Highlights For the Week of Jul 22, 2024
AAC for Caregivers
Randi Sargent
2019
AAC for Caregivers: When aging parents or a spouse suffer speech loss following a stroke, surgery, progressive illness or dementia, life at home gets very stressful. This presentation provides an overview of how to use no tech/low tech Augmentative Communication Aids to help individuals get their care needs met at home, in the hospital and out in the community.
Highlights For the Week of Jul 15, 2024
STE'A'M Partnerships Make Robust Language Systems Available for Toddlers
Gemma White
2021
3D printers create amazing Items supporting multisensory teaching and home made keyguards. Create visual, sensory and tactile cues to exploring and understand the language system. Let’s face it not everybody has a 3-D printer….it’s about partnerships: local high schools, generous engineers, community colleges. Come learn about 3D printing and AAC and see how I came up with novel ways to teach robust language systems to toddlers.
Highlights For the Week of Jul 8, 2024
Highlights For the Week of Jul 1, 2024
Powerful insights from Adult AAC users that challenge how we practice AAC
Amanda Hartmann
2019
In 2018, AssistiveWare embarked on a project to create support materials for users of text-based Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC). After conducting a comprehensive literature review, we realised how little specific support and knowledge there is. Following this we conducted interviews with a range of AAC users and their supporters, including users with developmental disabilities and Autism, acquired physical disabilities, aphasia, and traumatic brain injury. The insights and knowledge gained from the group of AAC users changed many assumptions we had made about AAC.
Highlights For the Week of Jun 24, 2024
What's New With CoughDrop
Brian Whitmer
2018
We're always making changes to CoughDrop, based on new research and what we learn from our users. Come see how new integrations, built-in modeling ideas and other new features keep making CoughDrop better and better!
Highlights For the Week of Jun 17, 2024
The Meaning of Voice -- The Lived Experience of SGD Users
Kathy Howery
2019
What is the meaning of voice in the life of a young person who speaks using a SGD? This presentation provides a glimpse into the lived experience of people who use speech generating devices, drawing upon their first hand accounts. “Giving voice”, both literally and metaphorically, will be explored.
Highlights For the Week of Jun 10, 2024
Eye Gaze Access for Autistics
Saoirse Tilton
2022
Eyegaze AAC is often primarily considered when a disability affects the use of hands, arms or multiple limbs! When thinking of eyegaze most people think of ALS, cerebral palsy or similar disabilities as they are well known for impacting motor and coordination! rarely if ever considered for autistics, however many autistic speak at length about the brain body disconnect where our bodies don't listen to our brains, this ranges from person to person but is widely discussed and well known in the autistic community, the brain body disconnect effect motor movements, speech coordination ect. However despite it being widely discussed by autistics. As well as Spoken a fair bit about by many non speaking autistics eyegaze still doesn't seem to be looked at as an AAC access method for autistics
Highlights For the Week of Jun 3, 2024
AAC and Heritage Language
Janet Callahan
2021
A Heritage Language is a language that is not the dominant language, typically learned or used at home, by people who have cultural ties to that language. Through our family’s journey to achieving fluency and a working AAC device in an endangered language, this presentation will address common issues.
Literacy Connections -- Reading, Writing and AAC
Beth Poss & Kelly Fonner
2023
For students AAC communicators, the development of literacy skills are essential to unrestricted access to ALL the words. Too often, Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening are taught in isolation. In this session, participants learn ways to connect and integrate reading, writing and language into instructional routines across the student day.
Highlights For the Week of May 27, 2024
Overcoming Barriers to Communication
Jill Senner/Matt Baud/Shelley Harris
2018
Providing successful home, school, and community communication experiences for individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) can be challenging, particularly in environments that do not easily allow for use of high-tech AAC systems. This webinar will provide participants with an overview of innovative strategies collaboratively developed by family members and therapists to overcome environmental and positional barriers to communication. This "show and tell" will highlight some of the creative adaptations that have allowed children and young adults to communicate in bed, in the shower, horseback riding, swimming, and more!
Highlights For the Week of May 20, 2024
Plain Language for AAC -- What It Is and Why It Matters
Donnie TC Denome
2023
Plain language is a type of writing that uses clear, simple words and sentences. Plain language can help people understand a piece of text better. You should use plain language when writing and talking about AAC. This presentation will teach you the basics of writing in plain language. This presentation will talk about how to write about AAC in plain language.
Highlights For the Week of May 13, 2024
Using Eye-Tracking to Access Predictable
Gabrielle Flahault
2021
Predictable is a text-to-speech app designed for people who are literate but don't have the ability to speak. In 2020, we introduced three innovative access methods relying on Apple technology. This year, we worked with Irisbond and integrated the first iOS eye-tracking solution!
Highlights For the Week of May 6, 2024
Communication in the Community
Sarah Weber
2019
Community based instruction is an essential piece of today’s life skills curriculums. Unfortunately, supporting students who use AAC in the community setting can be a difficult and daunting process. This presentation aims to provide resources and support to help professionals provide the best possible services to the individuals they serve.
Highlights For the Week of Apr 29, 2024
Putting the other "A" in AAC: The Augmentative Part
Anne Page
2019
In the world of AAC (Augmentative Alternative Communication), we tend to really focus on the alternative piece. As an SLP working in the public schools, I work with a lot of students who are partially verbal. That is they are speaking words but it might just be one or two word sentences or telegraphic speech. Oftentimes these students really benefit from the structure of a low tech communication board to give their sentences correct grammatical structure and by having a multi-sensory method of expressing themselves. This presentation will give you some tips and ideas for ways you can help your students "augment" their communication.
Highlights For the Week of Apr 22, 2024
All Hands On Deck for Touch Access
Kristen Powell & Mary Katherine Dally
2021
Calling all hands-on deck for touch access! There is so much to consider and explore for clients who use touch access. This session is led by two assistive technology consultants and speech-language pathologists ( SLPs) to review ways to encourage touch access, low-tech to high-tech device modifications and DIY ideas to trial touch access methods with your students. One small change can make a big difference when using touch access. Get ready for this hands-on course and leave with a touch access resource guide for editing tips, checklists and trial ideas.
Highlights For the Week of Apr 15, 2024
AAC in the Classroom...for the teacher
Alyssa Hillary
2018
“AAC in the classroom” usually means AAC for students. Sometimes, however, it's the teacher who needs AAC! I'll be talking about AAC in the workplace, specifically the classroom as a workplace, based on both my experience and that of other teachers I know of. Practical tips incoming!
Feature Matching in the AAC Assessment
Katie Threlkeld
2023
Feature-matching in AAC assessment is a crucial component of the assessment process but can be intimidating! Feature-matching is completed by looking at an individual’s skills and needs to determine the most appropriate AAC system features (ASHA, n.d.). Learn more in this recorded webinar!