Partner Assisted Scanning (PAS) is an effective way to increase communication for students with complex needs. PAS relies on the skills of the communication partner (teacher, family member, peer) to talk through (and use visuals…
Scenario: You have a six-year-old student who is mainly non-speaking and their evaluation is due in two months. The family would like to explore augmentative communication tools. Where do you start? Have you experienced the…
When many people refer to augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), they have something in particular in mind. They might be thinking of picture exchange. They might be thinking of an iPad app with a voice….
You’ve completed professional development. You’ve listened to podcasts. You’ve read the research. You’ve told the team all about WISE strategies. YOU know that a trained communication partner is key for the success of individuals who…
Communication is not completed in isolation. While talking to myself can help me process my own thoughts and feelings, it does not fulfill the social functions of communication such as expressing my wants/needs, sharing information,…
After what was both an extremely short and extensively long two and a half years, I have completed my clinical doctorate in speech-language pathology from Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions (RMU). When I began…
If you are a school-based SLP, you know that groups are a must to serve all of your students. School SLPs have little to no time to work individually with students, even if we wanted…
Many SLPs and educators are very familiar with PDFs. These are the files that we download from the internet, print off, and use with our students. Easy. Distance learning and homework, however, has made many…
In the past, I used the abstracts of research papers to determine what the research was about and the results of the study. I naively assumed that abstracts would not be biased; they would not…
Do you serve students with limited language skills who are unsure of how to interact within a situation? Here is a great example. I give my student five cards and keep five for myself and…
What is one of the number one components to a successful career in speech-language pathology or other education/health related fields? Powerful, exceptional, and amazing mentors and supervisors. I still remember my graduate school supervisors with…
Speech pathologists have an important role to play in literacy instruciton. Unfortunately, my graduate program never taught me what that role was or what to do about it. So…I have spent at least a decade…
Did you know that shared storybook reading is an evidence-based practice for increasing expressive language skills? Not only does research support shared reading, but it is one of the most natural and universally known adult/child…
As a graduate student supervisor, I frequently find myself selling the school-setting to speech-language pathology students. Many graduate programs inadvertently spread the idea that working in the schools is somehow “lesser” or not prestigious. As…
Jack & the Beanstalk (Dynamic Assessment & RTI) 
