Videos

In this second session of a two-part webinar, we will continue our exploration of available robust AAC apps that run on Apple (iOS) devices with a focus on motor plan-based AAC apps. We will also go over a few robust AAC apps that run on other platforms (Android, Windows, Kindle Fire, Web). We will examine each app, highlight its unique features, and discuss how those specific features can be used to address specific user needs. We will also touch on other considerations when selecting an AAC app including protection, portability, amplification, and access.

Providing a means of access to AAC for students with complex bodies is challenging for teams. In our efforts to teach access first, we often miss the crucial step of making sure that a student is developing competence in the activity. This is a process that comes over time from practice with and knowledge of the activity - anticipating the beginning, the middle, and end. For our students, sensory processing directly affects visual convergence, focus, attention, or postural control, each of which can be misread as “disinterest” or “lack of communicative intent”. This brief session will share strategies and insight for teaching - not testing- so that AAC users can be increasingly engaged in meaningful learning activities, both academic and functional, as access develops.

The 11 POWER:AAC modules on the PaTTAN website are being used (across the commonwealth and the country) for professional development by individuals or groups who are supporting students with complex communication needs who need or use AAC systems. This session will provide participants an opportunity to interact with the author and panelists in a Q & A session, as well as share their own experiences and recommendations for implementing the POWER:AAC modules as part of on-going professional development.

This session will provide an overview of features of “empowering” AAC software systems and eye-tracking technology. A user-friendly interface that incorporates popular and effective language programs (e.g. Unity and LAMP Words for Life on Accent devices) will be explored. A variety of new online resources designed to provide immediate support to teams will be also shared.

In this session, participants will learn about the features of communication tools that have the capacity to provide the communication support needed to implement a core focused approach and scaffold the development and growth of individuals who use AAC. A wealth of resources to be used by parents, caregivers, or professionals supporting individuals who use AAC will be included in this feature-rich overview of current AAC tools (e.g. Snap + Core First, Pathways for Core First, and more.)

Students who use AAC benefit from support both at school and at home in order to become proficient communicators. When families and professionals partner to provide this support, they are able to maximize functional communication across environments and identify new potential areas of growth. This session will highlight specific ways to invest, empower, and support team members. Participants will learn about numerous resources and strategies that can be used with families and professionals who have varying levels of AAC experience.

Communication is a two-way process; therefore, successful implementation of an AAC device depends as much on the skills of the person using AAC as it does on those of the communication partners. This session will provide an overview of the characteristics, roles, and responsibilities of communication partners working with people who use AAC, with a focus on aided language input. Shared reading will be discussed as a vehicle for learning to use aided language input to support device implementation and facilitate language learning. Participants will have the opportunity to put it to practice through a hands-on activity.

This brief video introduces key issues related to managing problem behavior, especially function based approaches to behavior management. Positive methods focusing on teaching communication skills and other skill building approaches are emphasized.

Scheduling, materials organization, and data collection systems are discussed in this brief overview.

The use of systematic gathering of data and the analysis and response to that data are presented to highlight this important process.