ties; ultimately, we want to be intentional. Activities should en- gage and challenge students to use what they know to prepare for real world scenarios. They should be able to practice with support from those who planned the activities as well as those who will be supporting them in the naturally occurring envi- ronment (i.e., communication partners). When we consider bridging the gap of activity specific vo- cabulary and use in natural environments, we look for oppor- tunities to have vocabulary learning exist within functional, hands on activities with AAC user input. We involve students in locating vocabulary and planning for device programming ( a perfect time for meaningful choice making!) to merge content knowledge into expression of knowledge. For example: • Go on a scavenger hunt within communication systems and communication environments to check off what words we can use and what words we should add • Take phrases to support quick self advocacy and have stu- dents decide where to program into devices. This can be open-ended or modified by providing choices of where to program • Use same aged peers to get vocabulary that is age ap- propriate to include into relevant content (e.g., opinion words, leisure choices, conversation starters or interjec- tions, etc.). Have students decide which words or phrases to program With vocabulary provided, we want to plan for opportuni- ties to use it. Communication planning tools are essential to this process to plan for opportunities that arise in fast paced, naturally occurring environments. Examples include: • Create “When I do… It means…” dictionaries for uncon- ventional communication strategies can help others ef- fectively interpret the message while building awareness of self. • Guided communication passports to be created and shared with all those in the immediate and larger envi- ronments. Rather than being written by an SLP or teacher, using sentence prompts or starters or other guides to co- create a written document to be shared that highlights communication strategies and important to’s (things that are important to the communicator). • Co-constructed narratives to summarize learning or share as a presentation • Providing realistic scenarios to collaboratively plan and co-create a script before acting it out for the group (Bur- khart & Musselwhite, 2001) To build meaningful participation in a variety of decision making tasks, talking mats (Hayden et.al, 2023) have become a frequently used tool. Talking mats are a low-tech and digital tool used to guide a conversation. Using three categories (like it, don’t like it, whatever/ I don’t care) students can sort pre-
A guided communication form to inform preferences for customized adapted video games created by peers.
A co-constructed narrative to wrap up a unit on acceptance.
Example of sorting mat for personal high and low tech communication tools.
24 https://www.closingthegap.com/benefits-of-membership/ | February / March, 2025 Closing The Gap © 2025 Closing The Gap, Inc. All rights reserved.
BACK TO CONTENTS
Made with FlippingBook Ebook Creator