Christine Baudin, M.S., Ccc-Slp, Bcs-Aac

Pinning this resource during the AAC app sale.

Thank you, Lauren! We appreciate you ❤️!

Check out this awesome ball and socket switch mount with custom switch mounting plate available on adaptedcreations.etsy.com This is my son's store. He sells keyguards, mounts, switches, and switch-adapted toys. He just received such a nice review about this mount. It's awesome seeing his products being used/loved and how his products = access for all. https://www.instagram.com/reel/C1Xw8SfJk6F/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

This awesome switch mount is available for sale with or without a switch in our store. Use this link: AdaptedCreations.Etsy.com This ball and socket tubing is extra long but can be shortened. Twist and position it at the perfect angle for your learner. Attach a switch to our custom 3D printed switch plate.

Edited to add PDFs:

Small grid display: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/AAC-Playground-Communication-Board-Display-with-QR-link-to-speaking-board-small-9584684

Large grid display: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/AAC-Playground-Communication-Board-Display-with-QR-link-to-speaking-board-large-9584671

This is truly an amazing new development.

The first playground communication board of its kind with a QR code that connects to a FREE board with voice output! Try it!

Finally, a parent, other partner, or AAC user can take the communication board with them to the playground equipment!

This project was a collaborative effort between CoughDrop, Sepideh Kobylivker, and myself. Center Street school of the Herricks School district in Long Island, NY is the first school to install this board in their playground. Printable PDFs of the grids are available and free for anyone to use. They are posted above.

News12 Long Island did the following story on this project: https://longisland.news12.com/center-street-elementary-school-opens-new-communication-board-for-nonverbal-students

Thank you, CoughDrop, for helping to make this happen!

Here’s the backstory if you’re interested. The main complaint about playground communication boards has been that they aren’t as functional as we had hoped because they can’t be taken along to the equipment. A PDF is possible but doesn’t speak. A laminated paper grid would eventually run out. As I knew CoughDrop had developed Co-VidSpeak, a free speaking online grid for patients unable to speak due to being ventilator dependent, I hoped that maybe they could somehow help me with developing a grid that could be opened on a smartphone via QR code. This would be the perfect solution to the portability issue of these fixed playground displays. We all have smartphones on us at all times! I reached out and they were absolutely willing to help. Dr. Kobylivker is a mom who wanted a playground board to be installed on her child’s school playground. She and I researched designs and she pushed us along the way to get it done! Melissa from CoughDrop helped with all technical aspects. It was a great collaborative effort! We still have to tweak it but it’s exciting that it’s here and I’m happy to share this for others to use, for free!

We were really pleased to be able to work on this project with and Christine Baudin. A bit of patience and effort and now communicators have a GREAT new option to share their thoughts, feelings, and needs. What an awesome project!!

Check out what my son, Michael Dicpinigaitis, and his team of undergraduate students at Cornell University are doing for the Ithaca community.

Big Red Adaptive Play and Design Re-Wires Toys for Accessibility The Big Red Adaptive Play and Design Initiative re-engineers toys and devices to boost their accessibility throughout Ithaca.

I’m excited to share that I was interviewed along with Ken Hackbarth from Volksswitch.org and my son, Michael Dicpinigaitis,on this week’s Talking with Tech podcast.

We talked about our collaboration, what keyguards are, and options for free ready-to-print designs on Ken’s website as well as low cost already printed keyguards on Michael’s Etsy store: https://www.etsy.com/shop/AdaptedCreations.

Have a listen and learn why keyguards can make a big difference. Give one a try!

Thank you to Chris Bugaj and Rachel Madel of the Talking with Tech AAC podcast! Definitely subscribe to this podcast to learn all about AAC. It’s wonderful podcast!

Here are some images of keyguards and the link to the episode:

https://talkingwithtech.podbean.com/e/ken-hackbarth-christine-baudin-and-michael-dicpinigaitis-using-3d-printers-to-make-inexpensive-aac-keyguards/

I just made this video for the Facebook group, AAC for the SLP, but I wanted to share here too!

October is AAC awareness month so I wanted to share a tip with everyone. For professionals and parents!

Would you love for your child’s staff to have an easy way to demonstrate what they say to their students? Make a card for their lanyards! You can make one for yourself too! I made this by taking a screenshot of the application and pasting it into a Google slide. 

Here’s my video demonstration….

Edited: the file to print for free is linked in the comments.

“It looks like…” is also what I recommend. Or, “I wonder if…”.

Try it!

Don’t “test” your child or student by saying, “What do you want?” “Show me.” “Tell me.” That’s at no no no.

Wait for that initiation of a gesture and then provide the model using one of the above recommended phrases.

Reframe your thinking and reframe your language! It helps me to keep a few simple things in mind.

1) “Teach, don’t test!” By this I mean our students will never know how to communicate if we don’t show them 💬

2) “Give them the words!” We need to model (to the best of our ability) what we THINK our students might want to say in a particular situation. We can’t read minds, HOWEVER, we are “experts” in communication! This is the time to examine our students’ nonverbal communication and use it to help us figure out what they might want to communicate to us! Then give them the words to match what they could be trying to communicate.

3) “Encourage, don’t require!” The last thing we want is for communication to feel like just another “task” they’re demanded to do. They need to see that communication has a purpose and that the purpose is to get them what they want or need (whether that’s to gain attention, make something stop, a break, assistance, participate in a social interaction, or to just be left alone!) I do my best to model allllllll the things (and hope they use the language I’ve modeled!) but I don’t force it! The minute it becomes a “task” it is no longer meaningful or fun! 🙃

Have you ever considered a keyguard? Keyguards are plastic overlays with holes. Not only are keyguards helpful for direct selection by guiding a finger point, but many individuals would be able to access a larger grid (more button cells) with a keyguard. 3D printed design tools are available and maybe you tried but perhaps couldn’t figure out how to set up the grid. Ordering a commercially available keyguard can be confusing with so many settings/drop down menus to choose from and they are expensive.

I just wanted to share that there is a new, easy, and economical way to obtain high quality keyguards that are ready to print. Ken Hackbarth from Volksswitch.com and I (I’m an SLP specializing in AAC) have collaborated on designing 3-D printed keyguards for select AAC applications and grid configurations within those applications. No figuring it out required! These keyguards were selected based on many commonly used AAC applications and configurations. See this link for photos of all keyguards to date: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/15RZQ7pAONKqf5xhDUcBg2HHNRtHRtcH0mkE-01ynPT0/edit?usp=sharing

As these are ready to print designs, they fit specific iPad cases. Cases were selected based on popularity, quality of built-in stand, and cost. In addition, we considered keyguard mounting methods that would eliminate the need of dismantling an iPad case in order to remove the keyguard!

The keyguard designs are available both for the DIY person who wants to print the file themselves as well as for those who prefer to purchase the printed keyguard or bundle with case. Keyguards can be downloaded for free on the Volkkswitch website and printed on a 3D printer with a bed large enough to fit the entire keyguard. Your local library or high school stem program may be able to print them.

Alternatively, Volksswitch has chosen the Etsy store, AdaptedCreations, to sell their designs. Michael Dicpinigaitis (disclosure: my son) a college student who created a free switch adapted toy lending program in high school called JerichoAdaptsToys.org, owns this Etsy store where he sells switch adapted toys and recently added the Volksswitch keyguards. Prices are affordable at about 1/3 of what commercially available keyguards cost. Keyguards can be purchased themselves or as a bundle along with their respective cases. An evaluator 2-keyguard bundle is also available at a reduced cost.

We hope that having these ready to print/purchase options will make keyguards more accessible, allowing more individuals to try them. We hope this collaborative effort will result in more professionals and AAC communicators obtaining keyguards.

Please see the following links for the keyguards:

DIY:
https://volksswitch.org/index.php/volks-devices/fully-customizable-3d-printable-aac-keyguard-for-tablets/

Purchase:
https://www.etsy.com/shop/AdaptedCreations

AdaptedCreations - Etsy Shop 3D Printed Keyguards and Switch Adapted Toys/Devices by AdaptedCreations located in Glen Head, New York. Smooth shipping! Has a history of shipping on time with tracking. Rave reviews! 95% or more recent reviews were 5 stars.