I know that the fact that the Flip video cameras are so cool is not new news, but I can not say enough about how important it has been in the classrooms and children that I support. Here are some of the ways we have used it to support AAC children within the classroom.
Uses of [...]
When my son William was in elementary school he often ran into his classroom in the morning eager to share news with his teacher or a fellow student. And just as enthusiastically he came in the door of our house after school, bursting with news of the school day that he wanted to share.
When I [...]
Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent. ~Victor Hugo
This quote captures how powerful music can be in making connections between people and providing powerful communication without words.
Think of all the ways you’ve enjoyed music with others – at a concert, in the car, out in the [...]
“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, [...]
Years ago I worked with Chris, a young boy who was diagnosed with autism and communication impairment. Chris communicated with a combination of modalities including gesture, picture communication boards, and some spoken words. He was being evaluated for a speech generating device (SGD) at that time.
Chris enjoyed interacting with his peers at school, especially during [...]
My belief is that it a teaching skill or language can be learned. The most success I have had in training others was to initially script lessons that I expect someone else to do. Incorporating into those lessons “what if” scenarios so that staff learns how to respond to inappropriate answers, no answers and how [...]
For students who rely on AAC devices for communication, there is no such time as “speech time.” Communication happens all day long. I have witnessed this many times in my career. The AAC device comes out of the backpack when the Speech-Language Pathologist comes to fetch the student for therapy. Communication happens all day long. [...]
In my years of experience in the schools, I’ve often heard the frustration from families that as soon as the entire team is “up to speed” on the use of the device and implementation strategies, a new person joins the team or a change of teacher/staffing occurs. Parents report feeling the constant need to update [...]
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 [...]
Responsive teaching is the idea or concept of any response given by a student is viewed as teaching opportunity. As a teacher you are never looking for that right and wrong answer but rather how to move the child to the next level in learning. If the child does not respond as you expect, you [...]
Recent Comments