597 Search Results for visual support
January 4, 2013
by Robin Parker -
We are so excited for a great 2013 and we have 2 AAC Giveaway Winners! Congratulations! Thank you to everyone who participated and to Therapy Box Apps Scene & Heard- (Scene & Heard) & Enabling Devices/Toys for Special Children #1 Enabling Devices/Toys for Special Children has generously donated a 4-Compartment Scanning Communicator. Please show your appreciation of Enabling Devices by visiting and liking their Facebook page. #2 Scene & Heard- We have one code for the Scene & Heard AAC app that supports multiple languages through voice recordings and supports switch scanning. Scene & Heard takes a visual scene approach to AAC and we are so appreciative to T-Box Apps for donating their app for this giveaway. Don’t forget to show your appreciation by liking their Facebook Page. Enter the Giveaway- How Does It Work? We use Rafflecopter to administer the giveaways. All entries made through there will be counted toward our drawings. Enter now and everyday until... [Read More...]
December 22, 2012
by Robin Parker -
The Communication Book is Ready… Now What? The fun begins…. Yes, we really do think that TEACHING a learner to USE the communication book is FUN. We get to participate in lots of meaningful language experiences, we get to be creative, we get to watch language blossom, and we get to be surprised by the communication competence ALL of our learners show us after prAACtice, prAACtice, and for some more prAACtice . The best way to get started with communication book teaching is to begin by trying out different teaching tips, strategies, and resources and find out what works best. Each communication dyad (communicator & communication partner) is different so the combination of strategies that will work will vary but at the core of the teaching process, there should be fun, motivation, and of course progress. STRATEGIES and CONSIDERATIONS Aided Language Input (ALI)– We can not say enough about... [Read More...]
December 6, 2012
by Robin Parker -
The holidays are prAACtically here and depending upon the holiday traditions you celebrate they may be closer than you realize. Time seems to fly after Thanksgiving and before you know it, social norms seem to dictate gift exchanges, lots of invitations to people’s houses, and of course many gifts for friends and family. An easy way to accomplish gift giving is to ‘gift an app’. You can give apps that are pure fun, educational or a combination of both. To top it off, it is easy to stay within budget, avoid traffic, avoid crowds, and save tons of time (no need to wait for it to arrive). Before you think it’s too complicated, check out these ‘Gifting an App’ instructions by Cult of Mac. The process could not be simpler and you can email the recipient(s) or print out a gift certificate (if necessary right before the gift is needed).... [Read More...]
November 1, 2012
by Carole Zangari -
It’s hard to believe that AAC Awareness Month 2012 is over. We are happy to announce the winners of the final drawing. Diane Saunders (#160), Rachel Berry (#12), Claire Rubin (#73), Cassandra Stafford (#726), Carrie Walls (#609), Alison Rumball (#369), Monica Venezia (#309), Tanya Keller Scott (#414), Tea Moore (#393), Christina Frenzel (#179), Hudi Bernstein (#668), Yvette Bardole (#350), Lauren Enders (#241), Juliana Escobar (#500), Caroline Trzaska (#294), Kimberly Hurley (#488), Jane Eikelboom (#189), Amy Vinson Taylor (#771), Lisa Neely (#567), Stacey (#695), Debra Seixas (#451), and Melissa Seldin (#268). We will be in touch later today with the specifics. We are deeply appreciative of the AAC community who furnished the prizes we awarded to 70+ winners. A huge thank you to Ablenet, Inc, Abilipad, Alexicom, Avaz, BeeVisual, Dynavox/Mayer Johnson, Gail Van Tatenhove, PA, Hump Software, iClick iTalk, MarbleSoft, Mozzaz, News-2-You, Paul H. Brookes Publishing Company, RJ Cooper, Safe N... [Read More...]
October 30, 2012
by Carole Zangari -
We love AAC intervention that begins and ends with a context that is meaningful to the learner. Not only is contextually relevant therapy more engaging and fun for the learner (thus, easier on the clinician!) but it promotes generalization to real-world contexts. So we’ve never been terribly fond of therapy that uses flash cards, or, more recently, the digital versions on iOS or Android devices. It’s a shame, really. There are a lot of those kinds of apps, and many of them have great graphics. That got us to starting thinking: What could we use them for that improves real communication and AAC learning? PrAACtical Uses for Flashcard Apps Make a Mini Schedule: Lots of people with AAC needs use paper-based picture schedules that depict the activities they do throughout the day. A flashcard app could be used in conjunction with those to show the steps or parts of an... [Read More...]
October 28, 2012
by Carole Zangari -
We mean well. We really do. But sometimes the things we say or do, and even the things we DON’T say/do have a negative impact on our long-range goal of improving AAC outcomes. Here are some of the things we’ve observed that can discourage AAC use. Recommending AAC without giving stakeholders a solid, evidence-based rationale creates a shaky foundation. People aren’t going to put forth effort to implement something they don’t believe in, and they won’t believe in it until we make a compelling, well-supported argument. ‘Rules that aren’t understood are the first to be broken.’ It’s easy to forget that, in some ways, the AAC user is learning a whole new language. What would it take US to learn a new language? Well, for starters, we’d want to be immersed into an environment with competent speakers of that language. Hearing the language that we’re trying to learn makes... [Read More...]
October 27, 2012
by Robin Parker -
It is AAC Awareness Month and everyone has really been spreading the word and helping to build AAC acceptance. Participation barriers continue to prevent full AAC acceptance. In order to help combat these obstacles it is necessary to talk about them, deconstruct them, and attempt to build solutions. So after going over attitudinal barriers and information barriers, we need to discuss accessibility barriers. It’s a shame that there are so many barriers to making AAC work, but we know that with awareness comes improvement. Barriers of accessibility can be about motor, sensory, cognitive, literacy, or communication/language issues. For this discussion though the focus is on accessing AAC to learn a comprehensive language in ALL modalities (i.e., talking, listening, reading, & writing). The prevention of access to a comprehensive system is usually tied in to assumptions about cognitive and literacy skills. Although it seems that most professionals realiize that there... [Read More...]
October 25, 2012
by Robin Parker -
For AAC Awareness Month, we would be remiss if we did not think about literacy. It is a form of communication and language that supports AAC use. Sometimes literacy is difficult for our students, other times it is actually easier and it helps conversational communication and even natural speech. Either way, reading, writing, talking, and listening (understanding) are all modalities of language. There are so many great resource lists for supporting literacy: Jane Farrall’s Letter of the Week: Resources for Older Students, Spectronics Apps for Literacy Support, Melissa Taylor’s 24 Educational iPad Apps for Kids in Reading and Writing, and 25 Great Children’s Apps to Stimulate Literacy, Learning, & Creativity just to name a few. We wanted to share a few additional resources for literacy with general education apps that approach reading through fun with words. And any literacy discussion could not be complete without some seriously great literacy information, theory, and supports... [Read More...]
October 24, 2012
by Carole Zangari -
It’s been an exciting AAC Awareness Month! There were 25 lucky winners in the first two drawings and earlier today we drew the names for the third round. The winners for Drawing # 3 are Tanya Keller Scott (#473), Rachel Berry (#266), Carrie Walls (#9), Felicia Moore (#566), Diane Saunders (#34), Jillian Mayo (#164), Juliana Escobar (#425), Amy Vinson Taylor (#138), Allyssa Lucas (#323), Katrina Stebbins (#88), Kristina Frenzel (#480), Jennifer Schroeder (#510), Christine Cobb (#587), Lauren Enders (#53), Mark Neely (#291), Cassie Cann (#213), Amy M (#182), Cassandra Stafford (#366), Monica Venezia (#547), Lizzie Feldman (#579), Melissa Nicole (#364), Erin Finnegan (#434), and Kia Hughes (#383). Congratulations to the winners! Our 4th and final drawing promises to be the best one yet. Please join us in giving virtual round of applause to these generous companies: Ablenet, Inc Abilipad Alexicom Avaz BeeVisual Dynavox/Mayer Johnson Gail Van Tatenhove, PA Hump Software iClick iTalk MarbleSoft Mozzaz News-2-You Patient Provider Communication Paul H. Brookes Publishing Company RJ Cooper Safe N Sound Mobile Say It with Symbols... [Read More...]
October 20, 2012
by Carole Zangari -
While there are certainly attitudinal barriers to AAC, it’s also true that sometimes the people we are trying to influence just need more information. Sounds simple, right? Not exactly. Especially when we consider these factors. Adult learners prefer to chart their own course to learning new things rather than have others lay that out for them. Our behaviors are most likely to change when we discover solutions for ourselves, as opposed to following directions that others give to us. We have a limited amount of time to guide others to the information they need. Here are some things that have worked for us. Develop a bank of educational materials that pertain to the topics that you face most often in your clinical work. Create resource files for general topics, such as the empirically-supported benefits of AAC, and specific topics, such as the evidence base for using SGDs with individuals who... [Read More...]