Ep. 71: When Kids Aren’t Picking Up On AAC
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Why might a child resist using an AAC device?
What's up everyone and welcome to Making the Shift for Autistic Kids. We're an SLP couple from California with four boys. And we're here every week to bring you neuroaffirming tips, tricks, and tools. Are you ready to make the shift? Let's do this!
Hello and welcome to Making the Shift. Today we're talking about when kids are not picking up on AAC. We've been talking a lot about AAC, about kids using other forms of communication. And this question I get a lot from therapists and parents, which is what if the child is not picking up on AAC at all? You know, why is this happening? What can I do? So today I want to give you five things to really think about. if this is something that you are noticing with a child. Okay, so the first thing to really think about if a child is not picking up on AAC, if you find even that there's some kind of resistance to it. And I really don't like that word, but what I mean is that, you know, you're like showing a child a device who's just pushing it away or even throwing it.
Right. Not interested in that. and showing you that they're not interested in it. So for kids who seem resistant, the first thing you want to think about is what have their past experiences been with a device? And a lot of times when we see kids who are, you know, resistant. and are pushing it away and are throwing it, it's because they have had some negative past experiences with AAC. And that might look like something you wouldn't even expect. That might look like, you know, a child. um being forced to push a button on a device before getting the thing they want to get. Right. It might be a child who Essentially, we are forcing them to use this and we're saying, like, no, no, no, you have to tell me first, and then I'm gonna give it to you.
Okay. So kind of using it and more of this almost compliance driven or rewards-based approach. Like, no, you can't have the videos on YouTube until you show me on your device. And when we see kids who have had a lot of therapy, like that even though you know these therapists are well intentioned, of course they are thinking, yes, I'm gonna help this kid communicate by doing something that's so motivating. But anytime we force a child to do something or we attach a reward to it, we're taking out the intrinsic motivation from it. So we really want to, you know, if that is the case.
How do past negative experiences with AAC affect a child's willingness to use it?
We want to move toward focusing on their intrinsic motivation. How can we make this fun for them? And for a lot of our kids, it might be something like instead of starting. With a device in a specific way. Like maybe we have a gestalt language processor and we usually tend to start with some really basic phrases that are really functional. Maybe instead with this child, this child loves animals and we're playing with an animal game and we have an animal page up, or they love numbers or shapes or colors, and we have that open on the device. So doing something you know that they love and we're not forcing it. We are just Modeling without expectation, as we always say. So just modeling it without actually forcing them to do it or using hand over hand, which a lot of times kids have had exposure to that as well.
Okay, so that's the first thing to think about is what do their past experiences look like and how can we focus more on their intrinsic motivation. The second thing is to look up, look at the setup of the device. Is it too overwhelming? Is this the right fit for them? Does the child have fine motor difficulties? And Does the child have motor planning difficulties? And this is something that you should see a specialist to help you with. Okay. So if you are a parent and your child is an AC user, see someone who is an AAC specialist who can help you find the right fit of a device. Okay. So there are a lot of SLPs out there who can absolutely help your child with AAC. But they may not have the resources or the knowledge and training to actually trial a bunch of different devices and see what size button works for them and see how many buttons should we have on a page, right?
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
Why might a child resist using an AAC device?
0:08–3:01
2
How do past negative experiences with AAC affect a child's willingness to use it?
3:01–6:04
3
What device‑setup factors can prevent a child from picking up AAC?
6:04–8:08
4
Why is a child's regulation state crucial for successful AAC use?
8:08–10:28
5
How can therapists model communication at a child’s appropriate level to encourage AAC use?
10:28–12:36
6
What strategies create natural communication opportunities for AAC learners?
12:36–15:16
7
How can games and play be used to boost AAC engagement?
15:16–18:06
8
When should you keep trying AAC and how does a supportive team influence progress?
18:06–20:29
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from The NeuroAffirm Podcast
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