Augmentative Communication

Links and Resources

by Tim on October 4, 2008

Links and Resources

Here are some links and online resources we’ve discovered that have been helpful in some way to us. We’re not remotely done compiling this list, so we’ll be steadily adding to it. If you have links you’ve discovered and want to suggest that we add them to our list, please send them to us.

Autism and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs)

Speech Delays, Communication, Apraxia

  • Do2Learn – All sorts of great, FREE resources that help you do everything from create your own picture cards for use in communication with your child to art activities to how to design a classroom in your house and much, much more. This site is amazing.
  • List of Speech Milestones – Helps you understand where a ‘typically developing’ child would be at a particular age.
  • Another List of Speech Milestones – Another page that describes where a ‘typically developing’ child would be at a particular age.
  • Signing Time! – Need we say more!
  • Apraxia-Kids – Their mission is to
    “strengthen the support systems in the lives of children with apraxia, so that each child has their best opportunity to develop speech.”
  • American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) – Provides support to people with a variety of speech and hearing issues and those who care for them.
  • Help For Kid’s Speech – A program sponsored by the Scottish Rite Foundation of Florida to help parents and professionals learn how to better help children with language and communication issues.
  • PECS 101 – An introduction to the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS).

Sensory Integration Disorder/Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD)

  • Sensory Processing Disorder Foundation – Provides information about research, education, and advocacy related to Sensory Processing Disorders (SPDs).
  • The Out-of-Sync Child – The site related to the book of the same title that helps parents with recognizing and coping with Sensory Processing Disorder.

Educational/Behavioral Therapies

  • TEACCH – The TEACCH method is widely used by schools, therapists, and parents in helping autistic children learn and grow in a variety of educational and behavioral areas.
  • Floortime – Dr. Stanley Greenspan’s play-based method for helping autistic children with developmental and communication challenges. Also referred to as the Developmental, Individual Differences, Relationship-based (DIR) approach.
  • Different Roads to Learning – “Your Complete ABA and VB Resource”

Help and Services

  • About Early Intervention – If your child is under age 3, your local Early Intervention office should be among your first stops if you suspect autism or other delays.
  • About IDEA and services through your local schools – After your child turns 3, you’ll move on from Early Intervention to services provided by your local schools, as outlined by federal law under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This is a great place to start learning about IDEA and the services available to you through it.

Individualized Education Programs (IEPs)

  • About IDEA and services through your local schools – After your child turns 3, you’ll move on from Early Intervention to services provided by your local schools, as outlined by federal law under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This is a great place to start learning about IDEA and the services available to you through it.
  • Wrightslaw Special Education Law and Advocacy- “Accurate, reliable information about special education law, education law, and advocacy for children with disabilities.” If you have any questions about IEPs, special education services, or just about anything else related to them, this is the authority on those subjects.
  • Pointers and Tips on the IEP Process – A post written by our special guest Gigi – a retired special needs teacher and guidance counselor of 31 years – and her daughter Stephanie, who is a speech language pathologist (SLP).
  • Resources and Tools for Students with Disabilities – A wealth of information, sample forms, reports, and other links for students with disabilities. Written by the Ohio Department of Education.
  • North Carolina IEP Forms – Note: These forms are probably similar in content to the forms used in other states. Some counties in NC use forms that look a little different than these, but the information collected is pretty much the same.
  • IEPs Yahoo! Group – Yahoo! group for discussing issues related to IEPs.
  • A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Special Education Assessment – More information about the types of evaluations your child may undergo as part of the IEP process.
  • Psycho-educational Testing – Page that describes in great detail evaluations and assessments you might – but not necessarily – come across as part of your IEP process. Added benefit of this site is that it explains a lot of the technical jargon used in assessments.
  • The Listen-Up Web! – Your rights related to IEPs. Note: This page is a rather overwhelming list of resources, but if you can wade through it, a lot of good stuff is there.

Therapeutic Listening/Other Auditory Therapies

  • Vital Links – Home of Therapeutic Listening, the method we’re using.
  • Vital Sounds – Companion site to Vital Links where you can learn more about the Sennheiser HD-500A headphones used with Therapeutic Listening; their store is also the cheapest place we found from which to purchase the headphones.
  • Berard Auditory Integration Therapy (Berard AIT) – Another auditory therapy approach.
  • Tomatis Method – Another common auditory therapy.
  • Samonas Method – One more auditory therapy. Note: They may have the worst site I’ve seen in eons, though.

Assistive Technology

Occupational Therapy/Products

  • Therapy Shoppe- About every product under the sun for occupational therapy, sensory, motor, and related issues.

Financial Issues

  • What is a Special Needs Trust? – Important blog post about estate planning. What would happen to your autistic or disabled child if you died? Would there be enough resources for them to be provided for while still allowing them to be eligible for government services?

Support and Discussion Groups

Medical

  • Special Care Dentistry – If there’s anything that sucks more than taking an autistic child to the dentist, I don’t want to know about it. A dentist who specializes in caring for special needs children is worth their weight in gold.

Advocacy Groups

  • National Disability Rights Network – An advocacy group who serves persons with a wide range of disabilities and fights for ensuring both their rights and accountability in governmental and societal systems and programs.

For North Carolina Residents

  • Autism Society of North Carolina – Autism advocacy and resource provider for North Carolina residents.
  • Generations-Tadpole – Assistive technology available for checkout for North Carolina residents.
  • North Carolina IEP Forms – Note: These forms are probably similar in content to the forms used in other states. Some counties in NC use forms that look a little different than these, but the information collected is pretty much the same.

Other Cool Companies and Products

Other Cool Sites

Random Other Links

 

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Pointers and Tips on the IEP Process (Guest Post!)

by Tim on July 14, 2008

[Many good things have been happening at Chez Flashlight in the last 24 hours. Mary decided to make S'mores last night, and we have a guest poster! The expert commenter known as Gigi and her daughter Stephanie are about to wow you with some brilliant, valuable advice about Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

If you have questions for them or us, please put them in the comments section of this post.

Gigi is a retired special needs teacher and guidance counselor of 31 years. Stephanie is a speech language pathologist (SLP). So you know you're getting top-notch information here. We're honored to have you two post this. Thank you!! - Tim]

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If someone has not yet given you a copy of your rights through IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act), ask for a copy, which they are required to give you. This is your bible and you should never attend an IEP meeting without it. Here is a link to download the most recent (2007) pdf format Resource Guide for Parents. Other IDEA highlights are noted throughout.

Although IDEA is federal, every state is required to have a Protection and Advocacy system. Check for yours at the national website at www.napas.org.

You have a right to see all the assessment results and meet with the assessor(s) BEFORE the first IEP meeting so you have time to absorb it and get questions ready.

Educators are famous for turning everything into acronyms (see IDEA above and many others below) and use them as if everyone knows what they all mean. If you don’t, ASK!! Every 5-8 years or so, all the “label names” are changed to more politically correct ones, so just as soon as you learn them, they’ll all change. Personally, I think they do this just to screw with us.

Follow your gut. If something sounds fishy or not quite right, it probably isn’t. Ask questions, make requests in writing to keep the IEP team accountable, and don’t take no for an answer the first time. You might even tape record the meeting to keep everyone on their toes. Some IEP teams will be pretty ticked off by this and there may be much eye-rolling. Smile and insist. Remember – they may be the education experts, but YOU are an expert on your kid!

If you request a particular service and are told it is not possible or that your child does not qualify for it, stand firm. Request the assessment for that supports the need for the service you request. If the results don’t jive with what you think your kid needs, you have the right to request an IEE (Independent Education Evaluation) provided at PUBLIC EXPENSE. Again, make that request in writing.

The primary goal of the IEP meeting is to place your kid in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE). This is especially important if full or partial inclusion in a regular classroom is likely and/or desired. Optimally, full inclusion with modifications should be the initial goal, working back to more restrictive options as needed. MEASURABLE goals and objectives should be written BEFORE placement is determined. In fact, it should shape how placement is determined. Modifications can range from providing an aide to providing visual cues, speech therapy, etc.

As I read through this list, it struck me that most of these tips either hint or scream at an adversarial relationship with the school district. Let me hasten to point out that most school districts really do the right thing, really have your kid’s best interest at heart and are really there to help you. They have been through this process many, many times before, to the point where it sometimes seems rote or rubber stamped. You may only need to gently remind them that although this is their 1,648th IEP, it’s your first. Knowing your rights is your responsibility to your kid, nonetheless.

(This is Stephanie talking now-Gigi’s daughter, the SLP).

The only things I have to add is regarding the specific goals/objectives, etc. More than likely they will be written before the meeting. If you don’t agree, want to add more, etc, it may seem time consuming and you may need to meet again, but it is possible.

Also, you mentioned that you were concerned about how to make the skills that J-man is showing (i.e. naming letters, colors, etc) into functional goals for the IEP and how to generalize them to naming other items. I may be totally off on this, but I do believe this is fairly common with kids with autism. I think it has to do with the fact that letters, colors, numbers are considered “rote” naming or rote memory and that naming other objects is more of “labeling”. I can’t remember the reason behind it, but the teachers will probably be familiar with this type of learning and memory and will help to incorporate that into his goals. AND those skills are very functional for a pre-school classroom, so it should all go hand in hand.

About AAC devices (augmentative and assistive communication), I know that the IEP process is different in each state, however I do believe that every IEP has a section that asks about assistive communication evals, or have all appropriate evals be completed (may not specifically say AAC). You can have that sections checked and then they are required to do an AAC eval (separate from the typical speech eval, etc.

As far as the actual eval and devices, I would recommend that several devices be tried out with J-man before anything is chosen. There is a TON of different types, software, vocabulary that should be looked at to figure out which one would best suit him. I know that some companies will even rent them out to see if they work for a specific child. I know that this is a long process and you may get frustrated, but keep with it if it’s what you feel is best for him. PLEASE feel free to ask me any other questions!!

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