223 Search Results for partner strategies
August 23, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Are you… Hoping to train team members to be better communication partners for their AAC students/clients but overwhelmed by the thought of all the preparation? Relatively new to AAC and not sure what content to share in your training? Looking for additional resources to utilize in your existing training sessions? Good news, AAC friends! This post is for you. We’re so happy to have SLP Tabi Jones-Wohleber returning to the blog to share more of her wonderful AAC resources. Tabi works with young children at the West Virginia Birth to Three program and serves on the AT Team for Frederick County Public Schools in Maryland. Today, she launches a new series on partner training that focuses on the use of aided language input and other facilitative strategies. There are 11 modules in all (1 overview for administrative discussions and 10 for communication partners) and each one includes slides, handouts, discussion prompts, links... [Read More...]
August 6, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Children who grow up hearing Mandarin generally learn to speak Mandarin. Deaf children who grow up with parents and teachers who use sign language, generally learn to communicate in that sign language. It doesn’t take much imagination to see why children with AAC needs are likely to do best when they are able to see and hear competent communicators use AAC throughout the week. There is a growing body of evidence for the use of aided language input to support AAC learners at the beginning stages of language development and a great many more teachers, therapists, and families are employing these practices. That’s a very good thing. But is aided language input alone sufficient? Research studies have not yet addressed this question, but it is doubtful. Many AAC learners are not able to use observation and incidental opportunities to their advantage. For example, some are challenged with sensory issues that... [Read More...]
June 18, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Looking for more ways to build AAC skills? Book reading can be incorporated into therapy sessions and instructional lessons, as well as part of the daily routine at home. Here are some ideas for using books to support AAC and language learning. Choosing a book: In most cases, we want the AAC learner to have the autonomy to choose a book. However, we can make this part of the AAC learning process by teaching the skill of choosing something to read and talking about it before the learner makes his/her choice. Goal Areas: We can use this time to build basic turn-taking skills, requesting, sentence-building, and new vocabulary, among other things. It’s also a great opportunity to develop more advanced syntax using words like ‘since’ and ‘because’ (e.g., “I want to read about sport because it is World Cup time.”) and various sentence structures (e.g., “First, let’s read a sports... [Read More...]
May 7, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Dr. Jill Senner and Matthew Baud are staunch advocates for using research-based strategies and other evidence-based practices (EBP) in their AAC work. In today’s post. they share their thoughts on what EBP is, why it is important for AAC professionals, and how to incorporate it into our clinical and educational practices. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Facts Matter: EBP in AAC Evidence-based practice (EBP) has been a buzz word in healthcare and education for almost two decades. However, “it has been well documented in many disciplines that major gaps exist between what is known as effective practices (i.e., theory and science) and what is actually done (i.e., policy and practice)” (Fixsen et al., 2005, p. 2). What is EBP, why is it important and how can we make sure we’re incorporating evidenced-based practices into our work with students and clients using AAC? Let’s take a look at answers to each of these questions below.... [Read More...]
April 5, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Do you work with AAC learners who demonstrate their communication skills in therapy or instructional lessons, but not elsewhere? In this post, we review some things we can do to make it easier for AAC learners to generalize their newly-developed skills and use them in a variety of places with a range of communication partners. Part of the solution to this problem lies in collaborating with the communication partners in other settings. In doing that, we want to be sure that the partners use good communication facilitation strategies, such as these. Partner skills are something we’ve covered here on several occasions. Today, we’ll focus on changes we can make within our direct intervention or instructional lessons with AAC learners. Initially, we may control some of the instructional variables, such as materials and cues, rather tightly. Keeping things consistent is great for the initial teaching of new skills because it allows... [Read More...]
March 29, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Looking for a learning resource that goes beyond a quick overview and covers some of the details about providing AAC to school-aged children? Today, we visit an online learning site by the UK Department for Education called Communication-Augmentative and Assistive Strategies. It has wonderful information on a variety of AAC topics and downloadable resources for topics such as low tech AAC, vocabulary selection, and becoming a good communication partner. Take your time to explore this learning module and all of the resources it has to offer.
March 12, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
Lauren Enders, an amazing AAC SLP from Pennsylvania, graciously shared this list of professional development opportunities that may be of interest. Lauren works as an Augmentative Communication/Assistive Technology Consultant for Bucks County Intermediate Unit #22. In the list below, she shares resources for AAC learning in both online and face-to-face formats. Enjoy! You can see more of Lauren’s guest posts here. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPTIONS FOR AAC IMPLEMENTATION ONLINE SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING OPTIONS: Power AAC modules: a FREE training series developed by The Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN)with Gail Van Tatenhove, CCC-SLP. This series of brief modules can be used for professional development by individuals or groups who are supporting students with complex communication needs and who need or use AAC. The POWER AAC modules are intended to build the capacity of school personnel to improve communication skills and provide flexible, generative vocabulary for students who need or use AAC. AAC Institute... [Read More...]
March 8, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
We’re pleased to welcome back Dr. Kathy Howery for another analysis of an AAC research article. Kathy is based in Alberta, Canada, and has worked in the field of AT and special education for over three decades. In the past year, she completed her doctoral studies where she used phenomenological methods to seek to understand the lived experience of speaking with/through a speech generating device. Kathy is currently working as a consultant to schools and school districts across Alberta focusing primarily on children and youth with complex communication needs. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::; Allen, A. A., Schlosser, R. W., Brock, K. L., & Shane, H. C. (2017). The effectiveness of aided augmented input techniques for persons with developmental disabilities: A systematic review. Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 33, 149-159. What this Article is All About (The Focus of the Research) This article presents the results of a systematic review of the research into what the authors refer... [Read More...]
January 16, 2018
by Carole Zangari -
It’s exciting to see so many graduate student SLPs and new graduates who are interested in working with people with AAC needs. We hear from them frequently with questions about how to be effective in their therapy and the practical aspects of running a good therapy session. Here are some tips we frequently share with those who are starting to implement AAC with young children. Use a visual schedule for every session. The operative word there is ‘use.’ Making a schedule for our therapy is a great start, but unless we really use the schedule all throughout the session, it’s unlikely to provide many benefits. Go to it as soon as you get into the room, AND before and after every activity. (For those who are interested, there is more on making and effectively implementing visual schedules here. Trust the process. You will need to do this at least 4-8... [Read More...]
August 18, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Across the world, therapists, teachers, and parents are getting ready for AAC lessons or therapy sessions. Robust AAC systems? Check! Goals that matter? Check! Effective intervention strategies? Check! Let’s put them all together with some engaging activities that won’t break the bank in terms of materials. Here are some suggestions for tried-and-true activities. Language Experience Surveys: Looking for a fun activity that gives your AAC learner an opportunity to prAACtical his/her skills with a variety of communication partners? Language experience surveys are a great tool for that not just because they are a great way to build generalization in a way that kids really love, but also because it helps the communication partners have supported conversations with AAC users. This helps them get comfortable in interacting with our AAC learners which, in turn, increases the chances that they will want to interact with these students in the future. This is... [Read More...]