Do you know anyone who uses core word strategy (e.g., Gateway, WordPower or Core Words) or keyboard frequently for communication? Have you ever noticed that it can take awhile for them to complete and produce their message? I have.
The problem I have noticed with this is that these students often lose the attention of their [...]
I love a good turn of phrase or clever use of language. “Admiring the problem” became one of my favorites when I heard it from a former supervisor.
What is “admiring the problem?” Here is an example.
Your car tire is flat so you stand around looking at it for awhile then you gather other people to [...]
Have you ever heard this said about a student’s communication device? It is never where it should be!
When I ask why the member of the classroom staff thinks this is the case, I usually hear that the student doesn’t want to carry it. That may be true… Or it is possible that the student hasn’t [...]
I saw a teen and her mother out for a walk today. The mother was pushing her daughter’s wheelchair when she saw an acquaintance and began to talk. Her daughter, in her wheelchair, remained facing away from the conversation effectively eliminating her from the opportunity to enter the interaction without calling out or reaching behind [...]
“See one. Do one. Teach one,” is axiom used to describe a learning approach in some medical schools. While I do not hold that the word “one” should be taken literally in this adage (as in observe once, practice once), I believe the spirit of this saying has good application in the classroom when it [...]
Photos and drawings have been used as therapy tools since the beginning. We use them for naming, describing and comprehension tasks just to name a few of the ways that we incorporate them into therapy. At the same time, we present clients who need it with different pictures (AAC) to use for functional communication. Does [...]
“Mommy, that doesn’t go together!”
“I want to wear the PURPLE with the green, not the pink.”
“Where is my bright blue headband?”
A former co-worker of mine heard these and similar statement every morning from her 4-year-old while dressing for school. She would often arrive at the office frustrated after a morning battle. I’ve must say, however, [...]
Ritual is part of all of our lives. How many of you…
Have a spot for the keys?
Put your toothbrush back in the same place each time you use it?
Take the same way to work each day?
Get the same type of coffee drink each time you go to a café?
Follow the same sequence before you go [...]
As you may know, vocabulary in DynaVox devices is based on age range. We have “Users” for Young Children (2-6), Children (7-13), Teens (14-21), Young Adults (22-50) and Adults (50+). These age ranges are not arbitrary. They are based on research and observation as to when changes occur in what people talk about, the words [...]
Recently, I had the opportunity to visit Eastern Europe – the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia. It was such an interesting trip made even more interesting by my limited (read abysmal) vocabulary knowledge of the languages. I could say, “yes,” “no,” “hello,” “please” and “thank you” in each. Well, I could approximate them – sort of! [...]
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