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How I Do It: Classroom Support for Students with AAC Needs by Tina Moreno

May 5, 2015 by - Leave your thoughts

How I Do It: Classroom Support for Students with AAC Needs by Tina Moreno

We are fortunate to have a return visit from Tina Moreno, who brings her experiences both as an SLP and also as a mom of a teenager who has used AAC for most of his life. In this post, Tina shares some of the strategies that she has used to support AAC students in their classrooms. If you are a school-based SLP, don’t miss Tina’s classroom observation form for gathering data on how AAC is being used in various activities and lessons. GIVE THEM FIVE As an SLP in the school setting, helping teachers support students in the classroom can be a big challenge.  While we can see students making progress in our therapy sessions, it can be difficult to get the same results in the classroom.  An important role of the SLP is to collaborate with teachers to help students generalize these skills in conversation with their peers and other... [Read More...]

5 AAC-related Handouts from ATIA 2015

February 19, 2015 by - 4 Comments

5 AAC-related Handouts from ATIA 2015

The 2015 ATIA conferences was one of the strongest in recent memory, with lots of AAC presentations to choose from. As you can see, I had a blast! There was AAC in every direction, from the Town Hall Meetings, App Smackdowns, expanded poster sessions, traditional sessions, and, of course, the exhibit hall. If professional development in AAC is a priority for you, be sure to put the 2016 conference (in Orlando) on your radar for February 2-6, 2016. In the meantime, here are some of the handouts to whet your appetite. Lori Wise and Marlene Sotelo’s terrific talk on using iPads to build social engagement with people who have ASD  along with their app lists here and here was one of my favorite presentations of the conference. [Note: Their handouts are hosted on the ATIA conference site and may only be available for a limited time. Grab them while you can!] Gretchen... [Read More...]

AAC Goes to Summer Camp

February 12, 2015 by - 4 Comments

AAC Goes to Summer Camp

Those of you who are still digging your way out of the most recent snowstorm may not believe it, but it’s almost time to make plans for summer. There are quite a few AAC camps, some that are quite well established and others that have been running for only a few years (see our AAC Camp Pinterest board here). In this post, we hear about one of them from Tina Moreno, an SLP and mom of Mateo, who uses PicturePower 100 on the Maestro to communicate, maintain friendships with his teammates on the cross country team, advocate for himself, reveal his wicked sense of humor, and even sing the National Anthem for his high school’s basketball games. Tina blogs at Voices4All.  With the help of  Drs. Karen Erickson and David Koppenhaver, she and her friend Gina Cunningham created Camp ALEC together in memory of Gina’s son Alec, who never gave up, and... [Read More...]

Fast FAACt Friday: On Symbols and Reading

October 10, 2014 by - 4 Comments

Fast FAACt Friday: On Symbols and Reading

When we provide literacy experiences to pre-readers, a question emerges: Should we add symbols to the text? For those of us who have been prAACticing for awhile (you know who you are, friends), there has been a shift in our thinking. Early on, we tried to add symbols to the words. Our thinking was that doing so would enhance the client’s ability to learn to read. A few years ago, we re-examined that belief. Here’s why. Many times, our clients didn’t really know the symbols anyway. Symbols for frequently used words (like of, some, and know) are not at all transparent. So the notion that the symbols would help them understand what they were reading often didn’t pan out. We want the learners to (eventually) develop their reading skills and be able to read conventional text. The symbols distract attention away from the print/text. If we want the learner to... [Read More...]