Parents' Corner
December 2008
A Template for Lesson Planning
Robin Hurd
Recently, I had a letter from a teacher wondering if I could suggest a template for lesson planning to support language. “What a good idea”, I thought. Not only could a template be useful for teachers when planning for students with complex communication needs, it could also be helpful for parents when planning what words or phrases to focus on at home.
You will find a template at the end of this article. For now, I’ll describe to you the process that you would use to fill in this template, and what I expect it would help you to achieve.
Students who use AAC who are learning words or phrases need to use them in a variety of ways and situations throughout the day. This is called naturalistic teaching. The opposite of this is the way most of us learned spelling words in school. We spelled the words over and over again, but not in a situation when we might actually be writing the word and would need to spell it. Many of us who did this drill and practice verbally can spell tough words only when we say the letters out loud (or mutter under our breath.) That is because the drill and practice way we learned to spell those words did not mimic the way we would need to use those words as adults.
For children who have complex communication needs, learning within the natural environment is even more important. The ability to transfer knowledge from one environment to another may not be as strong as it is for other children. Because of this, what is learned in one setting may STAY in that setting. AS an example, my sons learned right and left while driving their wheelchairs. If you test them on their knowledge of right and left while driving, they do well. But if you ask them to touch the right side of the paper, or hold up their right hand, they do poorly. That information did not transfer from one setting to another.
In this template, you will start by filling out the target word or phrase you wish to work on. When choosing the target, you want to pick something that can allow the student to communicate more than they currently can, and can be used in a lot of different situations. Generally, these words or phrases would come up on lists of high frequency, or core vocabulary words. Here is the link to a list of core vocabulary words gathered from the research on the topic. http://www.aacinstitute.org/Resources/ProductsandServices/PeRT/040615GeneralCoreVocabulary.txt
You may also find it helpful to use the data logging feature on a high tech voice output AAC system to gather a sample of words the child now uses. This will give you an idea of what words might fill in communication gaps and take their communication to the next level. An article about using the data logging feature is available at: http://www.aacinstitute.org/Resources/ParentsCorner/2004December.html
Once you have chosen the target words or phrase, you will fill in ways to use that word or phrase within the context of different activities. The template includes reading, science, social studies and math as well as snack and play time. Fill in as many of these areas as apply to your child. In addition to the subject areas, the template includes a place to write a question that the target words of phrase can answer. This is very important to provide as many chances as possible to use the target. When Joshua learned the word “now” and needed to practice it a lot in order to keep what he had just learned, we asked the question, “when do you want it” almost any time he asked for something. This gave him many chances to reply with “now” and to cement that word in his mind.
Here is an example of how the template might be filled in for a child who will be learning to use the word “turn”. The template gives the communication partner a plan to help them set up opportunities to use “turn” in different ways throughout the day. As the child goes through the week, the target words will be supported in a variety of settings. Because the parents and/or school staff know ahead of time what words they are aiming for, it is easy to design ways to use the words that fit into the daily routine. Parents or teachers may even find additional chances to practice the new word that aren’t on the template. The key to learning the new word is designing the environment so that the practice takes place in natural settings where using the word makes sense.
Use your judgment on when to move on to a new target word or phrase. Your child may catch on to the target words very quickly, and you may choose to move to a new target in a week. Or it may take longer for the target word to become comfortable to the child.
Click here for a blank template for your use. Please feel free to print it, paste it into a document and adapt it to suit your child’s specific situation. Please contact me if you cannot open the .rtf file.
As always, feel free to e-mail me at parents@aacinstitute.org with any questions or comments.
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