To say this has been “an incredible year” would be an understatement. Just 13 months ago the country was put on lockdown due to the Coronavirus. Life, as we all knew it would change in ways that we didn't think, would happen.

During this time, our face-to-face interactions were drastically curtailed. My wife and I hunkered down not knowing how long it would be with minimal interactions with family and friends. It really hit home for us when my brother was diagnosed with COVID. Although it was a mild case, it was a wake-up call for the severity of what would later become a pandemic.

People retreated to working from home, all face-to-face interactions were halted and PATINS as we know it was changed. We changed our routines to accommodate the rules set out by the CDC and as a result we worked together from home.

Zoom meetings replaced our staff interactions for meetings and working directly in person with those that we serve and support. We had previously moved to virtual staff meetings so this was not a real replacement for those in person.

Our first real test of the new norm was the rescheduling or our annual Tech Expo. The Tech Expo was a day-long event that allowed vendors from around the country to demonstrate technology and software to educational and support staff, parents, and students to get a hands on experience in a conference booth setting.

The Tech Expo was one of the biggest draws for PATINS to offer to anyone that registered at no cost and then came COVID.

PATINS had a decision to make, and it had to be a quick one. It was acknowledged that we could not have it in person, but would it be possible to have one virtually. That meant however no interaction with vendors, staff, parents, or students.

We had the tools, we had the staff, and Daniel McNulty and Jen Conti’s guidance formed the foundation. I would like to note here that the PATINS staff is a unique group that works like a well-oiled machine (had to add it) that pulled off several State and Tech Expo conferences in the past so the framework was there but the delivery would be much different.

On April 9^th, 2020, the PATINS Project had its virtual Tech Expo with over 500 virtual attendees and more than 40 vendors. In the middle of a pandemic, the PATINS Project continued its support to stakeholders with creativity and adjustments to the challenge which is marked in the PATINS Project mission.

As the year progressed, so did the virtual meetings and in November we held our 2-day Access to Education Conference virtually as well taking from the success and what we had learned from the previous Tech Expo.

We are now more than a year into our virtual environments and as there seems to be a positive transition into normalcy with the delivery of vaccines and continued recommendations from the CDC PATINS had decided some time ago to hold our Tech Expo virtually again this year.

Our expectations are still lofty, but our commitment to bring support and assistance to our stakeholders remains forefront.

It has been a tough year for everyone. We have all missed those personal interactions with family and friends. I have also missed the interaction with people at our Tech Expo and Access to Education conferences. It is the personal “touch” and spontaneity of the interactions that cannot be achieved virtually.

As we move forward cautiously but with purpose, we may move closer to an ease in virtual visiting and more face-to-face interactions that we all so desperately need.

Postscript:

As I submit this blog, we have just held our 2021 Tech Expo! It was all I described above and more. We had 600 participants with 50 vendors either presenting or manning the virtual exhibition hall.

However, with all its success, it still had a somewhat sterile feel unlike our many in-person events.

The PATINS Project will continue to strive to meet and exceed the needs of the students of Indiana be it in-person or virtual. Hopefully, we can Zoom to in-person.

Thoughts, prayers, and sincere condolences to the families and loved ones of the Indianapolis FedEx workers killed this day April 16, 2021. May they rest in peace.

Cheesy 1990s school photo featuring a cream colored chihuahua looking off in the distance as the misty backdrop set against a neon laser background, with another picture of the same chihuahua in the foreground looking at the camera with

I had a student we’ll call Todd. Todd’s favorite things were the zoo, reading animal books, and quizzing people on their animal knowledge. One of my favorite days working with him started with a very rough morning with a writing assignment.

“It’s a letter to anyone,” his teacher explained. “We’ve been at this all morning and he only has one word written.”

Todd looked crestfallen. After animals, pleasing adults was one of his favorite things. His teacher knew that if Todd hadn’t started something, it wasn’t because he was “stubborn” but he struggled to get started with new tasks and needed another way to approach it.

We went back to my "speech room" and looked at the blank paper. I had lots of tools at my disposal: adapted pencils, keyboards, voice dictation software, wiggle seats, kits and binders of visual supports for writing, and of course I had free access as an Indiana public school employee to the PATINS Lending Library to borrow whatever I thought might help Todd. I thought of my tools, I thought of Todd and what he needed and remembered his special nerd power.

“Do you want to write a letter to a dog?”

Todd nodded, still a little hesitant after an hour of trying to write and nothing coming out.

“You could write to my dog, if you wanted. She would write you back.”

“You have a dog?!”

So I told him about my chihuahua, Winnipeg. Winnie was abandoned on the street in Indianapolis and we adopted her. She loves blankets, snuggles, and sandwiches. I had a hunch she loved reading and writing letters.

Todd immediately scribed five sentences (one of his accommodations, since tools like speech-to-text software were not accessible for him), and put the periods and capitalization in himself:

Dear Winnie,

Don’t eat all the treats. Why are you a little dog? You are a good loving dog. Play tug of war with Mrs. Conrad. Don’t wake your dad Winnie.

Love,

Todd

It may never make it into a library or be critically acclaimed, but it is one of my favorite written works a student has ever produced. I felt like Winnie earned Employee of the Year that day. Relationships paired with the best ways for access wins every time.

Some of our pets have put in more hours and done more service to humanity in general and Indiana students specifically than they’ll ever understand. They’ve been especially treasured and faithful companions this past year, while we spent way more time on “their” home. They are therapeutic little creatures who remind us to enjoy simple pleasures, take care of ourselves, maybe take a nap in the sun sometimes.

If you’d like to see some of our PATINS pets, I created a short quiz. See if you can guess what pet belongs to which staff member!

Todd got his letter from Winnie the next week, and he was rightly suspicious:

“Did she write this by herself?”

“Good question, what do you think?”

“She can’t use a pencil.”

“No, she can’t.”

“But maybe you can scribe, like how you do with me.”

“I think that’s a great idea.”

I'd love to hear about your pet and the little acts of service they do for you, your family, or students!

5 min read

I've been working with a student and his team. They have moved successfully albeit slowly through using the tools below. At some point a few years ago, this student was evaluated and deemed to be a candidate for a dedicated speech generating device (SGD) with eye gaze (very expensive but a key part of a communication system for the right person). His team (student, parents, teachers, SLP, OT, PT and support staff) was keen to make his SGD work for him. The student has cerebral palsy that reduced his limb movement/accuracy, so much time had already been invested AND after all, this solution was expensive.

Why change? This can be awkward. How do you bring up the topic of a significant change to access and trajectory of the student's goal/language programming? Two things; the eye gaze never really worked as well as expected AND the student became increasingly frustrated often abandoning the device. Eye gaze could be revisited but it was important to recognize that it was not working. Time to think about the S - Student, his M - Moves, his C - Clicks and his C - Chats. More about that later.

Head control/calibration were hurdles interfering with access. Using the tools mentioned below, this student demonstrated enough consistent and accurate improvement to control switches with his head and hand for scanning. His language setup was changed (Core Scanner on an Accent 1400) to work more efficiently with two switch scanning (i.e., he presses one switch to move through icons and the other switch to select his word).

He is reportedly thrilled with his new access method. He smiles more and enjoys communicating often producing spontaneous sentences.

First of all, you must gather data. If you don't have data, it's just your opinion.  

I sometimes hear that students "inconsistently respond" to stimuli or questions, it "depends on how they are feeling", "if they're in the right mood", "they are being stubborn", etc. Maybe. Perhaps we have not presented motivating stimuli, observed the tiniest of responses,  offered the most appropriate access method, or given the student adequate wait time.

SETT is an acronym for Student, Environments, Tasks, and Tools created by Joy Zabala. It is a FREE resource. "Although the letters form a memorable word, they are not intended to imply an order, other than that the student, environments, and tasks should be fully explored before tools are considered or selected. Some people have tried to explore the first three separately and in order, however, that is nearly impossible because the first three are closely linked." The SETT Framework is so important, it's at heart of our process for the PATINS AAC Consultation Request form.

Another important tool to set the groundwork is the Every Move Counts, Clicks and Chats sensory based approach (EMC3). It is available to borrow from the PATINS Project Lending Library. EMC3 is a sensory-based communication program. It is based on the idea that everyone communicates in some way. The COUNTS Assessment explores sensory, communication, and symbols. The are seven sensory areas: vestibular, proprioceptive, tactile, visual, auditory, olfactory, and gustatory. The CLICKS Assessment looks for purposeful switch use. The CHATS Assessment is used to collect communication skills. It states that "Assessment results are seldom 'final'. Needs, abilities, and environmental demands change over time."

A third tool useful for SETTing students up for success is to establish a baseline for communication skills and determine goals. The Communication Matrix is an online/questionnaire tool for anyone in the early stages of communication. The first 5 assessments are FREE. Communication is more than just receptive and expressive, students also need methods to refuse, obtain items, socialize, and gather/share information. These functions of communication can be measure/quantified by using the Communication Matrix.

Hand in hand with these pieces is understanding the absolute need for flexibility, continuous learning, and ongoing assessment with students. It is a fluid process that can and should be revisited periodically as the student changes, technology changes or when things stop working as well as they had in the past.

SETT your students up for success. Use the SETT, EMC and Communication Matrix to better understand the student, environment, tasks/needs, sensory responses, access abilities AND communication skills. THEN consider the T - Tools to empower your students and goals for success. If the tools don't seem to be working, collect data and try something else!

If you would like to learn more, check the PATINS Project training calendar or reach out to a PATINS Project Specialist for more information.

The PATINS Project Tech Expo is fast approaching - Thursday, April 15, 2021. It's FREE. Get registered!

Additional resources:

SETTing Up Successful AAC Use - Lauren Kravetz Bonnet, PhD, CCC-SLP

The Dynamic AAC Goals Grid DAGG-2

Symbol Assessment