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Welcome to our second episode of AAC Tip Talks, a series of vlogs (video blogs) and a podcast (because we want you to learn your way!) offering tips for professionals and partners supporting people who use AAC. Each talk is a quick chat designed to give some initial strategies and connect you with resources to continue your learning. All AAC Tip Talks are offered by AAC Mentors from across the global AAC community. You can watch the full chat here or on our YouTube Channel, or you can listen to an audio only version on our AAC Tip Talks podcast.
Our first episode in the series (Partner Coaching Tips) brought practical and person-centered strategies for supporting communication partners as they support AAC users. Dr. Jane Remington-Gurney of Options Communication Therapy and Training Centre in Queensland shared her gifts as a seasoned AAC SLP and mentor supporting caregivers of complex communicators across the lifespan. You can catch up on that episode through whichever channel works best here.
In this episode, we welcome back a prior blog contributor, and rockstar in the AAC and AT field, Beth Poss, who sets the stage further for SLP's looking to integrate literacy into their language intervention with AAC users. I met with Beth for an engaging hour earlier this month and had the pleasure of learning about her evidence-based and empowering philosophy on supporting literacy development for children with complex communication needs. Beth gives a great intro to the theory surrounding comprehensive literacy for complex communicators. She bolsters the role of the SLP in this process and lays out some practical strategies, reminding us all that literacy isn't just about access to knowledge and independence, it also gives us access to joy, further reinforcing that we must all work together to support literacy for all.
If you want a to take a deeper dive on this and other topics, go beyond the Tip Talk and check out our trainings at The AAC Academy. At the end of this talk, Beth shares a snap shot summary of the amazing content she will present in her upcoming, six part course on AAC, Literacy, and the SLP.
You can watch the full Tip Talk with Beth Poss below. You can also access an audio only episode on our podcast page and at the end of this post, along with information about Beth's upcoming, live and on-demand training series, "AAC, Literacy, & the SLP", hosted on The AAC Academy.
Watch the Episode
Listen to the Episode
Keep On Learning
If you enjoyed this AAC Tip Talk, you can go beyond the tip of the literacy iceberg and dive deeper into this valuable topic in Beth's online course series. Click the links below to access a detailed outline of the course, including cost, continuing ed credits, and registration information.
AAC, Literacy, & the SLP Training Series
A live and on-demand, online training series for SLP's and other professionals looking to support literacy development for AAC users.
This 6 part course will lead participants through an exploration of literacy development in children, best practices in what literacy instruction looks like, why this is critical to AAC users, and how SLPs or anyone working on communication skills with AAC users can integrate these best practices into their work on language development. Why is literacy instruction important for speech-language pathologists working with AAC users? Communication is grounded in an individual's ability to have SNUG or Spontaneous Novel Utterance Generation-the ability to say exactly what you want, when you want. Literacy allows a communicator who has limited oral language to say anything at any time, regardless of what symbols or whole words are available on their communication device or system, as long as they have access to the alphabet. The delivery of comprehensive literacy instruction for learners with complex bodies and/or significant disabilities, including those who are still at the emergent literacy level is an evidence-based methodology that supports these learners in becoming readers and writers, and ultimately having access to SNUG.
Resources from this Episode
Want to geek out further on inclusive learning strategies? Check out Beth's new book-Inclusive Learning 365-launching in June! You can shop and support AACcessible through affiliate donations when you purchase this and other books through our links in the Stacks.
Have inspiring literacy building experiences to share with others? Post in the comments or leave us a voice message on Spotify!
Disclosures
The AAC Academy is the learning branch of AACcessible and all proceeds of enrollment in the academy benefit mission projects. Beth Poss has been granted an honorarium for her training on the AAC Academy and receives financial contributions for the purchase of her book. She receives a salary with LessonPix in her position as Director of Education. Beth is also a volunteer board member with AACcessible. AACcessible does not receive royalties from the sale of products mentioned in this post outside of affiliate links embedded in the post. All earning from affiliate links are donations that fund mission projects. The opinions expressed in this episode and in the trainings offered by at The AAC Academy are those of the author and host and do not reflect those of AACcessible or its board members. Every effort has been made to assure the quality and efficacy of the content shared in this episode and at the course links shared by the guest. Please email info@aaccessible.org with concerns or questions regarding the episode.