for... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
October 24, 2021
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some posts you may have missed. Monday – AAC Goal Writing with Lauren Enders: 5 Common Challenges Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Relationships and AAC Thursday – Growing AAC Professionals: AAC Awareness Month If you’re looking to make this an AAC-friendly Halloween week, check out this post from the archives. Go Away, Big Green Monster is a popular book this time of year. Check out these suggestions for using it to build AAC skills in this post by Maggie Judson and Jeanna Antrim. Halloween makes us think of bobbing for apples and enjoying candy apple treats. If you’re up for some reading about apples, this post from Karen Natoci has some ideas that you might enjoy. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Looking for a few more posts to browse? We’ve got a few suggestions for you. PrAACtically Reading with Karen Natoci:... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking