CALLING ALL SPECIAL EDUCATORS: Enter to win a Playground Communication Board for your School

Smarty Symbols will be giving a Large Playground Communication Board to a School in the United States Smarty Symbols has recently started an initiative to make playgrounds more inclusive around the world. We have a collection of beautifully designed communication boards for public display.  You can preview our boards here. Children should have access to a personal communication device, but making communication boards available in public areas can benefit not only the children [...]

By |2022-06-24T16:54:07-04:00June 24th, 2022|Categories: AAC, Blog, Core Vocabulary, School, Special Education|Tags: , |0 Comments
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What are the benefits of a playground communication board?

What are the benefits of a playground communication board? Playgrounds are important for children’s physical and mental health. They let kids explore their surroundings, run around, and blow off some steam after a long day of school. For kids who have difficulty communicating or engaging with others, playgrounds can also be a great place to practice these skills. However, for non-verbal children practicing those skills can be challenging if their communication tools are not readily available.  One way [...]

By |2022-09-17T09:52:10-04:00May 16th, 2022|Categories: AAC, Blog, Communication Boards, Special Education, Visual Support|Tags: , |0 Comments
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What are Social Stories and How does it Benefit a Child with Autism?

As parents, we use casual expressions with children that are mostly of a different nature: "quiet sound", "don't touch" and "play nicely". But what do these sentences really mean for an autistic child? Social situations and all the expected behaviors that accompany them are difficult for autistic children, and "playing nice" simply does not provide all the information the child needs to respond properly. Fortunately, the concept of social stories was devised by Carol Gray in 1991, and [...]

By |2022-09-17T09:55:59-04:00April 7th, 2020|Categories: Autism, Parenting, Social Skills, Social Stories, Special Education, Visual Support|Tags: |0 Comments
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Speak for Yourself updated symbols key

If you are looking for a large printout of the arrangement of Smarty Symbols on the AAC app Speak for Yourself, you have come to the right place! Smarty Symbols is the symbol of choice on the Speak for Yourself app for iPad. We have prepared a pdf. file that you can download and print for yourself to use as a companion to the app and also to use and find symbols on our website. HOW TO USE [...]

By |2022-09-20T10:44:03-04:00November 5th, 2018|Categories: Blog, Communication Boards, Special Education, Visual Support|Tags: , , , , |0 Comments
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Ataxia and Communication

Ataxia is a condition that affects muscle control and can cause problems with walking, eye-movements, and speech. WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF ATAXIA? The symptoms of ataxia may include: A lack of coordination Difficulty walking Changes in fine motor skills such as eating and writing Changes in speech Involuntary back-and-forth eye movements Difficulty swallowing WHAT CAUSES ATAXIA? Ataxia can be caused by damage to the part of your brain that controls muscle coordination. Ataxia can also be caused [...]

By |2022-09-17T10:04:56-04:00October 12th, 2017|Categories: AAC, Special Education, Speech Therapy|Tags: , |0 Comments
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