Episode 143: Alexis Martinez & Natalie Fry: Increasing Access to AAC for Grad Students

This week, Chris interviews recent SLP graduates Alexis Martinez and Natalie Fry about their experience focusing on AAC in grad school and their thoughts on how AAC instruction and mentorship can be more effective for graduate students in the future. 

Before the interview, Chris and Rachel answer a listener question from a parent who has multiple children who use AAC. This parent has one 3-year-old child who uses LAMP Words for Life (WFL), and another child who uses LAMP WFL - Visual Impairment. Chris and Rachel discuss integrating low tech supports into daily routines, placing those supports around the home, modeling for both kids using high-contrast symbols, and taking a few minutes to model with each child individually. 

Key ideas this week:

🔑 It may be better to have a required AAC course early in grad school, rather than later, to better prepare students for the clients they may see early in their clinical training. 

🔑 If an early AAC course isn’t an option, AAC and core language instruction can be embedded more into first-year graduate courses 

🔑 Guest speakers about AAC can include AAC specialists and local AAC product representatives.  Borrowing devices from lending libraries to be used in class is another great way to integrate AAC into graduate courses.

Links: 

Previous TWT Episodes with Parents of AAC Users: Caitlin Calder, Dana Nieder, and Erin Sheldon

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