and eventually stretch them to learn and try new things. Regulation before expectation. We can’t expect kids to be ready to communicate, play, and interact with others until their bodies and brains are regulated. Quickly we realized our kids were showing us what they needed. That student we were con- stantly helping down from the top of a toy shelf or table, he needed to climb. That student who was constantly jumping off of things, he needed to jump and crash! We realized their bod- ies needed access to sensory input all of the time. We trusted kids to access sensory equipment when they needed it, not only during designated sensory times or earning it after a “non- preferred”task. The result was more regulated, more connected kids. From then on out, we got curious, let the kids show us what they needed and gave it to them. We did circle time on the trampoline, coloring activities under the table, and speech activities on the swing. A final pillar to our classroom philosophy was communica- tion. All students would have access to a voice even if speak- ing isn’t accessible. We were all in agreement that low tech AAC absolutely has a place in our classroom but at the same time, it was limiting. Communication is not only a right but a key to connecting with others. We needed to honor and acknowl- edge all forms of communication equally. AAC in our class- room would be accessible without constraints or gatekeeping. Kids were given many models and opportunities to use their devices. They were free to explore their devices and talk about what they were interested in. We presumed competence, ac- knowledging any and all communication as intentional. We
shifted our communication from questioning and prompting to modeling natural, declarative language, commenting, nar- rating and even giving brief moments of silence to allow kids opportunities for spontaneous language. We learned to model language on devices and we even got to model mistakes as we were learning too. Above all we understood and honored refus- als are self-advocacy. Every student, no matter how young, has the right to advocate for themselves and be heard. Now that the baseline was established for the classroom, it was time to address the details of implementation. We wanted to highlight AAC and create a curriculum that was not only ac- cessible for the students, but supported staff and families in learning these programs in a functional and intentional way. This is our classroom set-up, with a variety of ways for our students to meet their sensory needs. We switched out equipment as our students showed us they were ready for something different.
Planning Grid: This is an example of our planning grid demonstrating how we embed opportunities to practice our core words of Look/See in all of our activities. These activities were included in our newsletter to parents.
40 https://www.closingthegap.com/benefits-of-membership/ | February / March, 2025 Closing The Gap © 2025 Closing The Gap, Inc. All rights reserved.
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