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August 2, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Getting ready to head back to school? There are lots of things we can do to help our AAC learners be successful in the classroom and develop their language skills. In today’s post, we feature another wonderful video in the Power AAC series sponsored by PaTTAN. Master AAC clinician Gail Van Tatenhove is the speaker and shares essential information about ways in which partners can support students who are learning to use AAC systems. Before beginning, you may want to download this handout with links to video clips of the target strategies being used. We’re grateful to Gail and PaTTAN for making this video and sharing it so that we can all benefit.
June 28, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
What do students with cognitive impairments who use AAC need in order to learn to read and write? Comprehensive literacy instruction, for one thing. In today’s featured videos, we travel to Iowa to peek into some classroom activities where students with cognitive disabilities who use AAC are working on their spelling and decoding skills. Direct Links to Videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ti8IOEICJQc&list=PLocplddh5SSRBGRsR0tOFXIJd5wh6i89k https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BUXpKlLISs&list=PLocplddh5SSRBGRsR0tOFXIJd5wh6i89k&index=7 Many thanks to the Iowa Department of Education, teachers, and students for these helpful videos.
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...]
March 30, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
April is just around the corner and that means we’re getting ready to support the acceptance and inclusion of autistic people. Looking for ideas? Here are some to get you started. Treat yourself to some goodies from The Chocolate Spectrum (where you can order online, visit the cafe, or take a chocolate-making class) or other places that employ people with autism. Read and share 5 references that support the use of AAC & Autism. Help your family or community go beyond awareness and into acceptance. Learn and share information about Autism Safety – Be AWAARE! Know an autistic MineCraft lover? Introduce them to AutCraft. Educate yourself on terminology that relates to autism and people with ASD. We may have learned people-first language back in grad school, but there are different points of view on that. This is a great time to learn about identity-first language. Apply your critical reasoning skills to... [Read More...]
February 15, 2017
by Carole Zangari -
Yesterday was Valentine’s Day. Sally SLP planned an adorable craft activity, but her students with autism and AAC needs just didn’t take to it. Tara Teacher brought out some age-respectful stickers to decorate cards, but several of the students stopped after placing just one sticker and got frustrated when encouraged to add more. Olivia OT pushed into the classroom as they were painting hearts to help with fine motor skill development, but some of the kids resisted doing anything more than a few brush strokes. Sound familiar? Art activities offer great potential for communication learning and practice, but they aren’t always preferred activities for some of our AAC students. There can be several good reasons for that, but a common problem is that the activity itself may be too open-ended. Some of our students do best with activities that have a clear beginning and ending. Open-ended activities, like many of... [Read More...]
December 7, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Encounters with healthcare providers can range from the mundane (e.g., getting a prescription filled) and routine (e.g., doctor’s appointment) to situations which are more complicated and urgent (e.g., Emergency Room visit, hospital stay). People who use AAC are part of a larger group of individuals whose communication challenges make these situations more complex. In today’s featured video, Dr. David Beukelman discusses ways in which effective communication between patients with communication challenges and their healthcare providers can be supported. This video was part of the USSAAC webinar series, which is made possible through the support of ISAAC. Many thanks to those organizations and the Patient Provider Communication organization whose free resources and information are shared in the presentation. Please consider joining and supporting these organizations so that they can continue to serve the AAC community with information, advocacy, and resources like these. Direct Link to Video – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxd-hWODfm8
November 17, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
One of the best things about providing AAC services in a university-based clinic is that we have regular contact with parents and other caregivers. That gives them the opportunity to observe the session, or, better yet, become an active participant. This allows us to talk to them about issues with the AAC system and help them develop the skills and routines to support AAC learning outside the therapy session. Most practitioners, however, don’t have this luxury. How can we impact AAC use outside of therapy and the classroom when we have infrequent face-to-face time with families and other caregivers? Here are some things to try. Video: Make a short screencast using free tools (like Jing, from Techsmith). In less than 10 minutes, you can make a recording of your computer screen and narrate it with implementation tips and information, then upload it, and share the link with families. For more... [Read More...]
July 28, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Thanks to all of you who have reached out with appreciation for Sara Barnhill’s guest series entitled PrAACtical Supports for the Young AAC Learner. Sara and her colleagues at Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU (CHoR) are generously sharing some of the resources they created to help families implement AAC at home. Through CHoR’s AT Program, one of few comprehensive AT programs in Central Virginia, a series of parent-friendly handouts were created to help families in Central Virginia facilitate core vocabulary learning by their young children. In the final post, we get to play with dolls and beach balls. You can get the link to download these parent handouts at the end of the post. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Let’s Play with Core! Recipes for Success Abandonment of AAC systems is a recognized problem in the field of AT. Therapists, teachers, and caregivers alike often feel uncomfortable and intimidated by AAC. We can all acknowledge that “it takes a village,” but... [Read More...]
July 21, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Looking for resources so you can help families get comfortable with implementing AAC at home? SLP Sara Barnhill has you covered! In the third installment of the PrAACtical Supports for the Young AAC Learner, she generously shares some parent handouts created along with her colleagues at Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU (CHoR). As a member of the Assistive Technology (AT) Core team, she is involved in AAC evaluations and therapy in the hospital’s clinics, out-patient program and Transitional Care Unit. CHoR’s AT Program is one of few comprehensive AT programs in Central Virginia. The program provides AT evaluations, equipment and training to people of all ages, enabling children and adults with disabilities to function more independently. CHoR’s AT team consists of four SLPs, two OTs, one PT, and one Therapy Practice Assistant. In addition to completing transdiciplinary evaluations and treatments, CHoR’s AT team is responsible for supporting staff and sharing AT information to five CHoR... [Read More...]
July 14, 2016
by Carole Zangari -
Parent training? Check! Preschoolers? Check! Language and play? Check! Core vocabulary? Check! SLP Sara Barnhill is back to share some resources she created along with her colleagues at Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU (CHoR). As a member of the Assistive Technology (AT) Core team, she is involved in AAC evaluations and therapy in the hospital’s clinics, out-patient program and Transitional Care Unit. CHoR’s AT Program is one of few comprehensive AT programs in Central Virginia. The program provides AT evaluations, equipment and training to people of all ages, enabling children and adults with disabilities to function more independently. CHoR’s AT team consists of four SLPs, two OTs, one PT, and one Therapy Practice Assistant. In addition to completing transdiciplinary evaluations and treatments, CHoR’s AT team is responsible for supporting staff and sharing AT information to five CHoR therapy centers throughout Central Virginia. In this post, Sara shares two resources developed at the CHoR AT Program... [Read More...]