469 Search Results for year of core words
October 12, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
What better way to start the day than to see how AAC Awareness Month is being celebrated in a school system?! Today, pediatric SLP Elisa Parker tells us how they do it in the school district where she works. For the past 20 years, Elisa has served young children in the Park Hill School District in Kansas City, Missouri. Her passion for AAC and children with autism led to her becoming an Autism Coach and Assistive Technology Facilitator. She has been an Autism Coach for the Gerner Family Early Education Center for 7 years and the Assistive Technology Facilitator for 3 years. Elisa consults with and provides AAC training for teachers and support staff of young students who use AAC and has also coached teams at the K-12 level. ============================ Celebrating October – AAC Awareness Month There are so many hardworking staff members I work with who implement AAC in their classrooms... [Read More...]
August 10, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
PCS, Pixons, Minspeak symbols, Smarty Symbols, Symbol Stix, CoughDrop Symbols, ARASAAC symbols, Mulberry symbols, Lesson Pix, Sclera symbols, and more. In terms of AAC symbol options, we are living in plentiful times. It isn’t uncommon to see situations like Jonah’s. On a typical school day, Jonah is likely to encounter at least three types of pictures for the same words. He has Smarty Symbols on his AAC app and a classroom core board with PCS, and is using instructional materials using Symbol Stix. These are each great ways of visually representing language, but here’s something to think about: Does it help or hurt Jonah to have 3 different pictures for the same word? There are many options in symbol sets and systems, and each has its own strengths and weaknesses. Here are some things to think about as you and your team are making these decisions. There is no empirical... [Read More...]
July 30, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Therapy sessions, interviews, classes, make-and-take, hands-on strategy practice, report-writing….It’s been an action-packed week around here, full of AAC and literacy learning. If you also had a busy week, you probably missed a few of these posts. Monday: PrAACtically August – AAC Resources for A Year of Core Vocabulary Words Wednesday: When Helping Isn’t Helping-Prompt Awareness in AAC Instruction Thursday: Throwback Thursday – Support for Beginning AAC Communicators :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Looking for a few other posts to browse through? Here are some on AAC assessment that might be of interest. AAC Skills Assessment for Direct Selectors Observational Assessment of Beginning Communicators AAC Assessment for Children Who Speak AAC assessment modules AAC Assessment Forms See you next time!
July 2, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Happy July, AAC friends! Monday: PrAACtically July: AAC Resources for A Year of Core Vocabulary Tuesday: PrAACtical Learning with AAC in the Cloud Wednesday: Video of the Week: Supporting AAC Learners in Working with Words Thursday: AACtual Therapy-AAC Intervention for Beginning Communicators: Presume Competence and Be the Fun No matter where you live, AAC is something to celebrate!
April 30, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Just when it is time to say goodbye to April and wrap up Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month, we have another reason to celebrate. May is Better Hearing and Speech Month (BHSM), and that gives us a powerful opportunity to spread the word about supporting people who use AAC. Stay tuned for BHSM ideas and resources. In the meantime, though, why not catch up on some of last week’s posts? Monday: Using Adapted Books with AAC Learners: 3 Important Questions to Ask Wednesday: Video of the Week: AACtually Communicating Thursday: PrAACtically May: AAC Resources for A Year of Core Vocabulary Words
March 23, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Like many of you, the best part of the work week is when I get to teach language. As amazing as it is to help people with AAC needs become more linguistically competent, we have to be sure not to shortchange some of the operational skills that allow AAC learners to be successful. In this post, SLP Rachel Madel helps us think about supporting the development of operational competence in our AAC learners. The 4 Most Overlooked Operational Skills for High-Tech AAC Users When I first began helping children use high-tech AAC systems, I focused all of my energy on building strong communicators who could navigate through complex systems and use powerful language. I quickly realized that if I wanted to optimize the use of AAC I also needed to teach my students the mechanics of the machines they were using. Once I began teaching basic operational skills, I noticed... [Read More...]
March 5, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Looking to catch up on some AAC reading? Here are a few posts you may have missed. Monday: PrAACtically March: AAC Resources for A Year of Core Vocabulary Words Wednesday: Video of the Week: Environmental Communication Teaching Thursday: PrAACtical Teaching in the Autism Classroom: Instructional Activities for Core Vocabulary
February 5, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Happy February, all! Anyone interested in some online AAC conversation? I’m looking forward to connecting with AAC stakeholders from around the world this Thursday on Twitter, as I host the #USSAACchat (Feb 9, 7:00 pm ET). Our topic is ‘Beyond Awareness: Building a Culture of AAC Support.’ All are welcome! If you are new to Twitter or Twitter Chats or just don’t ‘get’ how it can support professional growth, you can learn more about that here. Even if you are an infrequent Twitter user, or if you are more of a lurker than a participant, we welcome you to join us. Lots of AAC in your busy week? Here are some posts you may have missed. Monday: PrAACtically February: Resources for A Year of Core Vocabulary Words Wednesday: Video of the Week: Mobilizing the Power Of Special Interests Thursday: Privacy and AAC: A Few Reflections
December 5, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
At the ASHA Convention last month, I chatted with an SLP about her secret longing: To take a sabbatical and travel the world to see AAC in action. Wouldn’t that be exciting?! In the meantime, we’ll have to live vicariously and peek into AAC practices through the words and pictures of dedicated professionals. Angi Pearce, a teacher at Kowhai Special School in Hastings, New Zealand, was kind enough to help us out and share her experiences in increasing AAC use in her classroom. Angi is the team leader for the Junior School classes (ages 5-11) and graciously prepared this post with support from SLP Michelle Roberts. As you’ll see, Angi is a highly experienced educator but new to the world of AAC and not afraid to take risks and embrace change. Let’s take a look at how a veteran teacher stretched herself to incorporate more AAC into her classroom. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: AAC IN THE CLASSROOM My... [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...]