by Anne Page | Jun 1, 2016 | AAC, SLP Like a Boss, Technology, Uncategorized
Last day of school…ah! Such a great feeling.
That was a week and a half ago. I was end-of-the-year-marathon tired. But now I’m feeling refreshed and re-energized. I want to look back on the school year while it’s still fresh in my mind.
Year End Review Calendar Page
One thing that was really new for me was being the lead for the newly formed Assistive Technology Team for our district. I learned a lot from that and had to push myself to try some things I really wasn’t sure about. Today, I’m sharing three tips for how to AAC Like a Boss, even when you’re a beginner.
TIP #1 You don’t need to know EVERYTHING at first
I learned very quickly just because I’m the lead, it doesn’t mean I have to know everything. I think I had “Imposter Syndrome” for a little while. Have you heard of that? It’s when you think you’ll be exposed as a fraud because you’re just not good enough. Harsh right? Sometimes I’m my own worst critic.
What I figured out is that I don’t have to know everything there is to know about AAC and assistive technology. I don’t have to have all the answers right away, I just need to be willing to find them. Within the online SLP community there are some amazing resources. Dr. Carole Zangari’s award winning blog Praactical AAC is a gold mine of information. Susan Berkowitz at Kidz Learn Language is really helpful with her blog as well. Both of these SLPs truly AAC-like-a-boss and are so forthcoming in helping their fellow SLPs. Another great resource where you can ask specific questions is the Facebook group AAC for the SLP.
TIP #2 Be Resourceful
Working at a Title I district with very limited materials, I have to be extremely resourceful. This year I learned how to adapt toys to be switch activated. These are toys that move and/or sing when you squeeze their paw or hand. Some of our students don’t have the fine motor skills to be able to do this. It was really empowering to make such a fun item accessible for them. I even got to solder. The workshop was put on by our wonderful Arizona Technology Access Program. (You can google to see what programs your state might have.)
I was so happy with the dancing monkey I adapted. Until I got to school the next day and realized we didn’t have any switches that fit him. I figured I’d just buy one. But then I saw the price; $50 for one little switch! Back to the drawing board.
Adapted Switch Toy
Sooooo I signed up for a Make Your Own Switch Workshop. There I was able to make two switches for just $10. We adapted answer buzzers ( 4 for $16.00 at Walmart). The time I spent to adapt two switches was about 90 minutes, the first one took the longest.
Adapt a Switch
The bonus was sitting next to two parents of children with autism. They were making the switches for their kids. How cool is that? Talking to them in a casual setting about their experiences and expectations was so enlightening. I really got some insight into what they struggle with.
TIP #3 You Don’t Have to Start High Tech
The other thing I learned, in a really fundamental way, is that assistive technology does not need to be high tech at first. It seems that many parents, teachers and staff immediately think “voice activated device” or “get them an iPad”. AND that this technology will magically and immediately give the student language skills the second they receive it. If only!
Students need to learn to label, request, comment, command and greet. A machine can’t teach them these skills, but we can. A voice generating device may be exactly what they need eventually. But sometimes we can’t get one right away. We can still teach them that using symbols(voice activated or pictures) gives them the power to express what they want, when they want.
With many of our students, we started with low tech Core Vocabulary Boards and Go Talk Pages. We could get started right away with these because they’re inexpensive to create and so accessible. It was easier to get “buy-in” from support staff because they saw it working.
Core Vocabulary
We used The Dynamic Learning Map Core Vocabulary; a list of 40 words that have been proven to be most effective socially and academically for students with significant cognitive disabilities. Developed at the Center for Literacy and Disability Studies at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, these 40 words are based on AAC research. I’ll provide a link to more information below. Next week, I’ll talk more about core vocabulary boards and how I used them in group therapy with great success!
In summary, you CAN AAC-Like-a-Boss. Just remember these three tips:
1. You don’t need to know everything.
2. You can be resourceful.
3. It doesn’t have to start out high tech.
I know it can seem scary but we SLPs know language. Remember AAC is just another way to facilitate language.
Whether you are reviewing your year or you’ll be working this summer, I hope you found something helpful here. If you would like a FREE Summer SLP Like a Boss planner to help you with your reflection and planning, click here.
If you are interested in a FREE video tutorial on how to make a switch, let me know in the comments below.
SLP-Like-a-Boss,
Anne
Links: Praactical AAC
KidzLearnLanguage
Dynamic Learning Map Core Vocabulary
How Facebook Can Make You a Better SLP
by Anne Page | May 24, 2016 | Blog, Inspiration, SLP Like a Boss, Uncategorized
What’s SLP Like a Boss? An SLP boss is professional, compassionate, organized and Inspirational with a capital “I”. An SLP boss gets things done! In this series I’m interviewing SLP boss women who work by day as SLPs , but at night (and on weekends) they are business builders, advocates, huggers, tear-wipers, encouragers and creators. These are strong, amazing women that I admire and am happy to call Friend.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Today our SLP Boss Lady is my friend Sara Wu. I met Sarah in Las Vegas last summer at the Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT) Seller’s Conference. (I met so many great people there.) We also share the blog Speech Spotlight, along with seven other fabulous speech language pathologists.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Sarah is a powerhouse bilingual SLP. Not only is she bilingual (speaking fluent Spanish), but she has a Chinese last name (Wu), and is a dual citizen(she was born in Australia). Sarah is mother to two young boys and still finds the time to create bilingual therapy materials for her TPT store AND to blog weekly. I love her thought provoking, helpful and insightful blog posts. She writes “evergreen” content that you’ll want to bookmark and share with your friends. I’ll put a link to her blog and TPT store at the end of this post for you.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
I write this series because I feel we can all make our practice as SLPs better and stronger by connecting with other SLPs. It’s also really interesting to see what other SLPs are using in therapy and what advice they have to share.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
So let’s dive in and see what we can learn about Sarah.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Tell me about yourself in seven words: Joyful, fun, silly, smart, mischievious, mother, and writer.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Where did you go to grad school?: Northwestern University.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
What are your top three SLP must haves (other than your own amazing materials)?: My clipboard, my laptop, and big foam dice.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
What do you love most about what you do?: Helping my students reach their potential. I think the students I work with have so much potential that’s hard to see. So many of them speak Spanish only and they’re learning English. I work with them exclusively in Spanish until they are ready to move on to English.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Tell me your advice for the newly minted SLP: It’s important to take risks. I don’t think it’s something women are encouraged to do. Don’t just take the safe path, not just the easiest or the closest. Don’t settle. Do what you have to do to go for it. I’ve always made sure I feel one hundred percent about where I work. If you don’t, it’s worth it to take a leap.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Tell me about your blog: I like to make sure that it’s useful and important to SLPs. I blog about being bi-lingual. I talk about topics instead of products. [spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Tell me about your TPT store: I’m creating the Spanish products I can’t find anywhere else. Sometimes I don’t care for the word choices of commercially produced items. It’s not just Spanish, I have English products too, and bilingual. They’re so much fun to create.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
What SLP-boss inspires you? Natalie Snyders. Her products are very evidence based and well researched. And she has the gift of connecting other SLPs through facebook. My hat is off to her.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
What is your favorite children’s book? Charlotte’s Web[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
What about picture books? La Oruga May Hambrienta (The Very Hungry Caterpillar)[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
So now you know a little more about one of our fellow SLPeeps and SLP Like a Boss Sara Wu. I hope you feel inspired and connected, I know I do.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Who inspires you to SLP Like a Boss? Would you like to suggest an SLP for me to interview? Let me know in the comments OR email me at
[email protected].
Until next time,[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Anne
by Anne Page | May 17, 2016 | Inspiration, SLP Like a Boss
So I have a confession to make…my Better Hearing and Speech Month poster and handout never got posted or handed out at my school this year.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
What?! I know… (big sigh)[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Here’s what I pictured. Laminated poster in the staff room, copy in all staff mailboxes with a cute saying and some candy. Then, everyone says, “wow, thanks Anne. That was really informative.” I post a nice pic of it on Instagram and feel like SuperSLP.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Here’s what really happened. I hit print for my handout and then walked to the staff room where the color printer is located (which is two buildings away) to get my copies. Got error message that printer needed toner cartridge. I checked with school secretary and she told me toner would arrive the next day.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
I tried again the next day and my passcode no longer worked. I retried and walked to the staff room two more times. Meanwhile, I had all my year-end things to do.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Please note that our year end is May 22. The teachers are busy, tired and frazzled. I am busy, tired and frazzled. I know they are not going to ready my handout now. (There’s something to be said for timing).[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
So….I made an executive decision.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
I told myself ( for the one billionth time) that I don’t need to be perfect. I thought about my teacher friends and what they needed at this time of year.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Donuts![spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
I grabbed a few dozen Bosa Donuts ( soooo delicious) on my way to work last Friday, made a cute sign promoting Better Hearing and Speech Month, put them in the staff room and called it a day.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Once again, “done is better than perfect”.
Of course, I still want to give them the handout because it’s good stuff (that can be really helpful). But, I can do that in August when we’re all refreshed and ready to go. I’ll just rename the handout then.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
For your very own copy of my Better Speech and Hearing month poster/handout click here.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
I know many of you are winding down for the end of the year. It can be a crazy demanding time.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Remember you don’t have to do it perfectly.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
SLP Like a Boss (a real one, not a perfect one)
P. S. For more SLP True Confessions read this great article by my friend Sarah “Confessions of a School Based SLP”
by Anne Page | May 3, 2016 | Autism, Blog, Language Activities, Therapy Materials and Ideas, TPT Products
Do you feel like you are aimless or not at the top of you game when working on prepositions?
I can totally relate. I work with a lot of special education students. I tried taking pictures of students under tables, in chairs, next to each other. They enjoyed the activity but it didn’t stick.
I tried having them take turns putting a fun toy on the chair or taking it off the chair. Again fun, but not getting the concept.
I tried it with matching puzzle pieces, with apps, and games. Still no lasting success.
Talk about feeling like a Bad Therapist.
But I kept trying.
Then a combination of learning experiences came together. I noticed that teaching opposite prepositions didn’t work. I noticed that kids got distracted by little details in pictures. I went to an amazing presentation by Dr. Elena Plante, research SLP from University of Arizona and she talked about the importance of errorless learning and teaching one concept at a time.
I learned about fast-mapping. Fast mapping is the psychological term for learning a new concept after a single exposure to information.
Students with SLI and cognitive impairments are not able to fast-map like their typical peers.
So….
I tried making a book with simple visuals and white background. This way the focus was only on the relationship of the objects to each other.
There is a picture strip with words at the bottom of the page, always the same “Where is the _____”(object) The next page always has ______ (target preposition) the ___________ (relationship word).
Object remains the same. For example in “The Under Book” the object is always a banana, it is always under something. Going through the book once gives 12-15 repetitions.
The other important piece is that the skill needs to be taught in more than one setting. So with all of the prepositions books I offer examples for how to extend the new concept into different settings.
I’m still doing more investigating in this area but I can say, I’m having good results with these books. So are the people who have bought them.
” I am so excited about this book! I have several students who are working on positional concepts and it just takes so many repetitions to learn the concepts. I love that this book is full of repetitions. I am looking forward to more in the future!” ~Buyer
Here is the new “Next To Book”. This completes the first three prepositional concepts that children with typical language development acquire at the age of 3: “on” and “under” and “next to”. I’ll be working on the next ones soon.
While I was doing my research, I put together this handy little chart. This will be great as a parent/teacher handout and just to keep for your own reference. I’m giving it to you for FREE, just click here. As a Beautiful Speech Life follower, you are getting it early! I already gave it to my TPT followers, but if you missed it, here it is again. I’ll be putting it in my TPT store later. (It’s also included in The Next To Book)
So take charge of those prepositions and SLP Like a Boss,
Anne
P.S. Did you like this post? I’d love it if you’d share it with your friends. Subscribe at the bottom of this so you don’t miss any of the fun.
by Anne Page | Apr 20, 2016 | Inspiration, SLP Like a Boss
Dear young school SLP,[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Congratulations on your graduation-you made it! I know it wasn’t easy. But you did it. You are the proud owner of a masters degree in speech language pathology. [spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Make sure you get a beautiful frame for your diploma-show it the respect it deserves. Celebrate and take a little time to relax. No more tests, finals or studying for the Praxis. No more research papers, at least not for a while.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You are starting an amazing journey. I’m sure you’ve had a taste of it through clinics and internships. Clinical fellowship is next. A time to jump in with both feet with a mentor who will have your back.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
This job will delight you and at times exhaust you, but should never bore you.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You are now life changer.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You will connect with parents during times of doubt and vulnerability. You will teach them ways they can help their child. You will laugh with them and most probably you will cry with them.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You’ll have some great triumphs. Like the first time a previously nonverbal child speaks. You’ll have some epic disappointments. Because you care, you’ll feel the highs and the lows and all the emotions in between. And you wouldn’t have it any other way.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You will try all kinds of therapy methods and you’ll keep trying until you find something that works.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You’ll get hugs and high-fives every day. You may be the one person that is a constant source of love for a neglected child. Your heart will be broken. I’m sorry but it will. Maybe by a story a child tells you about his home life or by having your favorite child move without saying goodbye. Or even worse, by having a student die. But you will keep coming back.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You’ll work with so many amazing teachers who inspire you and a few negative teachers who will draw you into their disappointment if you let them. Protect yourself from The Negative Ones.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You will have scheduling challenges and conflicts. At times you’ll be overwhelmed with progress reports and IEP’s. But you’ll figure it out.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Even though you learned so much in grad school, you’ll wonder about all the practical things they didn’t teach you. Remember, you don’t have to do it alone; you’ll find other SLP’s to support you and who’ll share their ideas.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
As the years go by, you will shape lives. Yes, you. You are helping children to communicate. You are giving them a voice for their thoughts. And sometimes you are giving them the building blocks to create new thoughts.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
You are helping them have rich conversations with friends and giving them strategies that they will carry with them for the rest of their lives.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
It is with honor, laughter, knowledge and kindness that you will guide your students to experience success. You will love it.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Welcome. The world needs you my friend, wishing you all the success you deserve. [spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
With love,[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
P.S. Have you heard? We are having a huge SLP2Bgradgift giveaway and there’s still time to enter.
Click here to find out all the amazing details. The prize is worth over $500. Hurry! Giveaway ends on Friday, April 22.
Hey there I’m Anne Page. I help heart centered SLPs and educators put the fun in functional communication. 