Next Steps SLT

ALT White text on a purple/blue background: Clinicians, let's lose those buts and howevers! They're autistic, but (the word has a strikethrough) they have huge potential. They love to play with others,however (with a strikethrough) they prefer small groups of 2 or 3. They're very chatty, but (with a strikethrough) mostly about their strong interest. They're non-speaking, however (with a strikethrough) they have a great sense of humour. Logo: Next Steps SLT

ALT There are a series of questions in a flowchart available from Pyramid Educational Consultants, the PECS creators & trainers. The questions are meant to see if a learner is ready for a speech generating device & they falsely indicate that a child is not yet ready if: They cannot exchange a picture They don’t travel across a room with a picture to find a communication partner They cannot discriminate between 20 pictures They don’t construct & exchange a sentence strip If a person can do all of the above, they say it is now time for them finally to have access to a speech generating device but not a robust AAC system - only their limited & clunky PECS app For more information (or to drive yourself mad with frustration) they say to visit their website on www.pecs.com

ALT Text on a grey square: Scaffolding v Prompting in AAC - a small but significant shift To scaffold: a process where teachers offer support to students as they learn and develop a new concept or skill. To prompt: to cause someone to say or do something. Image to the right of workers building a scaffold

ALT Text on a grey square: Scaffolding Mindframe Communication Partners respect that the AAC is the user’s voice & that their messages are not predetermined. They collaborate with the user to see that the AAC meets their needs. endever* Corbin, part-time AAC user, suggests we take the time to be transparent with a new AAC user: “We want you to have all the ways of saying something that you want, so that if i don’t understand you the first time you try to tell me something, you have other choices you can try if you want"

ALT Text on a grey square: A Scaffolding Mindframe I’m here to help. We’re in this together. Though I’m offering support, you’re in charge. It’s safe to try. I won’t let you down.

ALT Text on grey square: Scaffolding Examples Operational Scaffolds: Navigating to a folder Changing the border colour Temporarily reducing vocabulary Think Alouds: “I’m looking for ________”. “Let’s find _________” “I wonder if you’re telling me ________”. Gestural Suggestions: Point to a symbol, don’t touch it, and pause.

ALT Black text on lilac background reads: Asynchronous Communication & Autism Asynchronous Communication occurs outside of real-time, speech-based conversations. It includes email, messaging & chats on social media/boards/video conferencing platforms. Why autistic people may prefer AC (& everyone should facilitate it): Text hangs around, allowing time for processing. Text can be revisited for clarification & reminders. Our language is often more precise in text than speech. Non-verbals, such as tone of voice and facial expression, don’t need to be processed at the same time as words. Uncomfortable “listening” nonverbals, such as eye contact, aren’t needed. There is time to think & respond.

ALT Pink text on navy background AAC Implementation for new teams #1 Battery What’s the plan for charging? Out Who is taking it out of the backpack? On Do you know how to turn it on? How’s it travelling with the user throughout the day? Two line drawings of fireworks on either side of logo

ALT Yellow text on navy background AAC implementation for new teams #2 Search Use the search tool to see how to navigate to vocabulary. Homescreen Choose 3 core words & learn their location for ease of modelling. Interests Learn how to easily find the user’s favourite things. Pause When activating buttons, allow time for the user to process or take a turn. Two line drawings or ships on either side of logo.