375 Search Results for complex communication
October 19, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
How can SLPs support students who use AAC and help them communicate more frequently in the classroom? Collaboration with the teacher is, of course, central to making this work. If you’re paired with an educator who knows, loves, and supports the AAC needs of her students, then you are in for a real treat. Collaborating with someone like that is fun and energizing. But what if your partner is new to AAC or one who doesn’t really know (or care to know) much about it? What if there is a bit of resistance to change or a passive-aggressive style? No match for a committed clinician! Ah. The ART of being an SLP. Take equal measures of creative problem-solving, wonderful pragmatics, and tenacity, and solutions will be found. In really sticky situations, we’ve seen colleagues make breakthroughs on the strength of brownies and iced coffee. You know how to make this... [Read More...]
September 17, 2013
by Robin Parker -
It’s International Literacy Month. We want to take this opportunity to remember that EVERYONE should have direct literacy instruction. Some students will be starting by learning to enjoy books while others will be readers already. Either way, there should be a literacy plan with short term and long term goals. If you need ideas for beginning or just expanding reading skills, here are some seriously excellent literacy resources for AAC. Take a look, enjoy and please let us know your favorite literacy resources so we can add them to this list. TalkSense- 101 ideas for literacy and AAC. Also, provides access to many picture symbols and litSymbols Jane Farrall’s Blog: Literacy, AAC, & Assistive Technology– Literacy resources specific to AAC and assistive technology Tar Heel Reader – books for beginning readers of all ages. Bookshare- accessible books and journals for readers with print disabilities Center for Literacy and Disabilities Studies–... [Read More...]
July 18, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
It’s always a good day when we get to share the thoughts of veteran AAC SLP, Marlene Cummings. In this post, Marlene talks about the signs to look for as clients gain skills with AAC and wraps up her series of posts on her yearlong experience in providing embedded professional learning experiences in Oakland Schools. You can see her earlier posts on cultivating the right mindset, their framework for AAC success, her AAC implementation toolbox, and the communication environment. 5 things in our “Destination Toolbox” “Are we there yet?” or “Five Ways to Tell That Your Students are Becoming Competent Communicators” Students are: Participating in the purposes of communication by novelly generating multiple word phrases demonstrating a variety of communicative functions Taking multiple communicative turns with multiple partners in multiple environments Using words from many different word classes Using words to talk about words Using language to communicate and communicating to learn... [Read More...]
June 13, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
Now that the school year is winding down, some of you have a little more time to read, process, and prepare for next year. We are really excited to share more ideas from Marlene Cummings, one of the most experienced AAC SLPs that we know. Those of you who have been following Marlene’s posts on the AAC implementation will be pleased to see the next part of the Framework for Success that she developed with the AAC Team at Oakland School District. If you missed her first and second posts, go take a peek at them when you can. 5 Things in our “Implementation Toolbox” When we begin the process of implementing AAC it is important to consider our “thinking”. We always want to approach every student, every team and every classroom with as much wisdom and respect as possible. One of my colleagues, Dr. Penny Hatch, from UNC Chapel Hill... [Read More...]
June 1, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
Many people with aphasia fail to regain sufficient speech and language skills to meet their communication needs. With more than one million people with aphasia in the US alone, chances are most people reading this know at least one person affected by the disorder. While many go on to regain functional speech and language skills, some remain unable to communicate well enough catch up with a neighbor, talk about bills with a spouse, ask a question in a store, play with a grandchild, or tell their healthcare providers about side effects or symptoms. It’s hard to really imagine how devastating and isolating this experience may be. Aphasia Awareness Month seemed like the perfect time to reach out to SLPs with information on AAC for people with aphasia. In this post, we’ll share some thoughts and resources on assessment. Assessment activities are, of course, driven by the purpose for which the... [Read More...]
April 25, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
We’re so happy to welcome Lauren Enders back to share some more thoughts on AAC and the IEP. In her first post on this topic, Lauren addressed some frequently asked questions. Today, she provides a very valuable perspective on writing IEP goals for students who use or need AAC and some wonderful resources. Very often, I receive requests for support from teachers and speech therapists that are writing IEP goals for their students who use AAC. When we sit down to discuss their questions, the first thing I remind them is that AAC goals are no different from any other IEP goal. I recall a workshop I attended years ago presented by Gail VanTatenhove that helps put IEP goals for AAC into perspective. Gail said that AAC therapy is just language therapy. Isn’t that true? Aren’t we just teaching language? For this student, language is simply being expressed in a... [Read More...]
April 23, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
We’re always curious to know how other SLPs are running their AAC programs. When we got the idea for a series of posts highlighting schools and clinics that embrace AAC, we got excited. Welcome to “A PrAACtical Look”! In this series, we hope to introduce you to AAC programs around the world and give you a peek into what goes on in those practices. Hopefully, it will help strengthen connections in the AAC SLP community as we all get to know more about the ways in which our colleagues approach AAC assessment and intervention. There are many of you out there doing fine work with children and adults who use AAC. If you’d like to tell us about your AAC program, contact us through the blog or our Facebook page. We couldn’t be happier to start this series by introducing you to a place where undergraduate SLP students get hands-on... [Read More...]
March 21, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
As much as we love fresh new voices in the AAC community, there is simply nothing like the voice of experience. When a program has had more than 40 years of experience providing AAC services, we listen! Today, we are honored to have Marlene Cummings, an AAC SLP from Michigan, share the collective wisdom of her team. I have found that one of the joys in my professional life is asking hard questions about my present work and then figuring out ways to address those questions. Much of my 30 + years have been spent designing and implementing programs, systems and materials to support young children with complex communication needs in the role of the teacher in these classrooms. I explored ways to design environments and develop curricular frameworks and instructional materials, which would provide students with the instruction and opportunities to become competent communicators, all from the view of... [Read More...]
February 25, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
How long did you practice your driving skills before you took your driver’s license road test? A week? A month? A couple of months? We love videos like this one that show kids in the process of developing skills with technology. It’s not usually a quick and easy process, but if we prepare ourselves and the families with whom we work for the process, good things will happen. Little Eva and her family remind us that kids don’t have to ‘prove’ readiness for high tech AAC. They deserve opportunities to use these tools to learn, develop, and grow. The next time that people tell you that one of your clients with complex communication needs ‘isn’t ready’ for AAC technology, you might want to ask them how things might have gone if they had taken the road test a few days after their first time behind the wheel. We needed practice.... [Read More...]
February 15, 2013
by Carole Zangari -
We have learned so much by working with children with Angelman Syndrome (AS) over the years. Because they generally have complex communication needs, we wanted to share some resources in support of AS Awareness Day. Overview of AS by The Angelman Syndrome Foundation Information about the 2013 Biennial Angelman Syndrome Conference in Orlando, Florida Learning modules on AS and behavior (Must register for a free account to access the content.) Videos from a recent educational seminar by Foundation for Angelman Syndrome Therapeutics (FAST) that was held in Chicago. The main speakers are Erin Sheldon and Mary-Louise Bertram. Part 1: Learning Issues Part 2: Communication Part 3: Questions and Answers