Tag Archive: support

Video of the Week: Compliance Is Not the Goal

April 3, 2019 by Carole Zangari - Leave your thoughts

For our first video of April, which is designated as Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month, we’re turning to the Tedx stage to hear from Dr. Amy Laurent. An occupational therapist by profession, Dr. Laurent shares how her views of autism have changed in her presentation, Compliance Is Not the Goal: Letting Go of Control and Rethinking Support for Autistic Individuals. Enjoy! Direct Link to Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=fx3cfzlCG_Q

Filed under: Video of the Week

“How I Do It” with Harmony Turnbull: The Importance of Support and Supervision when Providing AAC Services

May 21, 2014 by Carole Zangari - 3 Comments

We are so thrilled to have a guest post today, from Australian SLP Harmony Turnbull. Harmony is a Consultant Speech Pathologist for Ageing, Disability and Home Care in NSW, Australia. In her role, she provides support and supervision to senior speech pathologists, carries a small caseload of people with complex needs and provides expert consultancy for management. She has specialised in supporting people with disabilities including complex communication needs for 11 years and is addicted to networking. She can often be found sharing her knowledge and asking many questions on Facebook and Twitter (@SP_Harmony). Harmony is passionate about the work speech/language pathologists can do to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities. The Importance of Support and Supervision when Providing AAC Services Scenario – Jane Jane is an SLP who has been working with people with disabilities for over 5 years, including people with complex communication needs. Her caseload... [Read More...]

Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking

5 Ways to Promote Consistent AAC Use

October 29, 2013 by Carole Zangari - 4 Comments

Work with someone who uses AAC but not as consistently as you would like? Here are some thoughts on how to make an impact in that area. 1. Write goals that help you fight this battle. E.g., Janie will use her AAC system to ask for help at least once per activity; Jimmy will use his AAC system to answer 2-3 curriculum-related questions in each class period; Given her AAC system, Jenny will use the correct morphological endings for plurals and past tense at the beginning or ending of each group activity. 2. Be an AAC cheerleader. In most settings, it is the adult who sets the tone for how communication will proceed. If it isn’t important to US, then it will never be important to the AAC learners. So, we try our best to use AAC every time we see the learner. It takes some work to build... [Read More...]

Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking

5 Things to Tell Families Who Feel Unsuccessful with AAC

August 27, 2013 by Carole Zangari - Leave your thoughts

As readers of this blog know, we are sometimes awed and inspired by families of people with AAC needs. There are many who seem to know just what to do and make it a priority to implement AAC in their homes. It isn’t always smooth sailing, though, and we often rack our brains to find ways to support famiies who are struggling. Here are some prAACtical ideas of things to say when a family member is feeling unsuccessful. 1. “Take small bites: You don’t have to revolutionize your household to help your child/parent. Do what you can do, when you can do it. Small changes are more sustainable, anyway.” 2. “Starting over is better than giving up: Yes, you may have tried XYZ before but things are different now. Let’s give it another shot.” 3. “I won’t judge you. ” Say it and mean it. 4. “You’re not alone.”... [Read More...]

Filed under: PrAACtical Thinking