April 16, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
The other day, a friend posted something on social media that many of us can relate to. “Between all the hand sanitizer and cleaning solution that my skin absorbs,” she said, “I’m probably disinfecting the toilet with every trip to the bathroom!” While that’s a bit of a stretch, it is true that most of us are washing our hands more often now than ever before. And for good reason. But some of our AAC learners don’t really like hand washing and it can be a struggle to have them do that several times a day. In today’s post, we share some ideas that can help keep those hands clean. Not everyone will need every strategy, but we included several ideas so that you can select those that are most beneficial for the AAC learners in your life. Teach the skill and use a visual schedule to illustrate the steps.... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: Covid-19, daily routines
April 13, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
It’s time for another edition of the TELL ME About It series which focuses on AAC, language, and literacy learning with preschool children. 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. You can check out the earlier posts in this series below. No, David Go Away Big Green Monster What Do You Like? Here Are My Hands From Head to Toe I Went Walking Brown Bear, Brown Bear TELL ME AAC Literacy Kits Be sure to see their videos modeling book reading with two AAC systems toward the end of this post. TELL ME About It:... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: core vocabulary, reading, TELL ME
April 12, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. To those who are celebrating Easter, Passover, and other holidays, we hope you find joy and meaning as you find new ways to commune and celebrate with those you love. We are all adjusting to this new way of being. If you’re interested in some AAC reading, here are a few suggestions. Monday – PrAACtical Perspectives: Normalizing AAC Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: AAC Telepractice Thursday – Finding My Words: Considerations in Language Displays and Organization A few weeks back, we asked those who provide AAC telepractice services and wanted to publicly share that information to complete an online survey. You can access that information in the edited version of that post. If you are looking to do some book-related AAC teaching this week, check out some of Karen Natoci’s popular literacy-focused posts from the archives. PraAACtically Reading with Karen... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: language organization, reading
April 9, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
How do you decide which AAC app or software best meets the needs of an individual with complex communication needs? We’re so pleased that longtime contributor Vicki Clarke is back with us to address this topic in a very prAACtical way. Vicki is a Georgia-based SLP who has been specializing in AAC for over 25 years. Her practice, Dynamic Therapy Associates, serves children and adults with significant communication challenges in clinical and educational settings. You can read previous posts by Vicki here. In this post, Vicki dives deep into an important aspect of AAC displays: vocabulary organization. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Finding My Words: Considerations in Language Displays and Organization In previous articles we’ve talked about how easy it is to buy into the very first communication system you learn to use with your students. Maybe you started with LAMP and you have fully embraced a core word strategy. Perhaps you were a... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: language organization, navigation, operational competence
April 6, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
How do we help people with complex communication needs become fluent in using AAC throughout the day? There are lots of factors to consider in working toward that goal, and our guest author for today encourages us to think of one of them. Special educator Amy Campbell believes that one thing we can do to support AAC learners is to normalize the use of AAC tools and strategies. Amy is the 2020 Washington State Teacher of the Year and has been a Special Education teacher for 12 years. Over that time, she has focused on how to increase student independence and improve the inclusion of students with disabilities into general education settings and the greater community. Like many of you, she has now pivoted to supporting her students from a distance. Don’t miss the videos Amy creates for her students and their families so learning can continue from afar. ... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: AAC implementation, classroom, learn-at-home, school
April 5, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Hope you are adjusting as best you can to this new reality of ours. If you need to catch up on some AAC reading, take a look at what we published this past week. Monday – PrAACtically April – AAC Resources for A Year of Core Words: The Learn-at-Home Edition Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Enhancing Communication for Individuals with Autism Thursday – AAC Learning at a Distance ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Still have time for a little more reading? Here are some additional posts for you to explore. Beyond Requesting: Thoughts on Teaching Information Transfer How I Do It: Encouraging AAC Implementation (Lauren Enders) PrAACtical Ways to Make Decisions About Thematic Therapy Materials In the Treasure Bag: Using Sharing Time to Focus on Vocabulary AAC in Motion: Walk the Walk, Talk the Talk with Tanna Neufeld
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: AAC implementation
April 2, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
In most places, AAC services are now provided remotely. In today’s post, we share an evolving collection of resources for those of you supporting AAC learners from a distance. Use the slider on the right to explore the videos, downloadable resources, and articles, or click here to go to the full-sized version. Have suggestions for things to add? Comment below and we’ll add them in.
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: distance learning, learn-at-home, telepractice
March 30, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
We’re entering a new era in AAC learning, one that’s centered around learning at home. Whether you are a parent trying to keep your child’s AAC skills up in the absence of their regular therapy and schooling, or a professional who is providing AAC support from afar, we hope that our monthly Year of Core Vocabulary Learn-at-Home Edition posts help you stay focused and keep your learners using their AAC skills. In today’s post, we share some ideas for boosting core word learning throughout the week with a focus on a small set of words. Whether you are following along with the Set 1 (12 words/month) or the Set 2 words (16 words/month; Different than the previous core words), or are just getting started, this post has some helpful resources. Our words for this month are as follows. Set 1 List: big, busy, do, drink, feel, he, in, make, out, some, tell, who... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: A Year of Core Words, AAC activities, learn-at-home
March 29, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Hello, AAC friends! Like many of you, we’ve been settling into new routines and sheltering in place. Here are some posts from our prAACtical week. Monday – Free Communication Tools for Patients with COVID-19 Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Telepractice for Children Who Use AAC Thursday – How I Do It: Digital Connections With Families to Support AAC Users ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: If you have the time, check out these posts from the archives. Faces of AAC: Making It Work in a Busy Family PrAACtically Reading with Karen Natoci: The Family Book Family Collaboration by Dr. Barry Prizant Using Visual Sidekicks to Support Language Intervention From Presence to Contribution: A Family’s Journey Toward and Inclusive Life
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: coronavirus, family, free download
March 26, 2020
by Carole Zangari -
Staying connected with families is such an important aspect of being an effective AAC interventionist. In today’s post, we have a return visit from SLP Sarah Gregory, who shares the things that she is doing to maintain these connections as we learn to do this work from afar. You can read Sarah’s previous contribution here. Digital Connections With Families to Support AAC Users I hope this blog post finds everyone well! The COVID-19 virus has created an uncertain and unprecedented time for us all, but I have gotten so much comfort from the generosity and resource sharing in our AAC SLP community this week. As we get creative in supporting our AAC users remotely, the app SeeSaw has been a key to connecting with my students and families (I am not affiliated with this app in any way). I have used this free app to create a loop between home... [Read More...]
Filed under: Featured Posts, PrAACtical Thinking
Tagged With: coronavirus, Family support, telepractice