Theme
3:15pm June 29, 2014

dendriforming:

He’s too smart to not be typing.

- A friend who does respite, talking about one of the kids she works with.

I know there are articles about why intelligence and language ability don’t necessarily mean someone should be using keyboard-based AAC. But I don’t know how to find them anymore. Can anyone point me to anything?

I don’t know the articles.

But I do know that:

1.  Intelligence doesn’t give people the motor skills to type on keyboards, and a lot of people have severe motor or motor planning problems.  Motor planning problems are not the same as coordination problems, a person can be highly coordinated in some areas yet be unable to type.

2.  He could have a severe aphasia or dysphasia that prevents word-finding.  Or other cognitive problems that are very specific to finding and typing words.  In that case, he would need something where the words are already there, and he could point to them, or something with pictures, or something else like that.

3.  He could be illiterate.

4.  He could for some other reason need AAC that involves pictures or something other than words.  Or where the words are already formed, rather than being typed out letter by letter.  Or where there’s switches, or scanning, or other means of entry besides typing.

You probably know all that, but those are all things you could tell the person.  Sorry it’s so scattered.

Notes:
  1. transdragon reblogged this from withasmoothroundstone
  2. withasmoothroundstone reblogged this from dendriforming and added:
    I don’t know the articles. But I do know that: 1. Intelligence doesn’t give people the motor skills to type on...
  3. chavisory said: Oh my gawd. It’s like motor issues aren’t a thing.
  4. into-the-weeds said: djfga;ksfgj;kgf (I don’t know where to find those articles, but would you be willing to share what you do find?0
  5. dendriforming posted this