1057 Search Results for Core
September 16, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Welcome back to another installment of TELL ME About it, guest authored by Jeanna Antrim and Maggie Judson. Maggie and Jeanna are speech-language pathologists who work in the Assistive Technology Department for the Belleville Area Special Services Cooperative (BASSC) in southern Illinois. They are AT/AAC facilitators and provide evaluations, direct therapy, consultations, and trainings with school teams. In this series, they discuss how they support preschool teachers who are implementing the TELL ME program with their young students. Today, they walk us through the ways that they facilitate AAC use while focusing on a beloved book by Eric Carle. TELL ME About It: AAC Learning with Brown Bear, Brown Bear TELL ME About Reading: The first book in the TELL ME program (Teaching Early Language and Literacy through Multimodal Expression) is the warm-up book, “Brown Bear, Brown Bear”. A wonderful classic that may already be part of your classroom... [Read More...]
September 12, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
When young children with significant motor challenges are unable to move freely around the environment, it impacts many things. Today, we introduce a limited series on why hands-free mobility is so crucial during the early years, and what we can do to promote independent mobility. We are extremely fortunate to have Christine Wright-Ott authoring this series. Christine is an Occupational Therapist and consultant at The Bridge School in Hillsborough California. She authored the chapter, Mobility, in several editions of the book, Occupational Therapy for Children. Christine lectures at universities and conferences including ATIA, Closing the Gap, ISAAC, ISS, and AAC by the Bay. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Why Hands-free Mobility Matters for Children with AAC Needs Speech-language pathologists and occupational therapists have long been aware of the many ways that mobility and communication go hand-in-hand. Without a way to move around, a child’s opportunities for incidental learning and motivation to communicate are severely... [Read More...]
September 9, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Today we have a visit from California-based SLP Kristen Powell who is stopping by to share some of the ways she builds collaboration and sets up AAC implementation plans. Kristen works both in the public school system and runs her own private practice, Creative Communication. She specializes in assessment, device trials, and implementation training of AT and AAC. Kristen is passionate about providing individuals with the most appropriate AT and supports to improve their communication with their family and peers. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: In 2016, I got a job as a speech-language pathologist at a local school district. One of my students had multiple service providers both school and medical based. In addition, my student used both high and low tech Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). I was faced with the challenge of helping the entire team know how to use the AAC system with the student, know what successful communication looks... [Read More...]
September 8, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some posts you may have missed in your busy week. Monday – How I Do It: Planning AAC Therapy Activities Across Grade Levels Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Safeguards for AAC Users Thursday – How I Do It – AAC in General Education: Incorporating Peer Modeling ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: In the mood for some more AAC? Here are some selections from our archives. Video Modeling & AAC Boosting Communication with Video Modeling PrAACtical Teaching in the ASD Classroom: Predictable Chart Writing with Core Vocabulary How We Do It: AAC Videos for Core Word Modeling
September 5, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Looking for examples of how AAC is successfully incorporated into inclusive education? Today, we head to upstate New York to learn from AAC SLP Sarah Gregory who shares her experiences in supporting students in general education settings. In this post, Sarah shares her ideas for using peer modeling to support AAC learning. Enjoy! :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: AAC in General Education: Incorporating Peer Modeling Authentic inclusion of students with Complex Communication Needs (CCN) or non-speaking students is essential and can also be difficult to achieve. One of the most effective strategies I have found is involving all students in AAC learning. Folks in my district started a peer modeling program a few years ago and we found this to be a powerful tool in achieving our goals for academic inclusion and social belonging. In this blog post, I will outline the why and the how of our current peer modeling program.... [Read More...]
September 2, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
AAC SLP Amanda Samperi is back with another post in her series about the prAACtical aspects of AAC therapy. In this post, Amanda shares her views and experiences on helping students with AAC needs build their language skills. You can see her previous posts in this series here. Putting the FUN Back in FUNctional Working with Multiple Symbol Sets ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: How I Do It: AAC Therapy is Language Therapy I’ve traveled between several states and many different schools over the past few years. Because of this, I’ve had the privilege of working with some amazing SLPs! They’re talented, strong, creative, and love their kiddos more than anything. And just like any other team, each of us has different strengths and weaknesses. When I’m joining a Speech team, there’s usually at least one other SLP with specialties that are outside of my wheelhouse. However, she isn’t very comfortable with AAC. It... [Read More...]
September 1, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Happy Sunday, AAC friends. Here are some posts you may have missed in your busy week. Monday – How I Do It: Working with Multiple Symbol Sets Tuesday – AAC Link Up Wednesday – Video of the Week: Model as a MASTER PAL Thursday – PrAACtically September: AAC Resources for A Year of Core Vocabulary Words ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Here are a few more for your browsing pleasure. AAC and Visual Supports for Storms and Hurricanes: 10 Useful Resources How I Do It: Cooking in the Classroom with Carol Goossens’ How I Do It: Conversation Practice with Teens and Young Adults by Angela Adams On AAC Training: Skill Building for AAC Team Members PrAACtical Resources: AAC 101 Flipbook Handout
August 26, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Amanda Samperi is back with the second post in her series about getting ready to return to school-based AAC services. Amanda is an AAC SLP who has worked in a variety of service delivery settings and runs the blog, AAC is Where It’s AT. Currently, she provides push-in language therapy to children with complex communication needs at a substantially-separate center school in Florida. She also conducts AAC/AT evaluations, provides year-round parent trainings, and assists the SLP team in instructing teachers/staff about communication supports and strategies In today’s post, she addresses a situation faced by many AAC teams: Serving children who use a variety of different AAC symbols and systems. If you missed Amanda’s initial post on back-to-school AAC, you can catch up on that here. ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: How I Do It: Working with Multiple Symbol Sets It’s the beginning of the year – desks are in their spots, students’ names are... [Read More...]
August 19, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
Combining AAC learning with literacy activities is one of our favorite ways to support young learners. We start off the week with a taste of how AT specialists in one school district are helping preschool special education teachers build a foundation of core vocabulary in their students. Maggie Judson and Jeanna Antrim are speech-language pathologists who work in the Assistive Technology Department for the Belleville Area Special Services Cooperative (BASSC) in southern Illinois. They are AT/AAC facilitators and provide evaluations, direct therapy, consultations, and trainings with school teams. This is the first of a series of posts in which Maggie and Jeanna discuss ways that books from the TELL ME program can be used to support AAC learning. Enjoy! :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: As AAC facilitators for a special education cooperative, we are always on the lookout for effective ways to provide our students access to instructional materials and activities that not... [Read More...]
August 12, 2019
by Carole Zangari -
In the US and some other countries, we’re starting a new school year and SLP Amanda Samperi is here to get us off to a good start by sharing her experiences and suggestions for engaging AAC activities. After graduating from Penn State, Amanda worked for several years as an SLP in school, home, and medical settings. She has presented on AAC-related topics st ASHA, an IEE Electrical Safety Workshop, and at the AAC in the Cloud Conference. Amanda hopes to continue sharing her knowledge and experiences about AAC through her blog, AAC is where it’s AT. Today, she introduces us to a series of posts that focus on creating fun AACtivities for language learning. :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Back-to-School with AAC: Putting the FUN back in FUNctional There is something special about this time of year – students are trying on their back-to-school outfits, school supplies are magically discounted beyond belief, and parents... [Read More...]