Teaching · Special Education

The device works when every adult uses it.

List the adults around the student and where each one is on four skills. The organizer shows who can support the system today and who to train first.

Plan the training What you get

$12one-time · every device you sign in on

Buy · $12

Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the Special Education toolkit, $99 for 100 items.

The training plan

One plan per student, updated as staff learn. The example is made up.

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What you get

Teaching · Special Education$12 · included with Classroom and Whole-school licenses

What you finish with: Adults ready on each skill, who can model language, who to train first on what, and the gaps in the room.
Who it is for: Special education teachers, speech-language pathologists and AAC teams training classroom staff.
Format: Browser form. One saved plan per student and date; printed with the summary or as a blank form; CSV; export and import a file.
Access: $12 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the tool opens once you are signed in with it. Included with Caveat Classroom and Whole-school licenses. Also in the Special Education toolkit ($99) and the Teaching Suite pass ($199), and 1 more bundle. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives: The Special Education space in Caveat Teaching.
Support: Questions about an order, access or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.

Drawn for this page. A system gets used when the people around the student use it too.

How to use it

Choose the student’s system and note whether a substitute plan exists.
Add every adult who works with the student, by staff code.
Mark each one’s level on the four skills after watching them.
Pick training formats and a goal date.
Train modeling first, then update levels and copy the plan forward.

Plan the training

The four skills

Why modeling first

In aided language modeling the adult points to symbols on the student’s own system while talking. Reviews of the research find it improves both understanding and use of AAC; it is the skill that changes most for students.

Wait and prompt

Expectant waiting, then the least help that works, gives the student time to communicate on their own. Adults who jump in too fast teach the student to wait for them.

What this is not

A device selection tool. Choosing and programming a system belongs to the student’s AAC team.

Sources

Biggs, E. E., Carter, E. W., & Gilson, C. B. (2018). Systematic review of interventions involving aided AAC modeling for children with complex communication needs. American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, 123(5), 443–473.
Kent-Walsh, J., & McNaughton, D. (2005). Communication partner instruction in AAC: Present practices and future directions. Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 21(3), 195–204.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, Practice Portal: Augmentative and Alternative Communication.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act regulations, 34 CFR 300.105 and 300.156: assistive technology and trained, supervised paraprofessionals.

The example student and staff codes are made up. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.