Spelling to Communicate: Help for Individuals with Autism who are Nonspeaking or Minimally Speaking
*Free or low-cost sessions available with student practitioner*
My name is Lili Story, and I’m training to become a Spelling to Communicate practitioner to provide individuals who are unable to speak a way to express themselves by spelling on letterboards. As part of my training, I am seeking clients who are interested to participate in free in-person practice sessions.
How Does Spelling to Communicate Work?
Spelling to Communicate (S2C) teaches purposeful gross motor movements for selecting letters on letterboards to spell out words, over time building the motor skills and neural pathways needed to type on a keyboard. For individuals with autism who are nonspeaking or minimally speaking, challenges with motor functioning (apraxia) make gross motor movements much easier to manage than fine motor, which is needed for speaking and writing. By training the body in specific gross motor movements, nonspeakers can learn to use letterboards to communicate and participate in the world.
For more information, please visit the International Association for Spelling as Communication (I-ASC) website.
The homepage contains inspiring video testimonials from parents and nonspeakers using the letterboards, along with program information. At I-ASC we take the approach of presuming competency, which has been validated in every client S2C practitioners have worked with, and our goal is to provide access to communication for all.
Some of the free practice sessions I hold will be filmed and the videos shared with I-ASC staff for the purposes of my training process. No videos or client information will be shared outside of this organization. I am looking for 3-5 families who are available for weekly sessions, with one or more families starting by the 4th week of May. I can come to your home or provide another session location according to your preferences.
Once I am a certified practitioner these sessions will be offered as a service through the company I work for, Move Play Thrive.
If you live in the Olympic Peninsula/Puget Sound area and are interested in free sessions in S2C or want to learn more, please contact me at (360)-643-1131 or [email protected]
Regards,