Meeting Communication Needs in the Community

     The last post discussed the importance of using augmentative communication devices at home and in the community. However, it is important that the devices are meeting the communication needs in the community. Below will be a list of tips that can promote effective use in the community and at home.

     Tips for Guiding Parents:

1. Provide direct instruction on the use of the system
2. Identify vocabulary that is relevant at home
3. Teach family members to provide opportunities for communication and to wait
4. Provide simple data and evaluation sheets for home and community use
5. Give parents permission to expand the child's communication
6. Keep it simple
   

       Tips for the community:

1. Just be yourself
2. Talk to the user at an age-appropriate level
3. Talk to the user, not to the person who is with them
4. Always ask if you can read their screen or if you can guess what the user is saying
5. If you are having a regular conversation, try not to praise the user