May 17, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some AAC posts that you may have missed in your busy week. Monday – TELL ME About It: AAC Learning with ‘The Lunch Box Surprise’! Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: AAC Explainers for Parent & Staff Training Thursday – Zooming, Masking, Distancing, & More: AAC-friendly Resources for Managing Coronavirus Challenges ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: While you’re at it, here are some previous posts that may be of interest. Helping Beginning Communicators Expand Their Sentence Length 5 Ways to Make Semantic Maps More Effective in AAC Therapy PrAACtical Questions with Vicki Clarke: What’s the Role of Core Vocabulary? Communication Boards: Colorful Considerations Let Me Tell You Something- Narratives for the Beginning Communicator
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
May 14, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
It’s hard to believe that it’s been two months since we first published a curated collection of social narratives, videos, visual supports, and communication aids designed for some of the various challenges that come along with the Covid-19 pandemic. Creators from around the world have offered so many resources that our list has doubled in size. We’re reprinting it today so that you can see some of the latest additions. There are over 130 materials to browse through, all of which are free due to the generosity of parents and professionals in the disability community. You can use the slider on the right side of the image below to scroll down through the resources or click here for a full-size version.
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
May 12, 2020
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 camp 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
May 11, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Reading with preschoolers is a great way to build language and AAC skills. Today, we share another post in the TELL ME About It series on incorporating AAC, language, and literacy support with young learnes.. Maggie Judson and Jeanna Antrim are back with more great ideas for AAC intervention, this time focusing on the book, Come Out and Play, Little Mouse. Maggie and Jeanna are speech-language pathologists who work in the Assistive Technology Department for the Belleville Area Special Services Cooperative (BASSC) in central Illinois. They are AT/AAC facilitators and provide evaluations, direct therapy, consultations, and trainings. To read more about how this team prepares for a TELL ME week, check out their previous posts in the TELL ME About It series. Come Out and Play, Little Mouse No, David Go Away Big Green Monster What Do You Like? Here Are My Hands From Head to Toe I Went Walking... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: literacy, TELL ME
May 10, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends, and Happy Mother’s Day to those in the US. Here are some posts from our prAACtical week. Monday – PrAACtical Resources: ASHA’s AAC Evidence Map Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Some Good AAC News Thursday – Parent Coaching & Tele-AAC ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: If you have a little more time, check out some of these past posts. 5 Kinds of Pre-stored Messages That Put the AAC Learner in Control PrAACtical Guessing: 5 Apps for Interactive Inferencing Supporting Children in the Pediatric ICU 5+ Things to Do to Help AAC Learners Communicate About Illness or Injury “What’s Wrong?” AAC Messages for Negative Emotions and Feelings
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: emotions, illness, research, telepractice
May 7, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
If I had a crystal ball, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it told us that telepractice in AAC is here to stay. My guess is that when schools and clinics re-open there will still be a role for remote AAC services. That’s why I am so pleased that guest authors Jill Senner and Matthew Baud are returning to these pages to share their approach to using tele-AAC to educate and coach parents. Tele-AAC for All With social distancing, local shelter in place orders, and general concerns about the health of our high-risk clients who use AAC, most of us have made an abrupt transition to providing AAC therapy via telehealth. Doing direct therapy using video conferencing platforms might be going swimmingly for some clients who will sit and attentively gaze at the books, games, and other materials you present remotely. However, what about your younger clients? Or kiddos... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: coaching, parent training, telepractice
May 5, 2020
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 camp 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
May 4, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
May is Better Hearing and Speech Month here in the US and in celebration of that, today’s post features an important resource from the American Speech-Language-Heating Association. The AAC Evidence Map was launched a few years ago and has been growing steadily since that time. ASHA’s Evidence Maps call attention to the three pillars of evidence-based practice (EBP): scientific evidence, clinical expertise, and client values/perspectives They were created for many different areas within the field of speech-language pathology and address clinical services across disability and age groups. Each of the 40+ evidence maps includes information on assessment, intervention, and service delivery for that specific communication difficulty. The information in each one comes from a variety of sources, including refereed journals and professional organizations in several countries. The AAC Evidence Map includes two types of external scientific information, Clinical Guidelines, and systematic reviews. Individuals studies are not included here. There are... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
May 3, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some posts from our prAACtical week. Monday – PrAACtically May – AAC Resources for A Year of Core Words: The Learn-at-Home Edition Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Environmental Communication Training – Strategies for Implementation Thursday – Connecting Intubated Patients with Loved Ones: Co-VidSpeak :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Before you leave, here are a few more posts that may be of interest. Aided AAC & the IEP How I Do It: AAC in the IEP AAC & the IEP: 5 Resources to Explore 5 Reasons to Put AAC Training for Staff and Parents into the IEP How I Do It: Writing IEP Goals for Students Who Use AAC with Lauren Enders One last thing…check out the updates to this interactive flyer by using the slider at the right or visiting the full-sized version here. Scroll to the bottom for the latest additions.
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: Covid-19, education, IEP
April 30, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
One of the most heartbreaking aspects of the Covid-19 situation is the necessity of separating desperately ill patients from their loved ones. In most instances, visitors are not allowed or are severely limited. The sense of isolation makes this terrible situation worse, both for patients and for families. So several weeks ago when I first saw the prototype for Co-VidSpeak, I could instantly see its potential to make life more tolerable for patients who are unable to speak and their families. In today’s post, you can learn more about Co-VidSpeak from its founders, Bill Binko (LessonPix) and Brian Whitmer (CoughDrop) who are offering this at no cost to eligible individuals. If you are so inclined, please consider supporting their efforts through a donation (details below). Another way that you can make a meaningful contribution to these efforts is to share this with healthcare providers, especially those with decision-making power in... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: AAC app, Covid-19