I can...tell you about my favourite things!

Everyone has a favourite sport, activity, celebrity, tv show or toy.  Don't you love to talk about things that matter to you? It's fun to share your passion with others and a great way to make a new friend! In this issue, we'll share some ways to encourage kids who use AAC to tell others about their favourite things! 

You can encourage your child to talk about their favourite things by using low tech strategies.  If your child loves hockey, Justin Beiber or teddy bears...use a sticker, clothing, or a symbol to help your child tell others about their interests. By sharing the topic, communication partners have the context they need to better understand their messages.  It also means the communication partners can bring up the topic of hockey when a child is wearing their Toronto Maple Leafs jersey.

Teach your child how to get the conversation started by using a prompt for communication partners.  This can occur in a variety of ways including using: 

• a symbol on their tray such as "I want to talk about..." that they can combine with symbol of a teddy bear, 
• a recorded message on a Step by Step "Have you heard the latest Beiber song?",
• a post it note which says "Did you see the hockey game last night?"

Help your child share their knowledge about their favourite topic by adding topic specific vocabulary. Together with your child, write down what they'd like to say. You can build on their existing vocabulary by adding a page to their SGD or additional words/symbols to their low tech display.

Remnant Books

A remnant book is a small portable book in which "remnants" can be added to share with others.  Remnants can be items such as movie tickets, photographs, flyers, restaurant menus or post-it notes with specific written information to share.  It can be used to engage a listener in topics of conversation or for clarification purposes.

Look here for information on resources including remnant books.
 

Remnant books are also a useful tool to help students pick a topic for their writing.  For more information:

www.telability.org/handouts/RemnantBookInst-1.pdf

-Add a pad of sticky notes to a communication display to share current information with communication partners.

-Make a list of your students' favourite things.  Each day, ask your students to write or say something about that topic.  

Low Tech Strategies 

-Empower your child to ask for specific preferred activities using a simple speech generating device such as a Step by Step.  Record a message such as "Can we watch a You Tube video about One Direction at lunch today?."

High Tech Strategies

If your child is using an i-device or android, you can create a photo album for your child to share with others. 

An interview with....

If your student admires a famous person, ask your student to pretend to be that celebrity.  Ask the student some questions so that they can share their knowledge with you and others.  Take some time to determine what kinds of questions that can be asked and whether the student has the vocabulary to answer them. 

Give your student the opportunity to ask questions to other students too.  It's a great way to teach kids who use AAC how to keep the conversation flowing and build friendships.