Last week we visited a garden centre near us, and as we were looking around, Penguin stopped at the owl doorstops pictured in the photo below. He looked across at me to make sure he had my attention, and then he said “ow” (which for a guy who doesn’t talk, is a pretty good approximation … More The Ability To Use Words Does Not Equal Communication Skills
It’s only been about 18 months since I first started listening to podcasts regularly (yes, I was late to the party). Actually, it was being invited as guest onto the ‘Let’s Talk Autism’ podcast that prompted me to listen to more podcasts, and I was soon hooked. I find it very handy to be able … More 8 Great Autism Podcasts!
This post is about some important aspects of learning to use high tech AAC (such as an AAC app on iPad, or similar). I’m ‘just’ a mum, not a speech and language therapist, but we’ve been on a journey of learning AAC for a good few years now, and I have learnt a lot along … More 5 Important Things To Know About Learning To Use AAC!
AAC stands for Augmentative and Alternative Communication, and it’s a term used for all kinds of methods that can be used for communicating other than speech. October is AAC Awareness Month, and last October I wrote a big old blog post about AAC: Basic Facts And Helpful Resources, which is still relevant and informative, but not … More AAC Apps: Who Are They For & What Is So Great About Them?
Earlier this week I had a chat with Meesh and Christelle of the ‘Let’s Talk Autism’ podcast! This week they’ve been doing a super impressive ‘podcast marathon’ of 7 episodes per day for each day of the week, to highlight Autism Awareness Week. So a total of 49 short episodes (each about 6-9 mins long) … More Talking About AAC And Us, On The ‘Let’s Talk Autism’ Podcast!
In this post, I’m listing websites, blogs, facebook pages and groups etc which I’ve found useful when it comes to helping me support our son’s learning and development. He’s autistic and nonverbal, with learning disability, and although these resources are based around what suits his needs and abilites, I believe many of them can be … More Helpful Online Resources For SEND Learning At Home
I hope everyone’s had a happy Halloween out there, even if it might be a bit different to usual this year. For me, the most memorable moment of this Halloween week happened on Thursday evening, when Penguin and I were making a start at carving the largest of our pumpkins… I used his AAC (we … More How Pumpkin Carving Sparked A Communication Milestone For Our Nonverbal Teenager
On the first day of October, as we were heading out for a visit to Sissinghurst, I was telling Penguin about it being a new month, and about things taking place during October. Halloween and pumpkins were mentioned, as well as it being my birthday month. It’s not always clear if Penguin is really paying … More Pigs, Pumpkins, Pub – An Autumnal Afternoon Out
October is AAC Awareness Month. AAC stands for Augmentative and Alternative Communication, but what does that mean? What is it, who is it for ,and where can I find good resources to learn more, if AAC is something that could benefit my child, or someone else I know? Those are questions I aim to answer … More AAC: Basic Facts And Helpful Resources
Yesterday we visited Howletts Wild Animal Park, near Canterbury. We’ve been there a few times before (you can read about one of our previous visits HERE), and as usual we really enjoyed making our way around the park and stopping to look at some of the animals – as well as some plants – along … More A Visit To Howletts Animal Park & A Simple Follow-Up Activity
Sensational Learning with Penguin 