337 Search Results for communication boards
July 13, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Things move more slowly in the summer and that makes it a good time to play catch-up. Here are some posts that may be worth a second look. Getting ready for a core vocabulary journey Make It Monday: Manual communication boards with core vocabulary Make It Monday: More words, please! Expanding our manual communication boards Super Size It: 5 ideas for making large communication boards Beyond requesting: A week of routines to increase AAC use at mealtimes 5 ways to build understanding Free resources for making AAC and visual supports 5 places for shared AAC materials What else are you catching up on these days? —
May 8, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Where can I go to get AAC-friendly resources for preschool children? Join us as we explore the Wiki sharing space by the Exceptional Student Education Program of Orange County Public Schools in the Orlando, Florida area. Over the years, their AT team and others have compiled an impressive group of materials that can be used by teachers, therapists, and parents. You can see guest posts on Essential Tricks for Supporting AAC in Schools by some of the team here and here. In this post, we feature one of their webpages that is used for resource sharing. Many of the files are in Boardmaker format, but there are also some in Word and PDF document formats. Most of the resources are available from the menu on main page (click here). Highlights from this site include: Unit-based Resources (including classroom and therapy materials, parent letter, & more) are accessible from the main page Me &... [Read More...]
April 3, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
When we first started writing about core vocabulary, it was largely due to the fact that most SGDs, AAC apps, and communication boards/ books had two big deficits. At the time, most of them lacked the words needed to function throughout the day and/or didn’t have the kinds of words that allow for progression of syntactic skills. Now things look very different. Over the years, the pendulum has moved quite dramatically and now core vocabulary permeates AAC systems that are considered to be ‘robust.’ That’s a lot of movement in a short period of time. When big changes happen rapidly, it stands to reason that there will be some cracks that open up. Misunderstandings, misinterpretations, misconceptions. Here are some of the ones we’ve observed in the recent past. Core words are all that are needed in an AAC system. (Not in most cases. We all want to talk about the... [Read More...]
March 8, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
The good news is plentiful. A growing number of classrooms incorporate some form of AAC. Teachers and therapists are increasingly aware of the value of augmentative forms of communication and are recognizing the potential for communication growth in all of their students. School teams are stepping up to provide access to activity-based communication boards, communication books, low tech SGDs, and AAC apps. They are creating opportunities for teaching and using these forms of AAC in specific classroom activities. In many cases, teachers and therapists are growing dissatisfied with the outcomes. Students are more engaged in the activities are improving their ability to participate appropriately. They aren’t always becoming competent communicators who can express themselves independently throughout the day. It’s frustrating to scramble to find and/or create materials and resources, make significant changes to activities, work hard to implement them, and still not get the expected outcome. It’s exhausting. It’s disappointing,... [Read More...]
March 6, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Looking for some AAC materials to round out your collection of resources? Teachers Pay Teachers, the online marketplace for materials made by teachers and therapists, has quite a few. Here are a couple of freebies to check out. AAC Myths by Susan Berkowitz Preverbal Communication-AAC Checklists by Ricki Block of Preschool Speechie Plus AAC Home Information Questionnaire by Tarra Bailey AAC Brochure for Teachers and Support Staff by Sublime Speech Leveled Core Communication Boards by Sister SLPs What are your favorite AAC resources on Teachers Pay Teachers? We’d love to hear about them.
February 23, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
For comprehensive AAC systems, there is no doubt that we need access to tools with the communication symbols that match our client’s needs. There are times, though, when ‘free’ and ‘simple’ fits the bill. Whether you are a graduate student clinicians/teacher, parent, or professional, these tools may come in handy. Picto4Me: This executable program works with Google Chrome and allows you to create communication boards and other visual supports at no cost. You can view and use the boards online via computer or mobile device or print them. This program offers voice output and scanning, too. ARASAAC: We’ve written about the wonderful resources at the Aragonese Portal of AAC in previous posts. Keep them in mind as you are searching for symbols or creating AAC supports. Trial versions: Some companies offer a free trial of their symbol software or programs so that consumers can try before they buy. We love... [Read More...]
November 7, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Symbols, templates, software, tools, and more. That’s what you’ll find on the November PrAACtical Site of the Month: ARASAAC, the Aragonese Portal of Augmentative and Alternative Communication. Supported by the Department of Education, Culture and Sports of the Aragonese Government and the General Directorate of Innovation, Equality and Participation, this award-winning site has been serving the AAC community for over two decades. They may be best known for the picture symbols that they share so freely, which allows professionals, users of AAC, and families to create free resources in Catalan, Euskera, English, French, German, Italian, Galician, Portuguese, Spanish, and more. The online tools section has a variety of things to explore including tools to make communication boards, animations (gifs), schedules and calendars, custom symbols, and games. There are also wonderful resources for Spanish Sign Language in pictures and videos. There is also a Materials Exchange section where you can download communication... [Read More...]
October 31, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
We are pleased to have a return visit from special educators Lauren Pawlowski and Amy Devin with ideas for supporting AAC learners in the classroom. Amy and Lauren, who work in the public school system in Michigan, taught in resource rooms for years and have been teaching in self‐contained ASD elementary classrooms since 2009. At that time, there were few classrooms who were integrating core language instruction, but they didn’t let that stop them. Currently, they use manual communication boards, large instructional core boards, and individual AAC devices with their students. They are passionate literacy teachers and, in today’s post, tell us about their approach to shared reading lessons. Their video is chock full of tips to help you make these lessons successful. Enjoy! Shared Reading: It’s Not What They Know, It’s What They THINK! Happy Fall AAC users and facilitators! This month we would like to share some of our tips for... [Read More...]
October 27, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Nothing makes us smile like seeing teams in which professionals serving students with AAC needs work together to ensure that those students can use and grow their language skills. In this guest post, we learn about an approach that has worked for one such team, Lori Sanzeri and Chelsea Collins. Lori Sanzeri, MA CCC-SLP, TSHH, received her B.S. in Speech Language Pathology from SUNY Cortland in 2003 and M.A. from St. John’s University in 2009. She has worked for the NYC Department of Education since 2003 and teaches AAC and phonetics at St. John’s University. Chelsea Collins, MS CCC-SLP, TSSLD, received her B.S. in Special Education from Seton Hall University in 2009 and M.S. in Communicative Sciences and Disorders from New York University in 2012. She has worked for the NYC DOE since 2012 and specializes in AAC and early intervention. They are on Instagram as @thelanguageladies and have a Facebook page as... [Read More...]
October 4, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
We’re back with another post featuring learning resources about AAC apps, software, and SGDs. This week, we’ll look at CoughDrop, an open source AAC program, and hear from a young clinician who uses it in her work. If you are new to CoughDrop, consider taking a little time to get to know it using the links below. Ready to explore? Here are some resources to get you started. Video overview Links to various versions: iOS app; Android app; Windows 64-bit; Windows 32-bit; Kindle app Video Tutorials Where to go for help: Support Requests; Contact page; Frequently Asked Questions My Experience with CoughDrop by Samantha Cutler Primarily, I’d like to issue a disclaimer that I am in no way affiliated with CoughDrop nor do I receive any financial gain from them. It is merely a program that I enjoy using and I wanted to share my experience with the AAC community. In the... [Read More...]