Re: Go Talk

April 9, 2008

Hi Ecki,

We used a Go-Talk for Seth. Well, we are still trying to use it. The

school used it as a teaching tool instead of a communication device, so it's

not

so well received by Seth right now. I would recommend one for a starting

point though.

Gail :-)

Thanks everyone for your insight on independent evaluations and

assitive technology/augmentative communication.

Has anyone used Go Talk? I think Kayla would really take to that system

and it's not terribly expensive (around $200). My concern is that she

only has one year left at her preschool and I'm not sure if they would

want to pay to get her one (I know they can't actually say that!). Of

course, I just raised $300 to date for the regional Easter Seals Walk

(Kayla goes to an Easter Seals program) so I could remind them of that!

Ecki

Mom to Kayla (DS/ASD, 4/5/04) and Laurie (PDD-NOS, 7/12/01)

**************Planning your summer road trip? Check out AOL Travel Guides.

(http://travel.aol.com/travel-guide/united-states?ncid=aoltrv00030000000016)

April 9, 2008

Ecki,

I wouldn't advise mentioning the fundraising. It wouldn't be well received. The

school system is responsible for costs of education for any disabled child 3-21.

Charlyne

eckidatri wrote: Thanks everyone

for your insight on independent evaluations and

assitive technology/augmentative communication.

Has anyone used Go Talk? I think Kayla would really take to that system

and it's not terribly expensive (around $200). My concern is that she

only has one year left at her preschool and I'm not sure if they would

want to pay to get her one (I know they can't actually say that!). Of

course, I just raised $300 to date for the regional Easter Seals Walk

(Kayla goes to an Easter Seals program) so I could remind them of that!

Ecki

Mom to Kayla (DS/ASD, 4/5/04) and Laurie (PDD-NOS, 7/12/01)

http://oppositekids.blogspot.com/

April 9, 2008

Hi Ecki

I am not familiar with the GO TALK but since ANY device is owned by

the system that purchases it & " loaned " to parents, they may already

have one available in their inventory for you to use. On the other

hand, if they don't, then if then obtain one for your use it will be

in their inventory when Kayla leaves their system. :)

Keep in mind that these devices are outgrown quickly, so you may want

to put off purchasing one yourself for a number of years. Also keep in

mind that any device that you are " loaned " can go home each day & over

school breaks (this is covered by the Tech Act). However this would

maybe be problematic if your child is switching school systems

Remember to request a device at her public school system IEP and put a

time lime as to when this request is met. Make sure this is documented

on the IEP. It can take awhile to get things rolling so a time line is

necessary to prevent innecessary delays (read years...sigh) Actually,

if she is already using a device, this may speed things along.

When I say time line, some rough ideas are: " Parents have requested an

ACC evaluation be conducted by October 2008 school year " .

Or:

" A GO Talk device will be obtained for Kayla and in use by October

2008

school year " .

Also, if you know that you want a device to be used by Kayla,

DOCUMENT this in the IEP as well as GOALS & OBJECTIVES using the

device. This documents the device request/need further & IDEA/FAPE

kicks in....

It is reasonable to give the school system time to implement eval

requests. Depending on when your IEP is. BUT, care must be taken.

My son's IEP has traditionally been in the late spring of the school

year. School ends before May 30th for summer. In elementry school,

this meant an eval was not done until the next school year because of

summer break. Then further delays happened due to a time line not

being documented or because he changed school districts due to county

wide redistricting. Which delayed obtaining & use of a device FOR TWO

SCHOOL YEARS. Who knows where my son would be currently if not for

this delay.

That is when I learned to get educated about all the laws & get

assertive & making sure every little thing was documented. I even

called for another IEP and offered to bring in a fed/state funded

technology center AT OUR EXPENSE to get the ball rolling and not

dropped yet again. For some unknown reason our public school does not

want to do this.

Because of the circus in elementry school, I knew what to do for IEPs

in middle school. This last IEP, because the device is new to

everyone, I even had the IEP documented that teachers & ST be provided

training in the device's use (and also training for us)

His poor teacher is a newbie & said, " But isn't that a given " ? I just

winked at him...Sadly it appears that it is NOT a given for anything

logical in public school...

I am annoyed that parents have to know more than the systems they have

to navigate. And choose which battle to concentrate on. Very annoyed.

It should not be this way.

Peace.

Kris

April 9, 2008

>

> Ecki,

> I wouldn't advise mentioning the fundraising. It wouldn't be well

received. The school system is responsible for costs of education for

any disabled child 3-21.

Oh, I wasn't being serious about mentioning the fundraising, I'm just

frustrated. I do so much for that school.

Kris, thanks for letting my know that the kids can outgrow these

devices -- after all Kayla may start talking (like the therapists

keep saying she will) and might not need it. The school is only 2

years old, so I doubt that they have much on hand as far as assistive

technology.

Right now Kayla's lack of functional communication is really

upsetting me -- especially when she's biting me because I have no

idea what she wants.

Ecki

Mom to Kayla (DS/ASD, 4/5/04) and Laurie (PDD-NOS, 7/12/01)

http://oppositekids.blogspot.com/

April 9, 2008

Hi Ecki,

started with a Go Talk 9+, the only problem was the school wasn't

using it to be HIS voice - they would push it to say, " time for gym " , etc... I

finally got a hold of the thing and did a few pages that worked for us at home.

It was a nice introductory piece of equipement - simple to use and easy to

personalize. We then had our AT Eval and got a Dynavox MiniMo which is great

but I think he could benefit from something different now. We'll still use this

til we really figure out what it is we want from a device.

I went to an autism workshop and an amazing Speech Therapist spoke and brought

in several devices one of which was the Tango - OMG this thing is AMAZING!

http://www.blink-twice.com/tango/index.html

Jayne

eckidatri wrote:

Thanks everyone for your insight on independent evaluations and

assitive technology/augmentative communication.

Has anyone used Go Talk? I think Kayla would really take to that system

and it's not terribly expensive (around $200). My concern is that she

only has one year left at her preschool and I'm not sure if they would

want to pay to get her one (I know they can't actually say that!). Of

course, I just raised $300 to date for the regional Easter Seals Walk

(Kayla goes to an Easter Seals program) so I could remind them of that!

Ecki

Mom to Kayla (DS/ASD, 4/5/04) and Laurie (PDD-NOS, 7/12/01)

http://oppositekids.blogspot.com/

check out the view from my shoes at

www.wickedbusymomto3.wordpress.com

__________________________________________________

April 9, 2008

We have a Go Talk 9 for . We actually bought it ourselves, since it wasn't

too terribly expensive. Next time the school is going to be buying one though!

uses it at school and at home, although most of the at-home use lately is

for behavior therapy (ABA).

He is still on level 1 after more than a year of using it. His SLP doesn't

think he's ready to move to the next level. I think it will be hard for him to

change the icons & the level, so we and his teachers will probably have to do

that, at least for a while.

Like someone else said, it's a good starter tool. I plan to check out some

other options soon, just to see what's available.

, mom to 16 DS/PDD-NOS

__________________________________________________

April 9, 2008

has a Go Talk. He's not really into it; doesn't use it appropriately. Won't

carry it around. In fact, I'm trying hard to get help from his speech therapists

for ideas on how to use it. I think he's verbal enough to get what he wants so

he's just not very motivated to use it. However, the device is nice.

Beth, mom to , 8, DS/ASD/leukemia survivor

Go Talk

Thanks everyone for your insight on independent evaluations and

assitive technology/augmentative communication.

Has anyone used Go Talk? I think Kayla would really take to that system

and it's not terribly expensive (around $200). My concern is that she

only has one year left at her preschool and I'm not sure if they would

want to pay to get her one (I know they can't actually say that!). Of

course, I just raised $300 to date for the regional Easter Seals Walk

(Kayla goes to an Easter Seals program) so I could remind them of that!

Ecki

Mom to Kayla (DS/ASD, 4/5/04) and Laurie (PDD-NOS, 7/12/01)

http://oppositekids.blogspot.com/

March 28, 2010

Amy:

I like your idea of the pictures for " yes " and " no. " I am struggling with

the same thing right now. I'm considering just using the words in bold

black letters on white background, and getting used to seeing those

two words and trying to connect their meanings.

Heidi -- Wisconsin, USA

(Mom to 8 w/ DS, ASD, epilepsy; Clara 3)

No two flowers bloom in exactly the same way, but all are beautiful !

March 28, 2010

In a message dated 3/28/2010 1:09:25 P.M. Central Daylight Time,

amybanta@... writes:

We use the words (yes/no) and put them on a green background for yes and a

red background for no. You will just have to teach them what they mean at

first.

-Amy

Oh, I like the green/red background idea even better than a white

background! Thanks!

Heidi

March 28, 2010

In a message dated 3/28/2010 2:16:08 P.M. Central Daylight Time,

aimbee71@... writes:

Thanks Everyone!

That makes sense about not using facial expressions. I guess it would make

the most sense to use bold lettered words YES and NO on Green and red

backgrounds. I think that is what we'll try.

Amy Asher's mommy

Me too! Let's give an update some time to see how are kids are doing with

this idea!

Heidi

March 28, 2010

We've always had an issue representing YES and NO. Because " yes " doesn't

always mean happy and " no " doesn't always mean sad. To answer something like

" are you sick " with a smiley face for a yes doesn't make much sense!

For YES and NO with Kayla, we use a green card with the word YES on it and a

red card with the word NO on it. She's been very inconsistent with it,

though. We've always been told that YES and NO are too complex for Kayla to

grasp at the moment, although she has no problem yelling " NO " when she

doesn't want to do something!

Ecki

Mom to Kayla (DS/ASD, 4/5/04) and Laurie (PDD-NOS, 7/12/01)

http://oppositekids.blogspot.com/

March 28, 2010

We use the words (yes/no) and put them on a green background for yes and a

red background for no. You will just have to teach them what they mean at

first.

-Amy

_____

From: [mailto: ] On Behalf

Of Amy

Sent: Sunday, March 28, 2010 1:44 PM

To:

Subject: Go Talk

Hi Everyone

We are going to get a Go Talk for Asher and initially start with just " yes "

and " no " since we can't really represent those with his PECS (which are

actual photos on a board that are laminated and velcroed on.) We have been

relatively unsuccessful with signing unless he takes our hands and makes us

do a few modified ones. They use a Go Talk with 4 openings for choices

during meals and snack at school and it is hit or miss. I want to have them

start doing Yes and No at school as we will be doing it at home. I am

getting frustrated with his program and am questioning whether or not it is

an appropriate placement for him or not but that is a different story for a

different day.

We finally have our in-home behavior specialist through DDS and she observed

that Asher seems frustrated with his lack of ability to communicate and that

he has so little control in his life and I agree. She and I felt that a Go

Talk with just Yes and No initially could be so helpful for him and for us.

It would give him a " voice " and the ability to feel that he can make more

choices in his life and have a bit more control.

My question is have any of you used Yes and No and if so, what images could

represent them on a Go Talk? He really doesn't " get " the PECS line drawings

and only uses photos. What do you suggest? Possibly photos of Mommy with a

huge smile for yes and a big frown for No? Or to try to capture pics of him

with an unhappy face for No and a smile for yes?

We are moving into our new house next week so we thought we'd wait to start

this until he is settled in a bit. I would consult with school but they feel

he isn't showing that he is really ready for a communication device.....I

disagree, especially for yes/no. Once we start at home, I will insist that

they do it in school.

Thanks everyone,

Amy mommy to Asher 4 1/2 DS/ ASD and 8 Months

March 28, 2010

Thanks Everyone!

That makes sense about not using facial expressions. I guess it would make the

most sense to use bold lettered words YES and NO on Green and red backgrounds. I

think that is what we'll try.

Amy Asher's mommy

>

> Hi Everyone

> We are going to get a Go Talk for Asher and initially start with just " yes "

and " no " since we can't really represent those with his PECS (which are actual

photos on a board that are laminated and velcroed on.) We have been relatively

unsuccessful with signing unless he takes our hands and makes us do a few

modified ones. They use a Go Talk with 4 openings for choices during meals and

snack at school and it is hit or miss. I want to have them start doing Yes and

No at school as we will be doing it at home. I am getting frustrated with his

program and am questioning whether or not it is an appropriate placement for him

or not but that is a different story for a different day.

> We finally have our in-home behavior specialist through DDS and she observed

that Asher seems frustrated with his lack of ability to communicate and that he

has so little control in his life and I agree. She and I felt that a Go Talk

with just Yes and No initially could be so helpful for him and for us. It would

give him a " voice " and the ability to feel that he can make more choices in his

life and have a bit more control.

> My question is have any of you used Yes and No and if so, what images could

represent them on a Go Talk? He really doesn't " get " the PECS line drawings and

only uses photos. What do you suggest? Possibly photos of Mommy with a huge

smile for yes and a big frown for No? Or to try to capture pics of him with an

unhappy face for No and a smile for yes?

> We are moving into our new house next week so we thought we'd wait to start

this until he is settled in a bit. I would consult with school but they feel he

isn't showing that he is really ready for a communication device.....I disagree,

especially for yes/no. Once we start at home, I will insist that they do it in

school.

> Thanks everyone,

> Amy mommy to Asher 4 1/2 DS/ ASD and 8 Months

>

March 28, 2010

Hi Amy,

I think the yes and no may be ok but why not start with I want a drink, eat,

favorite toy etc. He may not get the yes and no as easily as something tangible.

Charlyne

Mom to Zeb 17

Subject: Go Talk

To:

Date: Sunday, March 28, 2010, 1:44 PM

Â

Hi Everyone

We are going to get a Go Talk for Asher and initially start with just " yes " and

" no " since we can't really represent those with his PECS (which are actual

photos on a board that are laminated and velcroed on.) We have been relatively

unsuccessful with signing unless he takes our hands and makes us do a few

modified ones. They use a Go Talk with 4 openings for choices during meals and

snack at school and it is hit or miss. I want to have them start doing Yes and

No at school as we will be doing it at home. I am getting frustrated with his

program and am questioning whether or not it is an appropriate placement for him

or not but that is a different story for a different day.

We finally have our in-home behavior specialist through DDS and she observed

that Asher seems frustrated with his lack of ability to communicate and that he

has so little control in his life and I agree. She and I felt that a Go Talk

with just Yes and No initially could be so helpful for him and for us. It would

give him a " voice " and the ability to feel that he can make more choices in his

life and have a bit more control.

My question is have any of you used Yes and No and if so, what images could

represent them on a Go Talk? He really doesn't " get " the PECS line drawings and

only uses photos. What do you suggest? Possibly photos of Mommy with a huge

smile for yes and a big frown for No? Or to try to capture pics of him with an

unhappy face for No and a smile for yes?

We are moving into our new house next week so we thought we'd wait to start this

until he is settled in a bit. I would consult with school but they feel he isn't

showing that he is really ready for a communication device.....I disagree,

especially for yes/no. Once we start at home, I will insist that they do it in

school.

Thanks everyone,

Amy mommy to Asher 4 1/2 DS/ ASD and 8 Months

March 28, 2010

Amy, I agree with charlyene if he has trouble with pecs you need to start with a

preferred item such as a food, to get him used to asking for that preferred

item. You can start with yes or no if you want but most speech teachers

recommended starting with a highly preferred tangible item to tech pecs even

with a go talk.If he only understands pics of the actual food use it and after

he has it at 100% switch the pic to a pecs picture.Gradually do that after he

has mastered each picture. After my son understood the concept of asking for the

preferred items we moved onto yes or no using the preferred item and a

non-preferred item of food he did not like. Have the yes and no in front of him

and ask him if he would like his preferred item. If he reaches for the item

redirect his hand to the yes. Do that until he starts reaching for yes when you

ask " do you want " . Do the same with no take a non-preferred item and ask him he

wants it. If you can tell that he does not want it take his hand to the picture

of no.He only gets the item after he answer with the pecs picture of yes or

no.PECS is usually taught in six phases (6, 7):

* Phase One: The communication partner makes a list of the child's favorite

items (usually beginning with foods). One of these items is selected for the

first training session, and a picture of the item is made. That item can be

placed under a clear container, so the child can see it, but not get it. If the

child looks interested in the item, the communication partner gives the child

the picture card. Then the child is prompted (usually by holding his/her hand

and guiding it) to hand the picture card back to the communication partner. Once

the communication partner receives the card, the request is spoken aloud ( " Oh,

you want the cookie! You can have it! " ). At this point, the requested item

(which has become the reinforcer) is given to the child. to read more go to this

website:

http://autism.healingthresholds.com/therapy/picture-exchange-communication-syste\

m-pecs

http://www.pecs.org.uk/shop/asp/prodtype.asp?prodtype=6

Here is a making PECS support group. They have lots of PECS on here for free

downloand. CyndI B

>

> Subject: Go Talk

> To:

> Date: Sunday, March 28, 2010, 1:44 PM

>

> Â