First off, congratulations!!! You are about to take the first steps on your AAC, language and literacy journey. What an exciting time of growth, problem solving, creativity, and progress! Here are a few tips for those very early weeks and months, to help you get started on the right foot.
Personalize the device. The language has to be meaningful to them. It is important when you get the device to begin using it to request favorite people, toys, shows, music and food (if they eat by mouth). So first you will need to personalize the device so the child is aware that "my favorite things are in there!" If they have functional vision, you can use icons and pictures when necessary (for example, photos of people).
Keep it simple. They say it, they get it. In the very beginning, your child is an emerging communicator. That means they need to look at the device, make a selection, hear the word or words and then experience the language. For example, they look at the icon of bubbles, they activate the button (touch, switch, eye gaze), hear the words "I want bubbles" and then experience you blowing bubbles.
Acknowledge their attempts. They need to learn that when they talk, you are listening and respecting their voice. So if they say something and we assume they didn't mean to say it and therefore ignore the selection, we teach them that their voice doesn't matter. So, instead, we presume they meant to make that selection and they get to experience the language. Now...there are limits. This is not a giant and expensive choice making machine. There are many other functions of language including acceptance (yes, more), rejection (no, all done), asking and answering questions, social greetings, etc. So, if your child asks for ice cream at 2:00 am, you can say "I hear you want ice cream but we don't eat ice cream in the middle of the night." You acknowledge their voice. They aren't little dictators and they get to hear "no" or "not right now" just like everyone else. They might cry or be mad. How wonderfully typical is that communication exchange? Now, we are communicating!
Do not question their intent/accuracy and do not test them. You may have moments in the beginning where you wonder, "But did they really mean to say that?" AAC users only learn what the symbol means by seeing it, touching it, hearing it and experiencing it. So we are NOT testing them. We are NOT saying "FIND THE... bubbles" and then when they activate "music" we decide they don't know "bubbles". They may actually prefer music over bubbles and are not wanting to follow your directions. They may not know what the bubbles or music icons mean, but they are exploring and learning. We are teaching them a new language. When a baby says "mamamamam" do they know that you are called "mama"? We don't care! We teach that what they just said has meaning by saying "That's right! I'm your Mama...Mama...Mama." We don't get caught up in whether or not they meant to say that. We attribute meaning to their form of communication and they then learn that you are "mama" and when they say "mama," they get you! Children using communication devices deserve the same chance to explore!
Model, model, model. If you are expecting your child to communicate using AAC, you must communicate with them using their AAC devices. The input must match the expected output. When you are talking, model by touching the correlating button on the screen. You select "music" and then turn on their favorite song and dance for a minute. You select "help" and then assist them in completing a task. The same way they learn through exploration (see it, say it, hear it, experience it), they will learn while attending to your modeling.
Personalize the device. The language has to be meaningful to them. It is important when you get the device to begin using it to request favorite people, toys, shows, music and food (if they eat by mouth). So first you will need to personalize the device so the child is aware that "my favorite things are in there!" If they have functional vision, you can use icons and pictures when necessary (for example, photos of people).
Keep it simple. They say it, they get it. In the very beginning, your child is an emerging communicator. That means they need to look at the device, make a selection, hear the word or words and then experience the language. For example, they look at the icon of bubbles, they activate the button (touch, switch, eye gaze), hear the words "I want bubbles" and then experience you blowing bubbles.
Acknowledge their attempts. They need to learn that when they talk, you are listening and respecting their voice. So if they say something and we assume they didn't mean to say it and therefore ignore the selection, we teach them that their voice doesn't matter. So, instead, we presume they meant to make that selection and they get to experience the language. Now...there are limits. This is not a giant and expensive choice making machine. There are many other functions of language including acceptance (yes, more), rejection (no, all done), asking and answering questions, social greetings, etc. So, if your child asks for ice cream at 2:00 am, you can say "I hear you want ice cream but we don't eat ice cream in the middle of the night." You acknowledge their voice. They aren't little dictators and they get to hear "no" or "not right now" just like everyone else. They might cry or be mad. How wonderfully typical is that communication exchange? Now, we are communicating!
Do not question their intent/accuracy and do not test them. You may have moments in the beginning where you wonder, "But did they really mean to say that?" AAC users only learn what the symbol means by seeing it, touching it, hearing it and experiencing it. So we are NOT testing them. We are NOT saying "FIND THE... bubbles" and then when they activate "music" we decide they don't know "bubbles". They may actually prefer music over bubbles and are not wanting to follow your directions. They may not know what the bubbles or music icons mean, but they are exploring and learning. We are teaching them a new language. When a baby says "mamamamam" do they know that you are called "mama"? We don't care! We teach that what they just said has meaning by saying "That's right! I'm your Mama...Mama...Mama." We don't get caught up in whether or not they meant to say that. We attribute meaning to their form of communication and they then learn that you are "mama" and when they say "mama," they get you! Children using communication devices deserve the same chance to explore!
Model, model, model. If you are expecting your child to communicate using AAC, you must communicate with them using their AAC devices. The input must match the expected output. When you are talking, model by touching the correlating button on the screen. You select "music" and then turn on their favorite song and dance for a minute. You select "help" and then assist them in completing a task. The same way they learn through exploration (see it, say it, hear it, experience it), they will learn while attending to your modeling.