COMMUNICATION
A very large part of getting your child to communicate
functionally is parent training. Since an AAC system should
be used in all contexts to help the child become an effective
communicator, parents need to know how to implement the
system at home.
case in some situations, but in many other
situations, there are many reasons why this
may not be feasible. Many times, a SLP has a
full schedule and does not have extra time
to train all the staff and work extra sessions
in the classroom. Other times a SLP may not
specialize in AAC and requires the training to
help implement the AAC system in therapy
and the classroom. Since AAC is an elective
course in graduate school and not a required
course, many SLPs do not specialize in AAC.
Additionally, when I work in schools, I see my
role as a team member, and we continue to all
have different roles and work together to meet
the needs of the child. Being in this role helps
both the team members and the AAC user.
2.
Request home training
A very large part of getting your child to com-
municate functionally is parent training. Since
an AAC system should be used in all contexts
to help the child become an effective com-
municator, parents need to know how to im-
plement the system at home. These parent
trainings vary for each home depending on
the child’s and family’s need for communi-
cation. I mostly focus on basic programming
and more on implementation and modeling
in specific situations related to the parent.
For example, do communication breakdowns
occur most often at bedtime or after school?
This can be a time to talk about implementing
the AAC system to repair the communication.
3.
Be patient
Being able to master an AAC system takes time
and requires training. This is not a process that
happens overnight. Many times, people ex-
pect that an AAC system will magically cure
all communication problems overnight. An
appropriate robust communication system
with training and implementation can be a
life-changing experience for a child. However,
without the training and implementation, a
child can feel lost and frustrated in the process.
I usually tell staff and parents this example:
Imagine someone placing a brand-new type
of computer in front of you that you have nev-
er used before. Then that person tells you to
“use it!” Obviously, you would have a hard time
trying to figure this out right away. After some
failed attempts you might ge t frustrated and
Being able to master an AAC system takes time and requires
training. This is not a process that happens overnight. Many
times, people expect that an AAC system will magically cure
all communication problems overnight. An appropriate robust
communication system with training and implementation
can be a life-changing experience for a child.
26 | Autism Parenting Magazine | Issue 74