Aided:
An aided system uses some sort of tool or device. There are two types of aided systems—basic and high-tech. A pen and paper is a basic aided system. Pointing to letters, words, or pictures on a board is a basic aided system. Touching letters or pictures on a computer screen that speaks for you is a high-tech aided system. Some of these speech-generating devices, or SGDs, can speak in different languages. ~ASHA
Aided Language Stimulation/Input (modeling)
-Aided Language Input (ALI) is a teaching strategy in which the facilitator highlights symbols on the user’s communication display as he or she interacts and communicates verbally to the user.”~Goossens, Crane and Elder, 1999
Assistive Technology:
IDEA states, “any item, piece of equipment, or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities of a child with a disability.”
Augmentative and Alternative Communication:
AAC is a set of tools and strategies that an individual uses to solve everyday communicative challenges. ~ISAAC
Communication Disability:
A communication disorder is an impairment in the ability to receive, send, process, and comprehend concepts or verbal, nonverbal and graphic symbol systems. A communication disorder may be evident in the processes of hearing, language, and/or speech.~ASHA
Communication Station:
A CommunicATion SpAACes LLC flagship product which contains the following basic parts (core board, sentence Board, 80-100 SGD’s (50 Core, 30-50 Fringe), Think, Point, Say TM child and adult instructions posters.
Core Words:
Core words are small simple words in our language (I, you, go, stop, more) that make up to 80% of words we use to communicate in our daily communication.
Core Word Board:
The core word board in the CommunicATion Station uses 50 core words based on a number of AAC and sight words lists used among general educators and AAC specialists.
Fringe Words:
Are typically nouns
Sentence Board:
The beta project was 1’x5’ foot blank space that allowed individuals to manipulate the SGD/tiles to place them there to create a sentence.
SGD/Tile:
Speech generating devices (SGDs) are defined as speech aids that provide individuals with severe speech impairment the ability to meet their functional speaking needs. ~ASHA
Universal Design of Learning:
“Universal design for learning (UDL) is a framework to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn.” ~http://www.cast.org/our-work/about-udl.html#.W1Tm4S-ZMn0