Research Says...

An interesting link to a journal article from Infants and Young Children. 

Although written in 2005, the article examines 6 myths that might still be on the minds of people today. The six myths examined are listed below.

Myth #1 AAC is a “last resort” in speech-language intervention.

Myth #2 AAC hinders or stops further speech development.

Myth #3 Children must have a certain set of skills to be able to benefit from AAC.

Myth #4 Speech-generating AAC devices are only for children with intact cognition.

Myth #5 Children have to be a certain age to be able to benefit from AAC.

Myth #6 There is a representational hierarchy of symbols from objects to written words (traditional orthography)

In examining the myths, I think we can already see that they are just that, myths. It is however interesting to read the arguments about the myths. Some may agree that they hold true today. THen we have to think of how AAC has evolved since 2005, especially since the invention of the iPod and now the iPad. How do these interruptive technologies play into the validity of these myths?

http://depts.washington.edu/isei/iyc/romski_18_3.pdf

Augmentative Communication and Early Intervention Myths and Realities Written by: MaryAnn Romski, PhD, CCC-SLP; Rose A. Sevcik, PhD

Taken from: Infants & Young Children, Vol. 18, No. 3, pp. 174–185 c 2005 

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc.

A second report that I found was from McMaster University. Enhancing Fitness, Adaptive Motor Function, and Participation of Children with Cerebral Palsy Classified in Levels IV and V written by Robert J. Palisano & Karen Lally. The report addresses adaptive motor function for persons with CP. In the report the authors discuss various forms of assistive technology such as seating systems, adaptive standing and walking, positioning and transfers, wheeled mobility both powered and manual. What I really liked about this report is first, it was Canadian and second within the report were links to various companies and providers of these technologies.

www.canchild.ca/en/canchildresources/enhancingadaptivefunction.asp

What is CP?

What is CP?

According to the staffers a the Mayoclinic.com...

Cerebral Palsy is a disorder of movement, muscle tone or posture that is caused by injury or abnormal development in the immature brain, most often before birth.
Signs and symptoms appear during infancy or preschool years. In general, CP causes impaired movement associated with exaggerated reflexes or rigidity of the limbs and trunk, abnormal posture, involuntary movements, unsteadiness of walking, or some combination of these. The effect of CP on functional abilities varies greatly.

People with Cp often have other conditions related to developmental brain abnormalities, such as intellectual disabilities, vision and hearing problems or seizures. A broad spectrum of treatments may help minimize the effect of CP and improve a person's functional abilities. 

Top Apps

While Proloquo2Go is at the top of the list of apps to use for individuals with Cerebral Palsy (or other communication difficulties), there are a few more that are well worth exploring as well. Here are a few apps worth considering.

Proloquo2Go ($189)

 

Proloquo2Go is an extensive app for iPad and iPod Touch that's known for being comprehensive and easy to use - by both teachers and students.  Because there are so many options within Proloquo2Go, it's very important to always be thinking about what is best for the student and their particular needs. What is so wonderful about this app is that it is easily adaptable and evolves with the student, regardless of age, needs, or ability.

Proloquo2Go allows the user to communicate using pictures, words, and symbols. Boards and sets are created based on the user's communication needs and are extremely customizable, making the device accessible and personalized, creating a great sense of motivation and power for users.

Here is a video of Proloquo2Go in action.



I Can Speak ($29.99)



I Can Speak is a communication app that's function is based around creating sentences using two main areas - the static area, and the dynamic area. The static area is always available and contains sentence starters and words that are frequently used within sentences. The dynamic area has words and activities lists, and has an extensive collection of common words to choose from. When words from each of these areas are combined they can easily generate thousands of sentences.

What seems to be a very complicated app initially is actually fairly simple to use. This video explains the app further:

 

Tap Speak Choice ($149.99)

    

TapSpeak Choice is an AAC device that offers two-button to complete page sets for communication.

Features include:

 -Anti-Stimming mode

-Touch mode

-Tap mode

-Detect touch on release

-Touch averaging

- Unparalleled scanning support

-iPad and external switch support

There are different accessibility modes to choose from which makes it great for a variety of users. Anti-stimming mode for those with ASD, touch, touch on release, or touch averaging for those with low muscle tone or spasticity issues.

UrTalkerPro ($99.99) Lite Version $19.99

   

Fully communicative app that has 280 images built in and allows camera use or web use to find other images. It has the option to have different folders of categories as well as change colors to meet the personality of the user.