Teaching · Special Education

The words to model during snack, art or science, and a count of every one.

Pick the core words to model and the fringe words the activity needs, then tap a counter each time an adult models a word and each time the student uses one. The summary shows which words took off, which need more modeling and which fringe words to add to the device.

Plan an activityWhat 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 activity plan and tally

One record per student and activity. Use initials or a code, never a name. 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
For each activity, the core and fringe words, functions and modeling plan, with counts of adult models and student uses and a list of what to change next time.
Who it is for
Speech-language pathologists, special education teachers and paraprofessionals who plan and run activities with students who use AAC.
Format
Browser plan with tap counters. Several saved records; printed with the summary or as a blank plan and tally sheet; CSV with one row per activity; 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. Core words stay in the same place on the grid for every activity; the blender is fringe, and belongs to this one.

How to use it

  1. Start a record with the student’s initials or a code and the activity date.
  2. Name the activity, choose the core words and list the fringe words it needs.
  3. Check the fringe words are on the student’s system, and choose the functions to target.
  4. During the activity, tap a counter for each adult model and each student use.
  5. Read the summary and add missing words or more modeling before the next activity.

Plan an activity

What the plan is for

Core and fringe

A small set of words, a few hundred at most, makes up most of what people say across a day, and those core words work in any activity: go, stop, more, not, help, turn. Fringe words are the nouns and names that belong to one activity, such as blender or banana. Planning both means the student has the words to direct, comment and protest, not only to name things.

Modeling on the system

Aided language modeling means adults touch the symbols on the student’s own system while they talk, so the student sees the language used the way they will use it. It works best when adults model often, a step above the student’s current message, and accept whatever the student says without asking them to copy.

Two titles, one activity

The catalog listed a core vocabulary activity organizer and a fringe vocabulary activity organizer. An activity uses both, so one page holds both. The tally counts words; it does not assess language. Records use a code, never a name, and stay in this browser.

Sources

  1. Banajee, M., Dicarlo, C., & Stricklin, S. B. (2003). Core vocabulary determination for toddlers. Augmentative and Alternative Communication, 19(2), 67–73.
  2. Beukelman, D. R., & Light, J. C. (2020). Augmentative and Alternative Communication: Supporting Children and Adults with Complex Communication Needs (5th ed.). Paul H. Brookes.
  3. 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.
  4. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act regulations, 34 CFR 300.324(a)(2)(iv) and (v) (communication needs and assistive technology considered in the IEP).
  5. Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 34 CFR Part 99.

The example student is made up. The plan and tally support modeling during activities; they do not assess language or replace an AAC evaluation. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.