The fourth edition of the foundational, widely adopted AAC textbook Augmentative and Alternative Communication is the definitive introduction to AAC processes, interventions, and technologies that help people best meet their daily communication needs. Future teachers, SLPs, OTs, PTs, and other professionals will prepare for their work in the field with critical new information on advancing literacy skills; conducting effective, culturally appropriate assessment and intervention; selecting AAC vocabulary tailored to individual needs; using new consumer technologies as affordable, nonstigmatizing communication devices; promoting social competence supporting language learning and development; providing effective support to beginning communicators; planning inclusive education services for students with complex communication needs; and improving the communication of people with specific developmental disabilities and acquired disabilities. An essential core text for tomorrow's professionals--and a key reference for in-service practitioners--this fourth edition prepares readers to support the communicative competence of children and adults with a wide range of complex needs.

This practical guidebook and CD?ROM set gathers in one place everything professionals need to support and improve communication for adults with specific medical conditions. Includes expert guidance on providing effective AAC services for people with a ran

The ASHA FACS is a measure of basic functional skills that are common to individuals regardless of age, gender, socioeconomic status, education/vocational status, or cultural diversity. The measures provide helpful information in assisting both clinicians and payers.

Augmentative and Alternative Communication: Engagement and Participationreexamines the basic components of human communication based on the development of meaning between two people and provides a new theoretical framework for integrating the use of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) strategies into interpersonal interactions. As such, it is an indispensable resource for speech-language pathologists, special education practitioners, and researchers in AAC, as well as for instructors and graduate students in the fields of speech and hearing sciences and special education. The book employs a creative synthesis of engagement (personal involvement) and participation (exchanges) to describe meaning-making and social closeness between partners. This process allows for the acknowledgment of different levels of shared meaning and outlines a novel approach to assessment and intervention. The book also describes the importance of integrating relational (interaction-oriented) as well as instrumental (goal-oriented) communication functions as essential in maintaining on-going relationships. Most resources in AAC tend to emphasize strategies for enhancing participation, rather than strategies associated with the development of engagement ("being with") to enhance communication between communication partners. In contrast, this text uses interactions between users of AAC and their communication partners as a basis to explore the creative synthesis between engagement and participation to provide clinical guidelines for assessment and intervention in both interpersonal and classroom contexts. Key features: A novel theoretical approach focused on engagement and participation as core components in AAC interventionEmphasis on empathic listening skills of both communication partner and user of AAC strategies to facilitate engagement (emotional resonance) between themGuidance for teachers on the benefits of a meaning-based approach to communication in the classroomApplication of empathic listening strategies to people with dementia to address an increasing need for care of patients with Alzheimer disease by caregivers and family membersIntegration of social media and face-to-face interactions as central to developing relationships in AAC interactions

"This practical resource is designed to help the families and professionals who support children who use augmentative and assistive communication to interact with the world around them. The research based Hear Me into Voice protocol, presented at the American Speech and Language Hearing Association Annual Convention in 2018, the California Speech Language-Hearing Association Annual Convention in 2017, and the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication Conference in 2016, provides communication partners with a functional knowledge of the child's communication skills and provides a practical intervention plan to carry forward. Through this protocol and intervention plan, communication partners can engage with the child's personal voice, through their varying multimodal forms of communication; the child is given the space to grow into a competent and confident communicator. Key features include: Photocopiable and downloadable resources, including the Hear Me into Voice protocol, an AAC report shell template, an AAC report teaching template, and tools including how to make a communication wallet, and Let's Chat a communication partner tip card template. Guidance for offering AAC intervention sessions, including an intervention plan supported by case studies. Practical activities that can be used to engage children with complex communication profiles Engaging and easy to follow, this resource is not only essential for professionals and students looking to support children with complex language needs, but also families looking to understand their child's unique communication style"--

Provides the essential tools for appraising evidence and outlining steps for planning and implementing better efficacy research. This book aims to help researchers and practitioners develop the necessary skills for moving the augmentative and alternative communication field toward evidence-based practice.