Happy Spooky Halloween!

Happy Spooky Halloween from AACCommunity.net with ghost holding AAC device: White scary clothes face say boo.

This year, Halloween is supposed to be a beautiful day here in eastern Pennsylvania. The sun will be shining and the weather will be warm. But how many kids will be out Trick or Treating in the middle of a pandemic? This year will be different for sure. 

How can we still celebrate spookiness and the season if we are stuck in our homes? A few ideas come to mind: 

Watch kid-friendly (or not!) scary movies together. Some names that top the list for kids include:

  • Ghostbusters
  • Coraline
  • The Spiderwick Chronicles
  • Miyazaki’s Spirited Away
  • The Witches 
  • Hocus Pocus

Don’t put your AAC device away. Watch and comment. What a great chance to dive into those descriptive words in the AAC system! Describing is a core part of the Descriptive Teaching Method. Don’t forget the popcorn!

If you don’t feel safe going trick or treating, try a candy hunt indoors. This gives you a chance to model question words and prepositions (on top, under, up high). As well, pull in the colors and the concepts of “hot” and “cold” (or comparatives, such as farther and closer). 

AAC device: Far, far, go more.

For those who want more descriptive language, find ways to talk about the monsters in a Halloween book. A goblin could be described as ”green, ugly, and mean”. A jack o lantern might be an “orange scary ball face.”

Remember, if you can describe things, you can show what you know. The goal is generative language. 

But most of all, have fun. 

Happy Spooky Halloween from us here at AAC Community.

Happy Spooky Halloween from AACCommunity.net with ghost holding AAC device: White scary clothes face say boo.

 

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Kathryn Helland

Kathryn is a certified speech-language pathologist and works with children and adults with complex communication needs. She has been with the TechOWL team since 2015 and is currently working on her doctorate. She would like to examine how to best support AAC users in higher education.

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