Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
Thanks to Terry Kappe for posting this on our FB page!
It’s exciting to see how families and professionals around the world are hosting events (see our suggestions here) and doing all sorts of informal activities to build awareness of AAC. In today’s p…
. Have you ever had a patient who you knew had something to say but you struggled to find a means of communication? I spent almost a year trying literally EVERY possible AAC device and app and ever…
It can be difficult for speech therapists to help students use their AAC devices not only in speech therapy, but also in the classroom. This quick and easy plan helps speech therapists train classroom staff on how to model language and support the student using an AAC device in the classroom. Improve communication during classroom routines using AAC, and collect data as you do!
Over the past 2 months I’ve been talking a lot about beginning with augmentative communication; including what it is and who needs it. The next question I most often get from parents, teachers and SLPs is about what kinds of materials are needed for intervention (and “where the heck do I find them”)? We all know that genuine communication interactions in context are the best for teaching any communication skill. Too often in AAC implementation we “test” more than teach. We ask students to identify symbols at random, or find target words outside of any social engagement or genuine interaction. Since many of our students require additional specific, structured practice beyond the opportunities throughout their school day, I encourage role playing and simulations. There are a lot of ways to do this; such as including using props, dress-up, role playing, and using books and apps. We also know that our students need to have a robust communication system; either no/light tech or high tech systems. Again, there are dedicated devices that use core words as well as categories of fringe words, AAC apps that are similarly robust with sufficient vocabulary to meet all of their communication needs, and dynamic communication books that have robust vocabulary to meet a variety of communication functions. Systems that are either totally core word based (with available fringe words) or are function/pragmatically based but include the same high frequency words, are robust enough to meet many needs. Much research has been done on language development in general, and on the acquisition and use of early words; especially those words we know of as “core words.” But, somehow, we often seem to get stuck with those first 15, 25, or 32 core words. Sometimes even SLPs forget about 2-word combinations when teaching AAC users. But isn’t that the natural next place to go? I love it when I hear SLPs or teachers exclaim, “Look! He’s putting two words together.” Two word combinations are necessary to convey meaning when one of those words is a noun. “Apple.” Well, what about an apple? Do you want an apple? Did your apple fall on the floor? Did someone take your apple? Are you tired of apples? But think of the magic of communication when combining two core words. All of the multiple meanings of both words create powerful combinations. “Want apple.” “Not apple.” “Give apple.” “Bad apple.” Good apple.” “More apple.” I’ve made meaning intelligible, and I’ve covered - how many functions? I have made a great many resources available in my TPT store for AAC implementation. One that I particularly enjoy is my AAC Starter Kit, because it provides a robust picture communication book that employs basic core and adds a variety of fringe topics and concepts. When the book is assembled, it shows the easy to access to core words, as well as the variety of fringe words available. The kit also includes my 10 Weeks to 40 Core Words. The activities for teaching use of core words in this resource are similar to my other Activities and Games for a Year of Core and Teach Me Core Words resources. I have attempted to provide both suggestions for using core words in every day routines and activities, as well as activities to simulate other real-life activities that you may not have access to within your intervention setting or classroom. There are 4 target core words per week, planned out over 10 weeks. You may need a different pace for your students, and that is certainly fine. Move at a pace that works for the students you are working with; making sure to always presume competence, provide maximum opportunities for genuine communicating, and use the least intrusive cues and prompts possible. Consistent partner use of Aided Language Stimulation is crucial. For each of those 4 word groups, there is a different lesson plan/activity suggestion/contextual idea(s) for each day of the week. The words are provided on large cards (approximately 4.5 X 3) for use in the classroom, as well as on a complete 40-location communication board. Each week you will get a small book to read with the student(s) on Day 2 that uses those words. When possible, act out the statements in the book in real time, giving a context with real objects and people. The books can be interactive; having students place the appropriate symbol on each page of each book. Simulation activities for each week include activities such as an Animal Escape game, making a volcano, blowing bubbles, playing a familiar game, building a pizza, doing a group puzzle, and more. 3X5 sized cards for use on a classroom board come in white background as well as red & yellow for students with cortical vision issues. Also in the starter kit is my Teach Me 6 Core Words resource and Teach Me More Core Words resource; each of which has a variety of simulation activities. Order a pizza, order animals back to the barn, get dressed for the weather, go to the store are some of the activities. And my 3 Games for AAC practice are also in this set. The first game involves students picking a card from a pile and finding the words in their AAC system. The second game uses dice to provide a single core word and asks students to create a phrase using that word. The third game is a bit like Scrabble, but uses core words tiles rather than single letter tiles, and has students build phrases and sentences using the words they’ve picked. There are more than 500 pages in this resource, with enough activities to keep your AAC users learning to use language throughout the year - and beyond! However you choose to do it, keep your AAC users “talking!” An InLinkz Link-up
Many AAC professionals are known for their generosity in creating and sharing resources to support individuals with complex communication needs. In today’s post, we feature a sampling of some that…
The question I probably get asked the most is, “Where do I start?” Teachers, SLPs, and parents don’t always know what to do with the new aac system their child/student has been given. As SLPs we know that you can’t just put the book or device in front of the student and expect them to just begin it use it. Communication for these students is a skill that needs to be specifically and directly taught. Language needs to have a context. Usually it is a context that involves more than just the aac user. Communication is interactive. If you listen to Janice Light talk about what students need, she lists social closeness, information transfer, social etiquette, and wants and needs. For many of our students, the focus starts out on wants and needs and often doesn’t get much further. In school, on the other hand, we start to spend a lot of time on information transfer - answering the questions posed by the curriculum. But, Light puts social closeness at the top of the list. Isn’t that what communication is all about? We teach conversational skills because it is so important to connect with those around us. We need to be able to share experiences, feelings, and more. Many of my teens who use aac love to joke. Telling jokes (or trying to) is their way of establishing that closeness. As students move into school, the time and effort spent on establishing social communication grows. We spend time teaching students to engage in eye contact, to smile at others, and to participate in activities. For them to do the latter, they need a way to communicate what they want to say to others. So, where do we start? We start with the student. What engages him? What do we say when we are engaged with him? What are the things he wants to or might want to say? Take a look at the activities in which he wants or needs to interact and begin to build the vocabulary for that activity. Not just the names of things involved; but comments - both positive and negative, actions, and descriptions. Provide those words in his mode of communication (usually this means his aac device or communication book), and you use them. The more you model using the symbols or signs for the words involved in that activity the faster he will learn. As the student begins to use the system, acknowledge, reinforce, and expand on what he says. Offer choices as often as possible. Ask open ended questions rather than yes/no. Model use of those action and descriptive words consistently. Make sure you are not overwhelming the student with too much language, but keep your language a step or 2 above his. Don’t talk so much. Pause in interactions to wait for a response. Assume that he can and will respond. Overall, make sure you are providing sufficient vocabulary, sufficient models of a wide variety of communication purposes, and constant access to the system. I often tell SLPs, teachers, and parents that they are going to do the same things they do with their other kids/students. Just add pictures to your communication mode. Where do we start? Start with the student. A couple of weeks ago I posted a free core word communication board. I have also posted boards for use in the library, the motor lab, and at snack time. All of those boards are based on use of core vocabulary; adding additional vocabulary needed in that context. If you are building boards or pages for activities, make sure that core vocabulary words are available, and focus on those. Today I am adding a slightly different core word board for you to use. How do you engage your student?
A look at different forms of augmentative or alternative communication (AAC) devices and systems that help autistic individuals communicate more effectively.
Creating adapted books is a lot of work. I found this wonderful website with over 400 free printable adapted books you can download. Read more...
Using AAC for communication in the classroom can be overwhelming. Here are my tips for using AAC to support students in the classroom.
September finds many of us back in the classroom. If your clutch of students includes an AAC user, these 10 basic Tips for Teachers might be just what you need to support and grow communication as school comes back into session. 1. Incorporate AAC into any and every classroom activity AAC is not a learning activity in itself, it is a way to communicate and communication should be part of everything that happens. Model words during reading, music, art, science, etc. Dis
What’s better that modeling AAC? Doing it with a pal, of course! In this post, we hear from special education teacher Carissa Thompson and SLP Hannah Sellers who work at Princeton House Chart…
Games and resources to enhance the communication opportunities for children specially designed for AAC (Augmentative and alternative communication) users.
This innovative communication book is a combination of research, training, explanations, communication boards, and posters to create a full core classroom! ALL CORE VOCABULARY IS EDITABLE!** Choose core boards with 15, 24, or 66 words! Included in this download are: ★ Research based explanation of core boards (including references) ★ Handout for communication partners to help them model core vocabulary ★ 3 sets of Editable core communication boards (15, 24, or 66 words) in small, regular, and big sizes (bonus: 66 board has a "medium" size). ★ 3 sets of Core communication boards (15, 24, or 66 words) with Fitzgerald key backgrounds in small, mini, medium, and big sizes ★ Spanish & Chinese core boards (15 or 24 words) ★ Alphabet board (capital or lower case) - alphabet boards are NOT editable ★ 1 row Fringe vocabulary strips including words for common activities (actions, school words, books, toys, about me, etc.) - this set of fringe vocabulary is NOT editable ★ 1 row Editable vocabulary strips for your own activities or routines ★ 2 row Editable vocabulary strips for a complete and robust communication system (nouns, verbs, describing words, social words, etc.) ★ Training videos for all staff: Watch the video of how I use it to model language here! This free e-course includes many video examples of how to model language with a low-tech core board. This video demonstrates how to turn your communication board into a manipulative system to help students with difficulties in joint attention. If you are interested in using the fantastic mini core board, watch this video! I have been successfully using this communication flip book for the last year with the following types of students: non-verbal students who need visual language modeling to accompany the verbal minimally verbal students who need extra prompting and visuals to express themselves students with severe articulation disorders who need augmentative communication and alphabet boards to get their message across clearly. I cannot tell you how much I love these flip books. They are completely customizable because you can keep your main vocabulary on the flip book at all times and add extra fringe vocabulary as needed. Note: This is a zip file. Make sure you have the appropriate software to open the file. Important information for editing: You must open the files using Adobe Reader in order to edit. If you do not have a copy, download it here for free: https://get.adobe.com/reader/ **Core vocabulary and pictures are editable on core boards. Background colors are NOT editable. All editable boards are white backgrounds only. __________________________________________________________________ FEEDBACK: ❤️ "Amazing! One of the best things I've ever bought!" ❤️ "I use this book ALL THE TIME! I've had special ed teachers stop me so they can look at it or watch me use it. I used it all the time with a language delayed kiddo of mine and it was amazing to watch him start to string together longer spontaneous phrases. He loved trains so I used the "trains" attachment the most. Thanks for your hard work!" ❤️"I just have to say, I LOVE this product. After day one of trying the flip book and mini core board out with one of my minimally verbal students, he is producing spontaneous phrases and requests. He is so engaged when using his new system! THANK YOU!" ___________________________________________________________________ ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Hi! I'm Dr. Cheri Dodge Chin. I help SLP, educators, and families to create organized systems, renew the joy in your profession, and support AAC users! I am a published researcher, adjunct professor, national presenter, and a "Top 100 speech-language pathologists influencing the field." I have over 20 years of experience in empowering SLPs, educators, children, and families. I began my blog, Super Power Speech, in 2008 with the hope of engaging other speech pathologists and passing on ideas and resources. The blog is now recognized as one of the first SLP blogs in the world and has been nominated for multiple awards. While browsing, make sure to check out my courses and resource library with over 50 FREE downloads! Aside from flying around and trying to save the world, you can find me studying for my second doctorate degree (this time in education). ⭐️⭐️ SUBSCRIBE HERE for access to my library of free speech materials.⭐️⭐️
How can AAC Devices for Autism help a child learn to communicate? Find the best devices and how to teach them here.
Are you looking for more ways to build vocabulary with students who use AAC devices or a VOD? Here are 6 phrases to get you using AAC more in the classroom!
A range of scavenger hunts with symbol supported communication boards for AAC users and those with reduced recpeive and expressive language.
Increase Communication Functions Increase Word Variety Device Use and Navigation AAC Access Communication Repair For more information on AAC goal writing, I’d highly recommend Linda Burkhart’s goal writing resource here. Read more about my goals here. Tips for AAC Success Effective AAC implementation should focus on these three research-supported priorities: If you’re looking for a […]
To print or save this fantastic poster created by Jane Farrall (Follow on Twitter @janefarrall) and David Niemeijer (Follow on Twitter @@NiemeijerD) from AssistiveWare, click on the link below. Printable Version of the Do's and Dont's of AAC
This is a page from my “AAC Apps and Features At-a-Glance (Single Page Handouts)”: The power of truly embracing and incorporating individual interests into an AAC system and AAC implementation plus…
It’s such a pleasure to have Angi Pearce back on these pages to share her experiences and passion for teaching students with AAC needs. Angi is a teacher at Kowhai Special School in Hastings,…
Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
What's the best AAC app? It depends on the individual using it! But, check out my speed test experiment to see which operated the fastest!
This is a quick but effective visual that I have been wanting to show you! I used images and directions from the Common Ground Collaboration to complete this job! Thanks to Mark and Brenda for
Get ready to read! Interactive storybook reading is one of my favorite ways to build AAC skills. No matter what the age or kind of disability, it seems like my therapy always includes ssome type of…
Core Vocabulary Communication Flip Book - AAC for SpEd and Autism Units Need a low-tech and easy way to start developing language in a student with AAC needs? Looking for something more dynamic than a standard old 12-box board? This is it! This Core Vocabulary Communication Flip Book is a great support tool to develop a way to communicate wants, needs, and learning with students who have Autism and those with multiple profound disabilities, including the nonverbal. This is a functional and mobile communication system for students - It is portable, easy to access, streamlines the communication process, and is easily leveled to meet your student’s needs! This core board uses 192 of the most frequent vocabulary words in the English Language - that covers 80% of oral language! What’s more, it also has a qwerty keyboard page for students to work on spelling as well as a math page with numbers 1-20 and calculator symbols. You can use this across all classes! ⭐What You'll Get⭐ 192 Core Vocabulary Words in line with Clinical Applications Included: Verbs, Feeling/Body Parts, Description Words, Things/Nouns, Calendar/Time, Colors/Shapes Directions for Printing and Assembly 26 Letter Icons in a Qwerty Layout And Numbers 1-20, +, -, x, ÷, =, and $ symbol With this Core Vocabulary Communication Flip Book, the design allows for you to start with one section of the board and target the First 20 Core Words (most frequent in AAC learners). As a student develops, the board will grow with them. You can add more pages of the flip system as they need it or as it supports your instruction. Download the PREVIEW file - Like what you see? Purchase the full activity today and work smarter, not harder! ➰ Who Benefits from this Product ➰ Special Education Teachers Teachers in Autism Units Self-Contained Teachers with Students who have Disabilities Service Providers who need to address communication and social skills If you are a teacher who works with students who have disabilities and you’re trying to build communication skills and support socially appropriate behavior, then this is for you! ⚡ Related Products ⚡ Check out more activities like this in the Noodle Nook TPT Store, including more adapted resources: • 5 Tips When Communicating with Nonverbal Students (FREE!) • Token Boards Themed Visual for Behavior (Token Reward System) • Budgeting Task Cards (Do You Have Enough Money) Activities for Math Centers • Dollar Store Work Task Boxes - 20 Activities with Visuals & Directions! ✍ Feedback & Followers ✍ Fabulous Printables Love Feedback! Ratings make the TpT world go round :) AND Earn you points to get more for less. ❤️ Follow me ❤️ to be the first to know about my new sales, freebies and products! Look for the green star near my store name and click it to become a follower. You'll receive updates directly to your inbox that will help you work smarter, not harder. If you have any questions, I’d love to hear from you! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Email: [email protected] Pinterest: Noodle Nook Facebook: Noodle Nook Instagram: #TheNoodleNook Blog: www.NoodleNook.Net ---------------------------------------------------------------- This resource was created by Ayodele Jones © 2017. All rights reserved by author. The materials in this unit were distributed and intended for single use only. The purchaser may reproduce copies for students in your classroom for classroom use only. You may not share with other teachers in your building, district, or otherwise. Redistributing, editing, selling, or posting this item (or any part thereof) on the internet is strictly prohibited. Violations are subject to penalties of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Additional licenses can be purchased for multi-use at a discount. Please contact the author at [email protected]. ---------------------------------------------------------------- The Picture Communication Symbols ©1981–2015 by Mayer-Johnson LLC a Tobii Dynavox company. All Rights Reserved Worldwide. Used with permission. Boardmaker® is a trademark of Mayer-Johnson LLC. Tobii Dynavox 2100 Wharton Street Suite 400 Pittsburgh, PA 15203 Phone: 1 (800) 588-4548 Fax: 1 (866) 585-6260 Email: [email protected] Web site: www.mayer-johnson.com
Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
Symbol-based communication app for children, teens and adults who cannot speak
It’s AAC month! AAC is an important aspect of my job as a special education teacher. What is AAC? AAC stands for Assistive and Augmentative Communication. It can be anything that helps a person communicate. Why is AAC so important? Imagine if you suddenly lost your ability to talk or even use parts of your […]
Are you looking for more ways to build vocabulary with students who use AAC devices or a VOD? Here are 6 phrases to get you using AAC more in the classroom!
Predictable chart writing is one of my favorite ways to get kids who are new to writing comfortable with a writing routine. Today, our guest author Ashley Larisey shares detailed information that w…
Resources, tips, and materials to help you, help children with autism
