GMS Students Use AAC Devices to Breakout
As BPS101 students are becoming more and more familiar with BreakoutEDU where they solve a series of challenging puzzles to open a locked box, the ways in which they are solving puzzles are becoming more and more interesting.
Students in Sandra Lundgren’s fifth-grade class at Grace McWayne recently used Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices to solve a series of puzzles within 45 minutes to ultimately open a locked “breakout” box. In addition to building students’ communication and collaboration skills, this breakout was designed to help students become more proficient at using electronic and non-electronic AAC devices to better communicate with actual users of these devices, including their GMS peers.
AAC devices can be high tech or low tech.
A GMS student using an AAC static board and Chromebook to help his team solve a Breakout puzzle.
A GMS student using an AAC tablet and Chromebook to help his team solve a Breakout puzzle.
BPS101 Instructional Technologist Jennifer Duffy (pictured in background) was instrumental in creating Grace McWayne’s 45-minute BreakoutEDU with AAC devices … and gave students five bonus minutes when time was up!
In much the same way that young children with typical development learn verbal language by talking with adults (modeling), a person who uses AAC (PWUAAC) also needs to communicate with others who are proficient at using AAC devices. So, the more exposure typically developing students have to AAC devices, the better equipped they are to not only communicate with PWUACC, but also be a model to help them grow.
At GMS, this is happening weekly through a program called “Circle of Friends,” which was started last year by GMS Social Worker Sandra Acosta and GMS Speech Pathologists Sabina Walker and Kellie Myers. In the Circle of Friends, GMS students in second, third, fourth, and fifth grades volunteer to be “Peer Leaders.” After training, they are paired with students in the K-5 Instructional Learning Program (ILP) at GMS. Peer Leaders meet with their ILP friends once a week during WIN time for 30 minutes. The Circle provides social interaction between students in a natural setting and gives students the opportunity to use AAC devices to communicate with each other.
“There are so many students and teachers at Grace McWayne who really want to learn about disabilities, the challenges that individuals with disabilities face, and how they can support them,” said Ms. Walker. “I’m really proud of the direction we are headed.”
For more information about how AAC supports complex communicators at GMS, contact Sabina Walker.
