Communication

Find creative ways to encourage your baby or young child to communicate, including sign language and Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) options.

little girl doing sign language

Communication, Potty Training

How to Use Sign Language for Potty Training

Sign language can be helpful for potty training young children who are pre-verbal, kids with special needs, or for multilingual families.

boy kissing his hand

Communication, Visual Impairment

Teaching Your Visually Impaired Child Sign Language

Jennie writes about how she taught her son, Max, to sign. Max is totally blind and does have a few verbal words, but using signs to augment his early communication...

blind child listening

Communication, Visual Impairment

Helping your blind child develop effective listening skills

Learning to listen carefully and distinguish between different sounds is an important skill for any child, but espeically for children with visual impairments. Lesley Potgieter explains how to assess your...

Ivan and his switch

Assistive Technology, Communication

Switch Play: Using a switch for communication and play!

For children who are non-verbal or have low motor coordination, switches can be a great way to augment their play. If you're just getting started with a switch you may...

Ivan talking

Communication, Visual Impairment

You Can Say That Again! Echolalia in Visually Impaired Children

Learn why children who are visually impaired repeat back what they hear, and how parents can help minimize repetition in a constructive way.

Adapting Signs app icon and menu

Communication, iPad Apps and Accessibility

Adapting Signs App for Children with Vision Impairment

This app gives tips on how to adapt signs for blind children including videos and written information. It also allows you to create your own dictionary of signs.

ProxTalker

Communication

The ProxTalker Communication Board with Real Objects

The ProxTalker is a communications device that gives nonverbal kids a voice. Tags can be customized for your child's specific situation, and added and revised as necessary.

how uni works

Communication

Sign to Speech to Text – The Next Big Thing for the Deaf Community

New technology translates sign language to speech and speech into text, making communication between those who sign and those who don't much more seamless.

child speaking with an iPhone

Communication, iPad Apps and Accessibility

Talkitt® Makes Unintelligible Speech Understandable

Talkitt translates unintelligible speech from any language into understandable speech through smart phones, tablets or computers. Works for people with speech disorders or diseases or syndromes that affect speech.

STACS cards

Communication

STACS: Standardized Tactile Augmentative Communication Symbols Kit

Tactile symbol systems are valuable tools that aid learners with conversations about people, places, events, and ideas.

Little girl with a rainbow umbrella

Communication

Looking Deeper to Find the Person Within

Lesley Potgieter writes about reaching a child who cannot speak. Our ability to communicate via speech is the way the world accepts and interprets us, but Lesley argues that we...

Lessonpix

Communication

LessonPix Online Materials: Symbols & Visuals

Large pictures can be a great way to introduce concepts to children with low vision and can really help kids who need help with communication.

Demostration of ASL Browser

Communication, Special Needs

American Sign Language (ASL) Browser

The American Sign Language Browser allows you to choose any word starting with any letter and watch a short Quick Time video demonstration of that word being signed.

Ivan at the audiologist

Communication

A Visit to Audiology

We visit an audiologist to check our blind son's hearing. What will the audiologist do? What can we learn?

Ivan with his object calendar

Communication

Planning the Day with Object Calendars

Creating a plan and a tangible system of communication is the best way to help your child deal with transitions. Using an object calendar or a schedule box can ease...

Ivan signing bib

Communication, Visual Impairment

Sign Language for Blind Babies

Can sign language work for blind babies? Signs are made to be very visual, can blind babies really pick them up? We're here to tell you first hand, YES! We'll...

communication board

Communication

Say it With Symbols

Say it with Symbols! is the first stop resource for families, caregivers and educators looking for easy-to-use, functional augmentative communication aids that help people with severe speech disorders actively participate...

tangible symbols

Communication, Visual Impairment

Using Tangible Symbols for Communication with Blind Children

In this video Elizabeth Torrey, Speech and Language Pathologist in the Early Learning Center at Perkins School for the Blind, talks about the use of tangible symbols in helping children...