Using pictures to communicate does fall under the assistive technology category.  There are six phases within the PECS program.  Each phase is highly structured, and has to be taught a certain way in order for the child to graduate to the next phase.  Phase one conditions a child to initiate handing an adult a picture in order to receive a preferred item.  Phase two involves traveling with the picture to a person across a room to request an item.  Phase three involves making a reliable choice between two to five pictures.  In Phase four, the student creates sentences by placing the picture “I want” and a preferred item on a sentence strip to exchange.  Phase five teaches a child how to respond to a question, and phase six teaches a child how to comment (i.e. “I see…”).  The protocols and procedures for teaching PECS are crucial to eliciting child initiated and independent communication and picture discrimination without adult prompting.

In order to fully understand how the program works, I had to attend a three day training. I felt overwhelmed by the amount of information presented in the training , but very excited to begin using PECS in my classroom because I saw how the program benefits students through examples at the training.  Incorporating PECS into my classroom has been quite a challenge.  It is challenging to always have two people available for prompting and following the protocols for PECS.  Having the exact pictures ready for each activity is also challenging, and PECS does take time to compile.

The most challenging part of using the PECS program in the classroom is the teacher cannot be completely ready for the students on day one of the school year.  The first step to incorporating the program into the classroom is to learn each students likes and dislikes and behavior patterns.  This can be very frustrating as a teacher.  After learning about the students, planning, preparation, and collaboration need to take place.  In many cases, collaboration is not necessarily needed to incorporate the PECS program, but is highly recommended.  I am fortunate to have a great speech therapist working with my students who is an expert with on PECS.  As a team, we created a PECS book for each student which stores the pictures he or she may need to communicate with adults and other children in the classroom.

Most of my students began in August on phase one of the PECS program, and the program was instantly rewarding.  Many of the training sessions with the students are during snack since food is a highly preferred item.  It was easy to teach the student to hand me a picture to receive an item without reaching for items or tantruming.  My student who is non-verbal retrieved a picture of cereal from his communication book and brought the picture to me while I was sitting at my desk which gave me the chills. Within a few weeks, my students were making sentences with the picture for “I want” and the item he or she wanted for snack such as “pretzel.”   At this time, my students have been using PECS for 6 months, and have made remarkable progress in using verbal words, increased articulation, and communicative intent.  The PECS program has also helped lower problem behaviors in the classroom as students have a way to request an item without becoming frustrated and resorting to problem behaviors.

As the year continues, I continue to collaborate with my team and brainstorm on how to use PECS in all activities in the classroom.   My students are beginning to create two picture sentences to comment or answer questions about the weather, calendar, and other circle time routines.  For example, when I asked my student “What day is it today?” he created a sentence and exchanged the sentence strip to tell me “Today is Monday.”   Every time my students communicate with me using picture exchange, I have chills and I am reminded how rewarding it is to use PECS in my classroom.  The progress I have seen this year with my students is remarkable.  I challenge you to try using PECS and see firsthand the magic of picture exchange.  For more information on PECS, go to www.pecs.com.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/langwitches/

Professional development in Assistive Technology is changing because of new conditions (ie, technologies and modes of communication) that are available for us as 21st century learners. Opportunities for PD beyond face to face interactions such as conferences are available in a myriad of formats, ranging from synchronous webinars to blogs to YouTube videos. In fact, this blog post is an opportunity for PD on PD in AT!  MATN has been using a variety of 21st Century tools for professional development over the last few years.  Some of our offerings include webinars from local and national speakers including Chris Bugaj of ATTIPSCast, Jane Korsten, and Maryse Kaplan.  We are also sending our short and sweet tips for using AT via our Twitter feed and our Facebook page.  We want to know what tools you are using and the efficacy of these tools.  We hope you will join into this conversation to share tools and methods for providing PD in AT.

So what does Universal Design for Learning (UDL) look like, sound like and feel like?  I will get the ball rolling:

When I envision a Universally Designed for Learning Classroom it:

Looks Like:

• All students are engaged in learning
• Students with diverse needs are working on curriculum content in a variety of ways
• Educators are using a variety of materials and strategies to provide information to students, including the use of digital content and multimedia
• Computers are being used by students
• There is evidence of student learning in multiple formats

Sounds Like:

• Pencils scratching
• Keyboards clicking
• Text to speech (well, maybe this is muffled by headphones…)
• Excited students’ voices
• Enthusiastic teachers’ voices

Feels Like:

• Students’ strengths valued
• Students’ weaknesses supported
• A flexible, comfortable learning environment
• There is no single way to express knowledge or impart information
• Learner differences are appreciated

As fellow stakeholders in educating students with diverse needs, please add your thoughts on what UDL looks like, sounds like and feels like to you.  Post a comment, and add to the discussion.

Conference Session Highlights

1.  Using Cloud Tools to Stretch the Impact of Your Professional Development Supports presented by Kathleen Gradel, Associate Professor, SUNY Fredonia, Stow, NY:  Utilizing Web 2.0 and “cloud” applications are everywhere – what does all this stuff mean for professional development.  The tools demonstrated in this session can help to make a difference in delivering & supporting PD efforts.  Kathleen demonstrated how to use a Wiki more effectively by giving the participants a simple direction that is easily understood and easy to respond to, she said by offering “bribery” – a gift certificate, recognition for work done well is always effective.  Other applications that were used to “spice-up” your training was Google docs, Voice Thread, Elluminate, Jing & Doodle.  Kathleen also reminded us to make our PD sessions as accessible to all participants as possible by using applications that have captioning features such as Adobe Captivate and You Tube!

2.  Wiggle Web 2.0 for 2010 with Paula Walser, Director of E Learning/AT, CESA 6, Oshkosh, WI.  Using web based tools for assisting struggling students. Paula reviews cool tools for reading, math, writing and studying.  She ends her session with The Week in Rap—a summary of current news done to a rap theme.  Check it out:  http://wiggleweb2.pbworks.com/w/page/6592711/FrontPage

3.  The AT Real-Tim Band-Jennie Delisi, Neurologic Music Therapist, Lifework Services, Eagan, MN.  This session was an inspiration to all educators who work with individuals with disabilities!  Inspired by the YouTube video of the “AAC Workshop Band.”  Mix together a music therapist, a DynaVox sales consultant and some talented individuals with disabilities to see what they could do and it was awe inspiring!  Everyone was on their feet as the musicians played their “live” performance for the audience! 

MATN Member Presenters
1.  Freedom to Speak:  Using Speech Recognition Software with Students, Marsye Kaplan and Jan Kurtz, Baltimore County Public Schools, Baltimore, MD

2.  The Power of PODD:  Autonomous Communication for Beginning Communicators, Linda Burkhart, Technology Integration Specialist, Eldersburg, MD; Molly Riggs, Speech Language Pathologist, AT Specialist, Carroll County Public Schools, Sykesville, MD.

3.  It’s Showtime!  Using Videos in Classroom Suite, Linda Burkhart Technology Integration Specialist, Eldersburg, MD, Jan Kurtz and Jeanne Noorisa Baltimore County Public Schools, Baltimore, MD.

Cool Tools:

1. Picture Planner is icon-based personal planning software which helps individuals with cognitive disabilities build and manage their own schedules- http://www.cognitopia.com

2.  BlueSky Designs, Inc, Mount’n Mover:  a flexible, accessible and movable mount for laptops, communication aids, cameras, trays & more.

3.   My Coin Chart, a new educational tool that helps students learn how to count, www.matheducation.us

4.  iPod touch, features that include FaceTime, shoot scenes in HD, play games on the highest-resolution iPod screen ever http://www.apple.com/ipodtouch/features/

If you should experience any technical difficulty, please contact me Jeanne Dwyer at jdwyer@jhu.edu.