Toss-it-back Tuesday: Maya Finds Her Voice
Don't be intimidated by the 10 minute timestamp on this video---once you start watching (it opens with 2 year old Maya signing "open" and making some noise) you kind of get pulled in.This was put...
View ArticleAAC Family Friday!
Happy AAC Family Friday! Thank you to all who have sent in pictures---I seriously love putting this together each week :) (The italicized text is quotes pulled from emails, the plain font stuff is my...
View ArticleAAC Family Friday!
Next week is the final AAC family week----let's make it a giant one :) You can start sending in your pictures now (and it's fall festival/Halloween time---at least in the US---lots of costume...
View ArticleAAC Family Friday!
Here it is, the final installment of AAC Family pictures, in honor of AAC Awareness Month!Lily Grace, age 6, has been using a paper-based PODD book for some time. This weekend, she went on her first...
View ArticleA New Year's AAC Modeling Resolution (with printable and social networking)
Happy almost 2016!With the new year often comes a renewed energy to tackle new projects, or to re-tackle old ones. And what better project to focus on than modeling for the AAC users in our lives? We...
View ArticleThe Wins Between Our Losses
You know when times are kind of challenging, but you’re fighting the good fight, and then some things start to go right and you win a few small victories, and you feel pretty good about yourself? When...
View ArticleMovies and a Mission: the Prospector Theater
It is worth noting at the start of this post that this is NOT a sponsored post or a paid advertisement. There is some shameless gushing and praise, and in the world of blogs that seems to often involve...
View Article21 Days of AAC Challenge: 2016
New, 2016-style Introduction:We are freshly back from AAC family camp (which I will definitely blog about at some point, but if you'd like to see some snippets from camp you can see them on our FB...
View ArticleThe book formerly known as "Curious George Gets a Talker"
Welcome, friends, to the former home of the book "Curious George Gets a Talker." (If you're brand new and don't know what I'm referring to, it was a super neat PowerPoint book that I wrote about...
View ArticleI may not live to see our (AAC) glory, but I will gladly join the fight.
(Originally posted on our Facebook page on 6/9/16. That post, and comments, can be seen here.)The AAC times, they are a-changing.I believe this.I believe that one day SLP students will sit in (a...
View ArticleTraction
As NYC looks ahead to a likely storm tonight (woohoo! snow!) I'm thinking about driving on ice. I didn't know the fun of driving on ice until college, when a friend had me drive to a (large, totally...
View ArticleWhy We Didn't Use AAC At All Yesterday
(a (hypothetical) letter from a parent to a therapist)*Dear SLP,We didn't use the talker at all yesterday. Not one little bit. I had plans to use it---no really, I did! I had a whole activity in mind!...
View ArticleThe Leap: AAC by 18 months, 3 years later
This post is a 3-years-later follow up to my blog post AAC by 18 Months.Yesterday morning I received a message reminding me that (exactly) three years ago, I shared this status on Facebook. Three...
View ArticleBarnes & Noble Summer Reading Program (FREE book for kids!) (visual menu)
I recently found out that Barnes & Noble has a summer reading program for kids (grades 1-6), through which each child can earn 1 free book! (image is logo on the front of the B&N Summer Reading...
View ArticleDiagnosed.
So, here it is. The update 8.5 years in the making. Back in December, I received a message from a blog reader inquiring about a particular syndrome, and whether Maya might have it (this happens from...
View ArticleSnapshot
She talks so much now.It takes me by surprise, frequently.Sometimes she speaks to acquaintances (neighbors, local friends) and I open my mouth to translate exactly as they open their mouth to respond...
View ArticleAAC after school: Most success, success, least success
It's been hot in NYC for the past few days, and heat takes a real toll on Maya. After school yesterday she seemed content, but exhausted . . . and (interestingly?) her verbal speech basically...
View ArticlePool Noodle Art Robot (and free printable book)
Quick post!In my sessions tomorrow we will be building an art robot. A few years ago, while at AAC camp, we built a similar robot using a cup---but I just couldn't get it to work at home. A quick...
View ArticleGhost Balloons (and free printable)
This week, while browsing Facebook, I saw the coolest little craft project---simple, inexpensive, difficult to mess up, and sure to delight! A librarian friend of mine did this activity with a student...
View ArticleScavenger Hunting
(image is of my kids, Will on his scooter and Maya in her wheelchair, studied scavenger hunt pages)Last week a friend posted a fun neighborhood scavenger hunt on Facebook. This morning we awoke to a...
View ArticleElves use AAC, too!
Happy December!If you are part of an AAC family and you have an Elf on the Shelf, this post is for you (and I need your help)!Did you guys know that elves love to use AAC?! It's true!For the past 4...
View ArticleDiagnosed, again.
Last week we learned the results of a recent evaluation: Maya is autistic.In thinking about how to write this post, I wondered whether readers (who only get snippets of her story) would be surprised to...
View ArticleThe Great Bike Giveaway!
The Great Bike Giveaway is a program run by the Friendship Circle every February. The goal of the program is to provide children and young adults (under age 30) with adaptive bikes (which can be...
View ArticleAn AAC WWYD, for the professionals
A story for professionals:Client/Student: 4 year, 5 month old girl. Pleasant, but self-directed. Limited attention span.Language profile: Expressive vocabulary is extremely limited. Less than 5 clear...
View ArticleFamilies Need Guidance Before Purchasing an AAC app: A response
Yesterday I read an article* that laid out several reasons that families need professional guidance, in the form of a “full assessment” from an “AAC professional” before purchasing or implementing an...
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