June 6, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Looking for book-specific vocabulary that you can highlight, teach, and/or elicit when reading? The Assistive Technology Team at Baltimore City Public Schools has a site with materials that you may find helpful. They’ve created topical communication boards for over 800 books, both fiction and non-fiction, that can be accessed by anyone with the Boardmaker program. Their resources include activity-based communication boards with 9, 20, and 56 locations for the books, and a set of comprehension questions. You can access their Adapted Books site here.
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: Books, downloads, reading, resources
June 5, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Hope you had a productive week of AAC! Wednesday – AAC Assessment Corner with Vicki Clarke: AAC Assessment for Emergent Communicators Thursday – Video of the Week: AAC on the Move
Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking
June 1, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Today, we welcome back Vicki Clarke with more helpful information on conducting AAC assessments. If you work with individual who are at the early stages of communicative development, this post is for you! :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Some of my most favorite students are those who, at first, may not seem to notice me at all. Sometimes these students seem to exist in their own worlds. They don’t seem to respond in ways we would expect: looking, attending, listening, or gesturing. They may have a diagnosis of Autism, significant developmental delay, epilepsy, or any number of syndromes. I love these kids, and unfortunately, these are often the students who don’t get referred to me. Sometimes it takes years of working in a district before I get to see students with significant developmental delays. These children are typically served in classrooms for students considered to be severe/profound or multi-handicapped. Honestly, I usually get the... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: assessment, beginning communicator
May 29, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Hope this has been a productive Better Hearing and Speech Month! Monday – PrAACtically Pinteresting with Lauren Enders: Why Use AAC? Wednesday – Video of the Week: More on Assessing Barriers to Access for Learners Thursday – PrAACtically June: Resources for a Year of Core Vocabulary Words
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
May 27, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
We’re ready to tear off another page of the calendar and that means we are preparing for a new set of core words to focus on. Join us in highlighting a set of core words for the month and helping our AAC learners become more fluent in using them on a day-to-day basis, Whether you are following along with the 2013 Year of Core (Set 1-12 words/month) or the 2014 A(nother) Year of Core: (Set 2-16 words/month; Different than the previous year’s core words), or just getting started, here are some helpful resources. Our June words are listed below. Set 1 (2013) List: after, am/be/is, because, can, cold, fast, fun, have, hungry, let, need, talk Set 2 (2014) List: about, back, buy, grandmother, hand, inside, lose, move, okay, people, quiet, short, show, two, water, yellow Templates for you to plug in your own symbols: Set 1 words, Set 2 words... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
May 23, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Even veteran clinicians and educators find themselves looking for resources to help others better understand what AAC is and why it may have been recommended in a particular situation. Today, we welcome back SLP Lauren Enders to introduce us to the information she has collected for this purpose. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: This month on PrAACtically Pinteresting, we’ll be taking a look at the board AAC: Why Use AAC?/Benefits of AAC. Very often, I am asked if I have resources that can be shared with team members or families who are reluctant to implement AAC. Often this reluctance results from of simple lack of information or beliefs in a variety of myths surrounding AAC use. I created this board to serve as an easily accessible repository of resources that can be shared with parents, professionals, or support staff who are hesitant to use AAC with their child/student/client. The board contains pins with information that... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: Lauren Enders, Pinterest
May 22, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
May is Better Hearing and Speech Month, a perfect time to build awareness among colleagues and in the community. Monday – AAC in the Classroom: 5 Presentation Handouts Wednesday – Assessing Barriers to Access for AAC Learners Thursday – Beyond Requesting: A Week of Routines to Increase AAC Use at Mealtime
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
May 19, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
“Waffle.” “I want ___.” “More.” “I’d like a diet coke, please.” “Help.” Most AAC interventionists are quite effective at helping clients use their communication systems during snack or mealtime in order to make requests. How can we move beyond that and help AAC learners communicate for a wider variety of purposes? Mealtimes are wonderful social opportunities and we can take advantage of that by building interaction opportunities around predictable routines. Why build a routine? The predictability helps learners understand what is expected of them. Understanding the expectation sets the stage for active participation. When something becomes a routine, it gets implemented regularly. That gives our learners lots of opportunities to practice their new skills. It also gives us the opportunity to get better at key instructional strategies, such as aided language input, creating explicit opportunities, and using language expansions. Need some suggestions for routines that can be created to foster... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: meals, requesting, social interaction
May 16, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Looking for ideas on how to strengthen language learning by students with AAC needs in the classroom? Here are some presentation handouts that may spur your thinking. Start Talking in Class: Helping Students Using AAC Devices by Gail M. Van Tatenhove Incorporating AAC Use into the Classroom by Karen Vinson and Eleanor Thompson Aided Language Stimulation and the Descriptive Teaching Model by Gail M. Van Tatenhove Communication Peeled and Cored for the Classroom by Jennifer M. Ro and Amy Thomsen Score with Core: Implementing Core Vocabulary in the Classroom by Janet S. Lehr
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: classroom, handouts, school
May 15, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Better Hearing and Speech Month! Monday – AAC Core Vocabulary Instruction: Indirect Teaching Strategies Wednesday – Video of the Week: Assessing Communication Needs in AAC Learners Thursday – PrAACtically Reading with Karen Natoci: The Five Senses
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking