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A 20-week program designed to build success with AAC

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Welcome to Stepping into AAC ! Stepping into AAC is a collaborative project created by PrAACtical AAC and the Angelman Syndrome Foundation (ASF) that focuses on supporting families who …

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AAC Communication is a right not a privilege Handout

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What is the purpose of this website?

This website provides guidelines for teaching literacy skills to learners with special needs, especially learners with complex communication needs (CCN) such as:

Autism spectrum disorders

Cerebral palsy

Down syndrome

Developmental apraxia

Multiple disabilities

This website provides information on:

What skills to teach

How to teach these skills

Videotaped examples of instruction with learners with special needs

Meet one of our students
Krista

Krista has multiple challenges, including a hearing impairment, a visual impairment, and a motor impairment. She also has a tracheostomy.

Krista has a dynamic personality. She makes everyone smile.

Like many of her peers, she loves Zac Efron from High School Musical and Zack and Cody from the Suite Life of Zack and Cody.

She uses sign approximations and a computer with speech output (a Mercury with Speaking Dynamically Pro software). Because of her hearing impairment, she does best when others sign as they talk.

We started to work with Krista when she was 8 years old. At that time, she was in a special education class at school and was not receiving literacy instruction.

Watch this video of Krista at 9 years of age. She is independently reading a personalized book about a summer adventure with Zac Efron.

She is so excited to be a reader!

Visit the rest of the website to learn more about how Krista learned to read stories independently.

Krista reading about Zac Efron from AAC Learning Center - Penn State on Vimeo.

Last Updated: December 21, 2018

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This website provides guidelines for teaching literacy skills to learners with special needs, especially learners with complex communication needs (CCN) such as: Autism spectrum disorders Cerebral palsy Down syndrome Developmental apraxia Multiple disabilities This website provides information on: What skills to teach How to teach these skills Videotaped examples of instruction with learners with special needs Krista Krista has multiple challenges, including a hearing impairment, a visual impairment, and a motor impairment.

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Kelly Fonner: Alternative Pencils -- What Are They & How Are They Used - AAC in the Cloud 2020

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THE BEST COURSES ON AAC+

The AAC Academy offers live and on-demand, online learning opportunities for professionals, families, and communicators across the globe!

Professionals, get the knowledge and skills you need to do great AAC work.!

Families, learn how to build communication skills during everyday moments, at home or online!

THE PERKS OF OUR LEARNING PROGRAMS

The best instructors in the field have designed the most motivating and effective learning paths for you.

PRACTICAL APPROACH

Our courses are evidence-based and practical, aimed at offering you the skills you need to support the complex communicators in your life today.

PERSON-CENTERED

We tailor our courses to the unique learning needs of each student and adhere to an AAC philosophy that recognizes the whole child.

FOR THE COMMUNITY

Our courses aim to promote quality AAC services across the globe and support the mission and vision of our nonprofit partner, AACcessible Foundation.

You've got my attention, what can I expect?

When you enroll in the AAC Academy, you can expect an engaging and effective learning experience that is in line with best practice in the field of AAC. The rockstar quality content of our courses is further enhanced by the interactive, multimedia features of our classroom.

Interactive Video Instruction

Whether you attend live or watch on your own time, you will enjoy interactive video instruction from experts in the field, teaching from the trenches.

Multimedia Learning Materials

We offer multimedia course materials that suit each learning style, supplementing your video instruction with e-Books, full color slides, hands-on activities, and learning "check-ins" through polls and quizzes.

An AAC Village

You don't just get a course, you get a community! Participate in our online learning communities to share thoughts and ideas with your classmates, ask your instructors questions, and more!

Peace of Mind

You not only get long-term access to your purchased courses but can also rest, assured that you can track your CMH via your student transcript.

Awesome! Browse our courses below and find the learning path that's right for you! You can sign up for a single course or join a series and don't forget to sign up for updates so you don't miss new courses and features!

CHECK OUT OUR AWESOME COURSES

4 Part Web Series

AAC Assessment Compass

This 4 part course for all skill levels will provide a framework to help you support the development of language and communication skills with AAC for children at the earliest stages of communication learning. You will learn how to use comprehensive assessment data to set functional and developmentally-sound, child and family-centered goals for emerging communicators (Explorers). You will also learn how to set the stage for engaging communication learning opportunities and how to support those opportunities across environments with evidence-based language intervention strategies, AAC style! This series is sure to engage you in the theory and practice of successful communication intervention with AAC and give you the tools you need to guide your students and their families toward a lifetime of communicative independence.

Tannalynn Neufeld, MS, CCC-SLP

4 Part Web Series

AAC Intervention Compass

This 4 part course for all skill levels will provide a framework to help you support the development of language and communication skills with AAC for children at the earliest stages of communication learning. You will learn how to use comprehensive assessment data to set functional and developmentally-sound, child and family-centered goals for emerging communicators (Explorers). You will also learn how to set the stage for engaging communication learning opportunities and how to support those opportunities across environments with evidence-based language intervention strategies, AAC style! This series is sure to engage you in the theory and practice of successful communication intervention with AAC and give you the tools you need to guide your students and their families toward a lifetime of communicative independence.

Tannalynn Neufeld, MS, CCC-SLP

AAC Assessment Compass

This comprehensive course will give you a step-by-step framework for making AAC system and strategy decisions for your students that is practical and rooted in evidence.

Tannalynn Neufeld, MS, CCC-SLP

I'm an SLP, do I get ASHA CEU's?

We offer CMH instead of CEU's, and here's the scoop on that...

CMH or "certification maintenance hours" are just a good at maintaining your ASHA C's and state licensure requirements (check your state for details) as CEU's, they just aren't sent to ASHA to show up on your CE Registry. We have chosen to offer CMH and help you track your CMH (in the event you are audited by ASHA) to bypass the high overhead costs involved in offering ASHA CEU's so that we can keep your tuition low Visit our CEU/CMH page to get full details on this part of your learning experience.

I'm a busy person, do I have to watch my class live?

No way! We offer flexible learning for all of our courses so you can have a life outside of learning. Read on for details...

All of our courses with live lecture are recorded so that you can re-watch or watch for the first time on a schedule that works for your busy life. You get the same great quality as a live course and the flexibility to pause and rewind, while also maintaining interactivity with our instructor and classmates though our online learning communities.

We strive to be a good steward of resources. Read on to see how your AAC Academy tuition supports the AAC community at large.

The AAC Academy is the educational branch of AACcessible Foundation, a 501(c)(3), nonprofit organization dedicated to improving global access to communication for all through education, advocacy, awareness, and action. Visit AACcessible to read more about our mission, vision, and values and to discover how you can take part in outreach projects.

THE WORD ON THE STREET

FLEXIBLE LEARNING
"I couldn't attend live but the video lessons are great and I find myself speaking to the group and writing notes along with my classmates. Great information and I like the breaks and time to process."

GREAT RESOURCES
"Courses offer so many resources and the instruction is clear and concise, with sufficient descriptions and examples for a variety of communicators. This was a great way to start my morning!"

"Engaging presentation style, fantastic resources, logical course organization. The best course on AAC I've ever taken!."

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The AAC Academy offers live and on-demand, online learning opportunities for professionals, families, and communicators across the globe! Professionals, get the knowledge and skills you need to do great AAC work.! Families, learn how to build communication skills during everyday moments, at home or online!

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Meet the student where they are at in their literacy journey

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Welcome Teachers & Parents of Emerging Readers!
The free books and resources shared on this site have been created for teachers & parents to use with emerging readers with significant disabilities of all ages. You are welcome to make copies of the books & resources and edit to meet the needs of

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We invite you to explore foundational information and find dynamic ideas from the field. This site is designed for teachers, families, and others interested in literacy for children and youth with visual impairments, including those who are deafblind and/or have multiple disabilities. Browse these practical activities and resources, and join our community!

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Paths to Literacy | For Students Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired

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Literacy activities and resources for children who are blind, visually impaired or deafblind, or multiple disabilities. Braille literacy, tactile books.

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Literacy Instruction for
Students with Significant Disabilities

Karen Erickson and David Koppenhaver from Children With Disabilities: Reading and Writing the Four Blocks Way " We do not believe that a different curriculum is required in order for children with disabilities to succeed in learning to read and write. We have learned, however, that teachers must attend consciously and thoughtfully to the significant learning differences of children with disabilities in order to make good instruction accessible to these students."
-

Literacy Instruction for Students with Significant Disabilities offers information, research-based instructional approaches, and effective instructional and learning strategies to support school leaders, teachers, and other specialists working to better meet the literacy and communication needs of students with significant disabilities, including students with:

moderate to severe cognitive disabilities

complex communication needs

multiple disabilities including deaf/blindness and/or physical access challenges

The Four Blocks Literacy Framework is a comprehensive approach to teaching literacy developed originally Dr. Patricia Cunningham and Dr. Dorothy Hall and then adapted by Karen Erickson and David Koppenhaver for students with disabilities. The Four Blocks include Guided & Shared Reading, Writing, Self-Selected Reading and Working With Words.

Using the Four Blocks framework, Literacy Instruction for Students with Significant Disabilities is built on the work of Dr. Karen Erickson, Dr. David Koppenhaver, and Dr. Caroline Musselwhite and the many sessions and workshops they have provided across the province of Alberta:

Karen Erickson, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, Professor in the Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences, and the Yoder Distinguished Professor in the Department of Allied Health Sciences, School of Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her research addresses literacy assessment and instruction for students of all ages who struggle with reading including those with significant disabilities. Karen is co-developer of the Tar Heel Reader online library of accessible books for beginning readers, as well as several other assistive and learning technologies.

Visit the Center for Literacy and Disabilities
http://www.med.unc.edu/ahs/clds

David Koppenhaver, Ph.D., Professor and Reading Program Graduate Director, Reading Education and Special Education Department, Appalachian State University. David holds a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). He is the former director of the Center for Literacy and Disability Studies and has worked for the past 25 years with preschool and school-aged children who have a wide variety of literacy learning difficulties. He currently teaches undergraduate and graduate classes in reading methods, special education, and instructional technology.

Visit Dave's Literacy & Disability Blog http://www.litdis.com

Dr. Caroline Musselwhite is an assistive technology specialist with more than 35 years of experience working with children and adolescents with significant disabilities in a variety of settings. Dr. Musselwhite has written a number of textbooks and "how-to" books on a range of topics, and has also authored many books and software programs for youth with disabilities. She has presented thousands of workshops throughout North and South America, Australia, Europe, and Africa, and is a founding member and Fellow of the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication.

Visit http://aacgirls.blogspot.ca and http://www.aacintervention.com.

Support for Implementation

The resources found on this site were developed by the ERLC, a member of Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia (ARPDC), as a result of grants from Alberta Education, to support implementation.

Learning for All | Copyright © 2016
Terms of Use | Contact Us

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Literacy Instruction for Students with Significant Disabilities

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Literacy Instruction for Students with Significant Disabilities Karen Erickson and David Koppenhaver from Children With Disabilities: Reading and Writing the Four Blocks Way " We do not believe that a different curriculum is required in order for children with disabilities to succeed in learning to read and write.

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A library of accessible online books and the ability to write your own

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Digital books for beginning readers of all ages

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Online accessible books

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Unite for Literacy provides free digital access to picture books, narrated in many languages. Literacy is at the core of a healthy community, so we unite with partners to enable all families to read with their young children.

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Lesson Pix  The Therapist Literacy Tool Box

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Lesson Pix  The Therapist Literacy Tool Box

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AAC Web Site Supporting AAC Users , their families and AAC Professionals

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AAC Web Site Supporting AAC Users , their families and AAC Professionals

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Featured Post

Here in the US, we're getting ready for Turkey Day. If you're celebrating Thanksgiving, these resources may be of interest.... [Read More...]

Video of the Week

How can we support AAC users who struggle with executive function? In today's featured video, we learn from Kansas-based SLP... [Read More...]

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This site provides information about comprehensive literacy instruction with a focus on students with complex communication needs and significant disabilities. The aim of the site is to provide information and resources which will help in your classrooms. Click on the menus above to get information in different areas of comprehensive literacy instruction.

In October 2019 I was one of the plenary speakers at the Angelman UK Communication and Literacy Conference. The topic was Literacy and Complex Communication Needs: Developing Language and is an overview of why literacy is important for every student in our schools. Below is a video of the presentation. Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) is also a critical component of all literacy intervention for students with complex communication needs.

Blog posts from Jane Farrall Consulting related to Comprehensive Literacy as a general topic:

Other Resources

For much more detailed information see: Comprehensive Literacy for All: Teaching Students with Significant Disabilities to Read and Write (2020) by Erickson and Koppenhaver.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to all the students, staff and families I have worked with over the years who have taught me so much.

Huge thanks to Karen Erickson and David Koppenhaver, from the Centre for Literacy and Disability Studies, who changed my life when I first met them in 2000 and who continue to challenge and educate me.

Special thanks to Sally Clendon - who teaches me more every year

And a final, heartfelt thanks to the people who support me almost daily - Helen Tainsh, Mary-Louise Bertram, Clare Dole and everyone else in my tribe.

Jane Farrall, Jane Farrall Consulting

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Comprehensive Literacy for ALL - Maintained by Jane Farrall Consulting

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This site provides information about comprehensive literacy instruction with a focus on students with complex communication needs and significant disabilities. The aim of the site is to provide information and resources which will help in your classrooms. Click on the menus above to get information in different areas of comprehensive literacy instruction.

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Daily Routine are a great time to model language. They happen every day and give lots of opportunities to teach language. Use a blank vocabulary Map to plan the words that you will model. Make sure you know where they are in the device before the routine happens.

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Getting Started with Aided Language Stimulation

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Getting Started with Aided Language Stimulation

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Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) is a term that’s used to describe various methods of communication that can be used to help individuals who have verbal or written communication difficulties. Individuals can use many ways to communicate including vocalizations, gestures, signs, photos or symbols and electronic communication devices.

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How to Get Started Modeling Language on AAC

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Core words are the most common words we use in our everyday language and make up 75-80% of what we say. They mainly consist of verbs, adjectives, pronouns, and prepositions. Core words can be used in a variety of different situations all day long.

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What Are Core Words? Vocabulary to Increase Communication

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Using a Least to Most Prompting Hierarchy means providing the least amount of prompting the child needs. This increases opportunities for spontaneous language and decreases the chance of the child waiting for a prompt to use their AAC device.

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How Over-Prompting Kills Spontaneous Language

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Literacy Planner

In 2023, we are having fun with food! Food plays an important role in our lives: we plan for it, prepare it, talk about it, and eat it! Even individuals with complex medical needs, who don't get their primary nutrition through oral feeding, are around food every day. Each story in this Literacy Planner is about a kind of food or cooking experience and includes target words to teach and model. In addition, extension activites are provided for more learning opportunities. With all of the cooking, sensory, writing, and craft/fine motor activities, your AAC learner will have lots of great fun using these words in a variety of situations!

Have fun with food today! If you would like a printed version of the Planner, contact your regional consultant.

Past Planners

2024 Planner

Let's Play! Everyone wins when AAC learners connect with others. Encourage your AAC Learners' communication and literacy development with stories and activities that promote life-long play and leisure skills. Downloads include visual supports that offer help for game-playing, as well as smart charts of target words, games to play, crafts to make, and writing activities. Follow the QR codes in the planner to find resources for older emergent learners as well. C'mon, let's play!
2024 Literacy Planner
2021 Planner

Emergent literacy resources in the 2021 Literacy Planner have been developed for students who use Augmentative Alternative Communication (AAC) from 3rd grade up to provide access to the content of books often read by their peers. This year's Planner is a book club theme.

Why a book club? A book club offers readers the chance to make choices about what they read through communication and literacy activities. It also provides opportunities for learning and socialization.

Active with AAC

Learning to model on an AAC device can feel overwhelming sometimes. What do we play? What should I say? Each month we will post ideas for different activities AND what you could say during the activity. The activities suggested will often be everyday toys and activities all children love. We'll even help you with things you can say and model while playing. Have fun, keep it natural, and get out there and start modeling!

Looking for ways to model and teach words on your AAC device? Each month we post new resources, including an activity with smart charts and puzzle supports, for more practice. Examples of two and three word phrases to model for the month's activity are also included.

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Since 1966, PRC has led in developing speech-generating devices and language and vocabulary, allowing those with communication challenges to participate in life.

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List of books that contain multiple core words.

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The Accessible Literacy Learning (ALL) software is a trail-blazing reading program to help non-verbal students learn how to read. ALL is designed to make literacy instruction easy, accessible, and engaging for children with disabilities.

https://www.mytobiidynavox.com/Store/ALL

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The Accessible Literacy Learning (ALL) software is a trail-blazing reading program to help non-verbal students learn how to read. ALL is designed to make literacy instruction easy, accessible, and engaging for children with disabilities.

Developed by Drs Janice Light and David McNaughton of the Pennsylvania State University, the ALL Reading Program was created to meet the needs of individuals who require Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). It has been proven to be successful in teaching basic reading skills to individuals with complex communication and physical access challenges including autism, cerebral palsy, down syndrome, and developmental apraxia.

*Please note, iPad 1 is not supported. Requires: Windows 7, Windows 8 or Windows 10
Only available in: English, Norwegian, Swedish
T-Series only available in: English

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Your FREE, personal website for managing and backing up your communication tools, connecting with your entire communication support team, and sharing communication pages.

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Fun and Leisure times are a great time to model language. They give lots of opportunities to teach language. Use a blank vocabulary Map to plan the words that you will model. Make sure you know where they are in the device before the activity happens.

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Amanda Hartmann Youtube Channel for AAC Activities

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Amanda Hartmann Youtube Channel for AAC Activities

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Check out Amanda Hartmann's Youtube Channel for ideas on modeling during a variety of everyday activities

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proloquo2go aac "amanda hartmann" "speech pathology" "augmentative and alternative communication" assistiveware "fun kids activities" "speech therapy" "sign ...

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Amanda Hartmann, Speech Pathologist. Sharing fun videos using Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). To learn more about AAC start here: https://www.assistiveware.com/learn-aac/what-is-aac

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Blank Planning Map

Use this blank vocabulary map to plan the words you are going to model during a motivating activity.

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We all communicate for a variety of different reasons. Consider all the different ways your AAC user may want to communicate with you and others.

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The AssistiveWare Core Word Classroom - AssistiveWare

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The doors to the AssistiveWare Core Word Classroom are open! The Core Word Classroom is a free resource designed to support the implementation of any communication device based on core words.

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Literacy Instruction for
Students with Significant Disabilities

"Students can start exploring and experimenting with alternate pencils BEFORE they know letter names or sounds,
and well before they have control of the choice making required to choose specific letters.
Over time, you begin to see evidence that students are learning letters."
-The Center for Literacy and Disability Studies

What is an alternative pencil?

In order to develop literacy skills, all students need a way to write using the full alphabet no matter what level of understanding they appear to have about print.

Developed by Hanser (2009) at the Centre for Literacy and Disability Studies (CLDS), an alternative pencil is defined as anything that provides a student with access to all 26 letters of the alphabet.

How can students benefit from using an alternative pencil?

Writing is an essential component of literacy instruction for students without disabilities and a part of their daily instruction. In order for students with significant disabilities to develop as readers and writers, daily writing is equally, if not, more important. However, this becomes a challenge when most students with significant disabilities are unable to hold a pencil.

Which students would benefit from using an alternative pencil?

For students with physical, cognitive or linguistic challenges, an alternative pencil can offer a way to write and/or explore the alphabet while focusing the majority of their cognitive energy on text production.

Alternative "pencils" were created for students unable to hold a traditional pencil or physically manipulate a standard keyboard. As well, if a student can hold a pen or a pencil but struggles to form letters with it, especially if they have already been practicing for years, then we need to look at an alternative pencil for the majority of their writing.

Alternative pencils can be used with writers of varying abilities and ages including students who are emerging writers and those who are able to write more conventionally (Browder & Spooner, 2011).

But what about...

There are no exclusion criteria for students to use an alternative pencil. Students learn to write by writing, regardless of perceived ability or skill set. A student does not need to be a proficient speller or have consistent letter-sound correspondence skills to begin to explore the act of writing.
(From Alternative Pencils http://alternativepencils.weebly.com)

It is especially important to note that students DO NOT need to know how to independently read or spell words in order to use an alternative pencil. Alternative pencils can be used with students who have a range of understandings about writing, all the way from random, emergent "scribbling" to more conventional writing with recognizable words.

How do we get a student started with an alternative pencil?

Each student needs the pencil that is the easiest for them to use and offers the greatest potential over time.

Pick an alternative pencil that has the most potential for students to easily use.

Students do not need to know their letters in order to write with an alternative pencil.

Students need access to the full alphabet in order to learn about the alphabet.

All students, regardless of their ability, learn about writing and alternative pencils, by writing.

There are no prerequisites to writing. Don't wait! Students don't need to be ready to write. No one is "too...anything" to begin writing with an alternative pencil.

Pick an alternative pencil and get started.

Alternative pencils that might be considered, include: portable word processors, iPads, tablets, alternative keyboards, onscreen keyboards, word prediction software, or speech recognition.

Pencil grips

Magnetic letters

Alphabet stamps

Alphabet Intellikeys Overlays

Word prediction

Alphabet letters that can be cut out for the student to arrange to make words or sentences.

To address the needs of students who are not successful with commercially available solutions, other alternative pencils might be considered such as an Alphabet Eye Gaze Frame or a Alphabet Flip Chart.

Print Alphabet Flip Chart is an alternative pencil intended for students with multiple significant physical, vision and hearing impairments, including those with unknown cognitive skills.

Students write with the flip chart using a partner assisted scanning technique to select letters. The partner scans through the letter choices and the student uses a device or physical response to indicate the letter they want.

The Print Alphabet Flip Chart is made out of laminated cardstock and printed letters. The whole alphabet is divided up into five letter strips that are bound together. On the large space below the letters is a pad of paper where the partner writes the letters as the student selects them. A Braille version of the flip chart could be made for students who are blind and have difficulty physically exploring a Braille keyboard or using a 6-key Braille writer.

Make your own Alphabet Flip Chart

Alpahbet Flip Chart Directions
Alternative Pencil Making Print Chart
Alphabet Flip Chart Pages
Alphabet 36 Caps
Alphabet 36

Some alternative pencils such as the Alphabet Eye Gaze Frame and the Alphabet Flip Chart require that the student have a partner to assist in the writing.

Partner Assisted Scanning is a way for communication "partners" to "assist" students by listing or "scanning" through possible choices. Below is a quick strategy to use when a communication device is not available or the student does not have the needed vocabulary.

Partner scans through choices for student

Simply state/list choices. Do not ask a lot of questions

Pauses between choices- give the student time to process

Student indicates a choice

No tech: gesture, vocalization, eye movement, expression

Light tech: single message device, switch

If no selection is made‐list is repeated in same order

To learn more about Partner Assisted Scanning, see the documents below.

Where can I learn more?

Alternative Pencils
What are they? What does the research say? Alternative pencils in action! There is an abundance of information about alternative pencils available on this web site created by Toby Scott, an assistive technology consultant in Edmonton, Alberta.
http://alternativepencils.weebly.com

Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) - Writing with Alternate Pencils
This module describes ways to get students started with writing when they cannot use a traditional pencil, pen, or computer keyboard. The content of this module applies to students at all levels of literacy understanding including students who do not yet know letter names or sounds.
Online Self-directed Module
Facilitated Module Materials for Groups

Learning Technologies: Information for Teachers
The information on this Alberta web site is for teachers, learning coaches, and others who want to know more about how educational and assistive technologies can support students in their classrooms. Technologies considered include text-to-speech, word prediction, speech recognition, and visual thinking tools.
http://www.learningtechnologiesab.com

Print Flip Chart Guide, Center for Literacy and Disability Studies

Students with Significant Disabilities, Including Deaf-Blindnes Getting Started with Emergent Writing, Gretchen Hanser Ph.D., 2007.

Top 10 Tips for Partner Assisted Scanning, Gretchen Hanser, Ph.D., Center for Literacy and Disability Studies, 2007.

Write From the Start with an Alternativre Pencil, Gretchen Hanser Ph.D., The Center for Literacy & Disability Studies, UNC - Chapel Hill, 2009.

Support for Implementation

The resources found on this site were developed by the ERLC, a member of Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia (ARPDC), as a result of grants from Alberta Education, to support implementation.

Learning for All | Copyright © 2016
Terms of Use | Contact Us

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Access to writing | Literacy Instruction for Students with Significant Disabilities

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Literacy Instruction for Students with Significant Disabilities "Students can start exploring and experimenting with alternate pencils BEFORE they know letter names or sounds, and well before they have control of the choice making required to choose specific letters. Over time, you begin to see evidence that students are learning letters."

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Alphabet Books - Click to view this library, made with Book Creator

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Support for Implementation

The resources found on this site were developed by the ERLC, a member of Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia (ARPDC), as a result of grants from Alberta Education, to support implementation.

Engaging All Learners | Copyright © 2025
Terms of Use | Contact Us

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Literacy for All: In conversation with Dr. Caroline Musselwhite

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The resources found on this site were developed by the ERLC, a member of Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia (ARPDC), as a result of grants from Alberta Education, to support implementation. Engaging All Learners | Copyright © 2025 Terms of Use | Contact Us

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You searched for phonics for all - Smartbox Hub

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"...early writing can be a challenging and frequently overlooked activity for students with significant disabilities including
complex communication and physical needs. Beginning with emergent literacy development, writing plays a central role
in supporting typical children's understandings about print."
-

PREDICTABLE CHART WRITING

What is predictable chart writing?

Predictable chart writing is a type of modeled writing initially developed by Dr. Patricia Cunningham as a technique for helping all students, irrespective of their language skills, to be successful in the writing process.

Predictable chart writing is a fun and easy, shared group writing experience where teachers write with students over the course of one week. It is a way of providing some structure, while allowing students to generate their own ideas.

In the predictable chart writing process, the teacher provides a model sentence or sentence starter to which the students contribute one or two (or more) words. Each student makes the sentence as complex or as simple as their writing development allows.

Predictable chart writing can easily be differentiated to support individual student learning needs. For example, some students will learn that what they say can be written in words. Other students will learn that writing goes from left to right, starting at the top of the page and working to the bottom. Other students will learn how to structure sentences using capital letters at the beginning and punctuation at the end. Teachers can focus on a specific skill to demonstrate as dictated sentences are being written down.

Which students would benefit from predictable chart writing?

Modeled writing supports both emergent and conventional writers and readers, but is especially important for students who:

need to understand the concept of translating thoughts to paper

use alternative pencils such as communication devices, Alphabet Flip Charts, and alphabet eye gaze sets

are nonspeaking so have not been able to 'drite' (dictate for someone else to write)

use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) to help them to understand sentence structure and language selection in writing, and support them in using their existing vocabulary (example: favorite foods, favorite places, verb/adjective dictionaries or pages).

How can students benefit from predictable chart writing?

Predictable chart writing helps students build:

the concept of translating thoughts to paper

concepts about print and word identification skills

spelling and grammar skills

communication and interaction skills

writing skills

self-confidence and a view of themselves as a writer.

How can we teach predictable chart writing?

Many different activities can occur around predictable chart writing over a 5-day period. At the end of the 5-day process, the result is a student written book for the class library.

Where can I learn more?

Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM) - Predictable Chart Writing
This module focuses on what predictable chart writing is and why it is important for students with significant cognitive disabilities. Participants will examine student and teacher roles and ways predictable chart writing can be adapted to meet the needs of students.
Online Self-directed Module
Facilitated Module Materials for Groups

Support for Implementation

The resources found on this site were developed by the ERLC, a member of Alberta Regional Professional Development Consortia (ARPDC), as a result of grants from Alberta Education, to support implementation.

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Predictable chart writing | Literacy Instruction for Students with Significant Disabilities

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"...early writing can be a challenging and frequently overlooked activity for students with significant disabilities including complex communication and physical needs. Beginning with emergent literacy development, writing plays a central role in supporting typical children's understandings about print."

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Writing Resources – Dynamic Learning Maps Professional Development

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The DLM Alternate Assessment will assess writing for all students at all grade levels. There are numerous professional development modules focused on writing instruction. One of the modules focuses on Alternate Pencils that are required for students who cannot use a standard pencil, pen, keyboard, or computer-based technology for writing. Below are files required to create two of the most widely used alternate pencils. They are intended to get you started, but you may have to develop other alternatives for your students.

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Alternative Pencil for Auditory Plus Visual Scanning

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Information and resources related to literacy development and instruction for AAC learners.

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Literacy support for learner with significant disabilities

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Literacy support for learner with significant disabilities

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The ABCs of Alphabet Knowledge and Phonological Awareness! | TPT

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A combination AAC Strategy implementation and Activities for AAC Users

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Everyone has something to say. We build apps and share best practices to help you communicate with the world. AssistiveWare is helping to build a world without communication barriers. We’re committed to helping people with communication difficulties. Our users play a crucial role in who we are and we work with our community to be sure our apps best meet their needs.

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A few times in my life I have lost my voice. A rather disastrous thing for a Speech Pathologist! Suddenly just not being able to talk, not being able to tell people what to do, or what I thought - I did not enjoy it at all! For most of us, we have our voice, available to use as we wish, when we wish. Can you imagine if someone took that privilege away from you?

For many individuals with little or no speech, their voice lies in their AAC system. If they wish to communicate what they want, when they want, they must be able to access that AAC system. It is no good to them in the cupboard. It is no good to them if the battery is flat. It is no good to them if it is still in their school bag. Deciding that the AAC system should only be used at school or at mealtimes or at McDonalds is no good to them. Having access to their AAC system, then, becomes the responsibility of all the members of the team.

If a person has a physical impairment, we do not take away their walker when they need to walk. If a person has a hearing impairment, we do not take away their hearing aides when they need to hear. If a person has a visual impairment, we do not take away their glasses when they need to see. So why do we take away a person's AAC system when they need to talk?

Multimodal communicators

It is often more complicated for many AAC users... many individuals have multiple ways to communicate their messages. Maybe they use a combination of vocalisations and word approximations, some gesture and sign language as well as their robust AAC system. Perhaps in the busy moving world they are in, it can be easier to rely on their vocalisations and gestures because it is faster and easier? We do need to value and appreciate all methods of communication, that is for sure.

But what happens when that communication fails, when we cannot understand what the individual is trying to tell us? What if the individual has WAY more to say, than they can communicate with the sounds and gestures alone? For many AAC users, they need all the words and language that is in their AAC system and that means it needs to be there, ready for them to use as soon as they need it.

I call my buddy Matthew, my best multimodal communicator because he communicates very effectively using some words and vocalisations, combined with a great repertoire of signs. He uses these methods of communication all day and often they give him a fast way to get his message across. However, these things do not work so well with unfamiliar people. Nor does it help him to tell the teacher what he has learnt from the lesson on recycling. It also doesn't help when Mum has NO idea what he is trying to tell her about what happened at school that day. This is when Matthew uses his AAC system. There are many many times in the day that he uses it because his words and signing are not always enough!

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Do's and Don'ts of AAC - Access to AAC - AssistiveWare

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AAC users should be able to say what they want, when they want, so they must have access to their AAC system all the time! The rest of the team also needs fast and instant access to the AAC system. How else will they model?

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AAC Communication is a right not a privilege Handout