560 Search Results for a year of core
August 12, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
What do we know about the best ways to provide communication support to individuals with severe and profound multiple disabilities (PMLD)? PMLD is a term that generally refers to people who experience profound cognitive limitations in addition to sensory and/or physical disabilities. Many of these individuals have complex medical histories and chronic health concerns. Often, the communication difficulties experienced by individuals with PMLD cause them to be isolated and excluded from many social and educational opportunities. Despite their many challenges, there is evidence to suggest that AAC supports can help these children develop their communication skills. Not much is known, however, about how to structure the AAC intervention to maximize learning. In this study, Harding and her colleagues sought to reduce isolation and promote personal autonomy by providing AAC supports to two children with PMLD. As other researchers have demonstrated the positive impact of AAC on people with PMLD, this... [Read More...]
July 8, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
What do we know about the best ways to provide communication support to individuals with severe and profound multiple disabilities (PMLD)? PMLD is a term that generally refers to people who experience profound cognitive limitations in addition to sensory and/or physical disabilities. Many of these individuals have complex medical histories and chronic health concerns. Often, the communication difficulties experienced by individuals with PMLD cause them to be isolated and excluded from many social and educational opportunities. Despite their many challenges, there is evidence to suggest that AAC supports can help these children develop their communication skills. Not much is known, however, about how to structure the AAC intervention to maximize learning. In this study, Harding and her colleagues sought to reduce isolation and promote personal autonomy by providing AAC supports to two children with PMLD. As other researchers have demonstrated the positive impact of AAC on people with PMLD,... [Read More...]
April 10, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
We are so excited to launch, PrAACtically SLPs, a new series featuring the voices of graduate students in SLP programs who do outstanding work in AAC. We start off with a wonderful group from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Allie Rodriguez, Caitlin Rich, and Megan Latta are second year SLP students who will be graduating in May. They recently concluded an AAC course taught by Dr. Penny Hatch, who continues to mentor them in the field of AAC and literacy. I met these energetic young professionals at the North Carolina Augmentative Communication Association Conference in February and was inspired by their passion. In this post, they tell us about their AAC experiences on a trip to Guatemala. Hungry for Bilingual AAC? Today, our population is becoming more culturally diverse, which, in turn, has caused our caseloads to reflect this change. There is a growing... [Read More...]
April 3, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
Our guest post for today is from SLP Kimberly Ho, an AAC specialist who operates a private practice, AAC Services. I met Dr. Ho many years ago when she was getting her master’s degree at Purdue University. She went on to get her doctorate and now consults for a number of public schools and works with individuals with AAC needs from preschoolers to adults. Kimberly is active in teaching (undergraduate and graduate courses), writing (published three articles in peer reviewed journals) and public speaking (15 presentations at regional, national and international conferences). In this post, she discusses some concepts in teaching grammar to people who are learning AAC. Traditionally, individuals with complex communication needs (CCN) were provided with communication boards or speech generating devices (SGDs) filled with topic specific vocabulary often called fringe words. The field of AAC is only just beginning to provide early communicators with access to Core... [Read More...]
March 7, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
At the NCACA conference last month, a few of us were talking about what it means to have an AAC device or app with a strong language system, something Gail Van Tatenhove and I wrote about a few years ago in this book. Linguistically-robust language systems are those that will allow someone to construct grammatically correct utterances. Think of the different SGDs or AAC apps that you worked with this week. If you could use them to recreate the last 30 minutes of ‘talk time’ that you had without spelling out too many of the words, chances are pretty good that it is a linguistically-robust system. That led to us asking ourselves and others a question. “What do you look for in terms of a language system when you’re considering SGDs or AAC apps for a learner who has the potential to (eventually) construct grammatically correct utterances?” Keep in mind... [Read More...]
February 6, 2014
by Robin Parker -
Strategy of the Month: PrAACtice Opportunities Building a PrAACtice Routine PrAACtical Communication Opportunities in SLP Sessions Using Aided Language To Build Communication Opportunities PrAACtical Excercise: Building Fluency with Decontextualized PrAACtice PrAACtical Thinking Ringing in the New Year with an AAC App Giveaway- acorn Another Year of Core Vocabulary Get Organized for the New Year- 5 Visual Schedule Apps A PrAACtical Week: 2014 #1 Watch it Wednesday- Pain in Children with Developmental Disabilities PrAActical Peek: Decorating Cookies 31 Posts You May Have Missed in December A PrAACtical Week 2014 #2 Does AAC Really Work with Infants & Toddlers Watch it Wednesdays- Using and Creating Routines to Promote Interactions Throwback Thursday: Visual Schedule Roundup A PrAACtical Note of Appreciation A PrAACtical Week 2014 #3 Watch It Wednesday: I Hear Them All A Totally Different Life A PrAACtical Week #4 SpeakAll! A Research-to-Practice Project Make It PrAACtical: Make Your Own Battery Interrupter (Without Soldering) ... [Read More...]
January 17, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
We usually don’t make a fuss over blog birthdays or anniversaries, but this milestone seemed like something worth celebrating. Yesterday, you helped us hit a milestone: Our prAACtical pages have been viewed well over 500,000 times. It’s fun to think of people reading our posts, but this is bigger than us. The ‘AAC message’ is being heard and the AAC community is growing. In every continent, there are SLPs, educators, parents, paraprofessionals, and organization leaders who are giving voice to people who struggle to express themselves. Today, we celebrate YOU! Thanks for the work you do, and for being part of a community that believes everyone has both the right and the ability to communicate. We so enjoy connecting with you and hearing about your prAACtical experiences. Please enjoy these downloadable resources that we’ve developed and shared over the past two years. Forms: Need to flesh out your resources for... [Read More...]
January 16, 2014
by Robin Parker -
As times goes on in the academic year, we often think that everyone knows their schedules. But remember, knowing and seeing are two completely different things. For this Throwback Thursday, we wanted to go over visual schedules of all types to remind ourselves not to back off with schedules (all types) even if it seems everyone is transitioning well and knows their schedules. We wouldn’t want anyone to take away our day planner…. even when we knew our schedule. What’s the Connection- Core Words & Schedules Visual Schedules 411 Get Organized for the New Year: 5 Visual Schedule Apps Schedule Changes A Myth About Visual Schedules A PrAACtical Myth Lives On.. Again Visual Schedule Myths Live On and On… Power of the Visual Planner Schedules and Choices Riddle Me This AAC at Home: Visual Schedules and Supports Building Complex Schedules Ideas for Teaching the Use of Schedules PrAACtical Mini-Schedules Video... [Read More...]
January 4, 2014
by Carole Zangari -
Well, it’s a prAACtical New Year and we are ushering in a few new tweaks in 2014. Among them, a weekly wrap-up. Here’s a look at our prAACtical week. Sunday: 10 Tips for Using a Natural Aided Language Board by Gail Van Tatenhove Monday: Tracking Early Communication Skills – A PrAACtical Resource (free download) Tuesday: It’s PrAACtically a New Year Wednesday: Ringing in the New Year with an AAC App Giveaway Thursday: A(nother) Year of Core Vocabulary Friday: Get Organized! Visual Schedule Apps If you’re looking for our Strategy of the Month post, stay tuned – those will be published on Mondays.
December 2, 2013
by Robin Parker -
This may be the time of year you are thinking of adding AAC apps to your assessment collection or are planning on getting one for an individual learner or for a group of learners. As you consider which app or apps to purchase, here are some feature considerations as well as some options for learning about the apps. **For any individual learner, a specific AAC evaluation by a qualified speech-language pathologist is always highly recommended. Language Features Core word approach to language learning Functional language approach to language learning Visual scene approach to language learning Pre-made communication displays or create your own Communication Functions (requesting, Choicemaking, commenting, complaining, etc.) Sentence building options Options for morphological learning Allows for full communication including requests, saying no, greetings,ventings, and sharing of information Comprehensive language learning Small Talk Single or sequenced messages Technical Features Customization level Platform Options (iOS, Android, Computer) Digitized (recorded) vs... [Read More...]