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Rethinking AAC and Speech Generating Devices for children who are nonspeaking and cannot yet read and write.
Nonspeaking: Lots to Say with the Speech Sound Monsters
I Can Speak Without You! with the Sound Monsters
Miss Emma's Speech Sound Monsters offer a DIRECT link between the grapheme (letter/s) and the phoneme/s (speech sounds) so that the Speech Sound Connection is clear: less cognitive load. The connection between an 'apple' on or near the letter /a/ may make sense to a reader: they have phonemic awareness and orthographic knowledge.
Speech Sound Connection resources and activities aren't designed for those who can already read and spell: they are designed to make learning to read and spell easier for all - whether at the beginning stages of learning to read or when faced with unfamiliar words and no clues.
And now they are being used to help nonspeaking children communicate!
Use them to figure out 'what's new for you!' - activities being used in the UK to fill the gaps left when children are taught using systematic synthetic phonics. Visit the Reading Hut if you would like to learn more! Help children transition from those who have a very basic 'code knowledge' (eg can pass the UK Phonics Screener Check) into learners with high level phonemic awareness and orthographic knowledge, and who are now curious about word mapping! The Speech Sound Connection is needed if they are to become skilled readers, who can navigate an opaque orthography.
Imagine that you cannot speak or type words to communicate that you don't want THAT donut: you want to say
I want a chocolate donut with sprinkles!
How do you 'say' this is you are nonspeaking? Draw it? That could be next to impossible - a guessing game that ends up remarkably frustrating for everyone.
This is Miss Emma, The Neurodivergent Reading Whisperer's new take on an AAC device!!
An AAC device is an augmentative and alternative communication tablet or laptop that helps someone with speech or language difficulties to communicate without needing to generate speech sounds/ spoken words.
An AAC device is often also called a speech-generating device (SGD) or assistive communication device or simply communication device. The Speech Sound Monsters offer a new 'take' on these by giving children the opportunity to actually CHOOSE the words they would like to say - not have to choose from ready-prepared pictures or words. This is empowering - I Can SPEAK without you, with Speech Sound Monsters!
Children who CAN speak also love the Monster Sounds!
They are so engaging that they learn to read and spell with the Speech Sound Monsters too!
It's difficult to convey just how much children love the Speech Sound Monsters!
They learn the Monster Sounds really quickly - because they see 'Sound Monsters' as play.
