This post is the second in a series geared towards tackling some of the big issues school professionals have about supporting students for emotional wellness and success. You can read the first post here, or scroll down to read this edition’s big question . . . An SLP writes: “I find that teams do not… (read more)
Here in The Hello Clinic, we pick a theme each month. In February, we focused on favorite ways to play. Easy-peasy. I get that. (By the way, “Model Building” was the big winner. Thanks to all of our in-office clients for voting!) This March, it’s “wraparound.” If you’re like me, you might guess that “wraparound”… (read more)
If you could ask a school psych about anything — supporting students, eligibilities, roles and responsibilities, trainings, programs, emotional wellness in kids — what would you ask? We asked our colleagues here at Hello this question a while back and I received some really excellent questions. Here’s one of my favorites, asked by an SLP who has… (read more)
We often hear that play is important for developing healthy and happy brains. As a school-based SLP, I am in a unique position to bring play into the days of my students and co-workers – and into my own day, as well! Dr. Stuart Brown, play researcher and TED talk presenter on play, recommends incorporating more “joyful,… (read more)
![](<blockquote><p><em>“At a recent private Portland Business Journal event, it finally hit me—my ‘Portland business normal’ of predominantly white males can no longer be acceptable for Portland.”</em></p></blockquote>
<p>And so begins Ryan Buchanan’s recent blog post titled <a href="http://eroi.com/ideas/portland-business-community-too-white-too-male/">“Portland Business Community: Too White, Too Male.”</a> As the CEO of local company <a href="http://eroi.com/">eROI</a>, he knows what he’s talking about. I had the privilege of attending a different Portland Business Journal event last year, and I can’t say I disagree with him. Even in the “whitest city in America” (ugh), the event was remarkable for it’s white-dudeness. And that’s saying something.</p>
<p>He’s also right about it being unacceptable. We lamented that Hello itself is too white, too <em>female</em> at our leadership team retreat a couple of months ago, and made a commitment to being proactive about both understanding and changing that in 2016. Proving that The Universe works in mysterious and wonderful ways, we were recently asked to be a part of the new program that Buchannan is spearheading. And of course, we have accepted.</p>
<p><a href="http://emergingleadersinternship.org/" rel="attachment wp-att-9827"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-9827" src="http://thehellofoundation.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/portland-emerging-leaders_logo_150t.png" alt="Portland Emerging Leaders Internship Program" width="532" height="150" /></a>The <a href="http://emergingleadersinternship.org/">Emerging Leaders Internship program</a> pairs Portland businesses with college students of color for paid summer positions. We’ve never had an intern before, let alone one of the brightest and best in the city, so we’re pretty dang excited. And no, not because we need someone in the mail room (we don’t have a mail room, for the record). We’re excited because there are important voices missing from around our table (ok, fine, we don’t really have a table either, but, you get the idea). Hello can help new and different voices be heard in our fair city, and those voices can help us make a better life for the students and families we serve. How could we possibly say no? :-)</p>
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“At a recent private Portland Business Journal event, it finally hit me—my ‘Portland business normal’ of predominantly white males can no longer be acceptable for Portland.” And so begins Ryan Buchanan’s recent blog post titled “Portland Business Community: Too White, Too Male.” As the CEO of local company eROI, he knows what he’s talking about. I had… (read more)
![](<p>[caption id="attachment_9384" align="alignright" width="225"]<a href="http://thehellofoundation.com/districts/people/" target="_blank"><img class="wp-image-9384 size-medium" src="http://thehellofoundation.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/IMG_0011-e1447698278530-225x300.jpg" alt="Lucinda Bowman and Gina Ossanna celebrate after a successful PD event on AAC/AT" width="225" height="300" /></a> Lucinda Bowman and Gina Ossanna celebrate after a successful PD event on AAC/AT[/caption]</p>
<p>Last week Hello folks gathered for our Fall Professional Development event to learn about the latest tricks of the trade in Assistive Technology. <a href="http://thehellofoundation.com/people/gina-ossanna/">Gina Ossanna MS, CCC-SLP</a> shared tools used to support students with learning challenges in the general education classroom, and <a href="http://thehellofoundation.com/people/lucinda-bowman/">Lucinda Bowman MS, CCC-SLP</a> shared her expertise and reviews of speech generated devices.</p>
<p>Let’s be honest – Assistive Technology is one of the lesser understood parts of special education. As specialists we know that it exists, but rarely see it being used to its full potential. With the increased use of technology in the classroom, however, it is becoming easier for students to access the curriculum with a variety of tools.</p>
<p>Here are some of the highlights of what was shared last week:</p>
<p>[caption id="attachment_9387" align="alignleft" width="153"]<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/snaptype-for-occupational/id866842989?mt=8" target="_blank"><img class="wp-image-9387" src="http://thehellofoundation.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/snaptype1-163x300.jpeg" alt="" width="153" height="281" /></a> Snaptype app for iPad/iPhone[/caption]</p>
<p><strong>3 AT tools you should try (and maybe already have)!</strong></p>
<p><em>– Text to speech (reads text out loud</em>) – audio books, built in features on Safari and Chrome browsers</p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><em>– Speech to text (Dictation)</em> – Dragon, Siri on iPad</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><em>– Writing supports (word prediction, flexible spelling, topic dictionaries)</em> – Co:Writer, Read and Write, built-in supports on iPad/smart phones</span></p>
<p>A variety of free and low-cost apps were also shared. Perhaps the most popular app was <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/snaptype-for-occupational/id866842989?mt=8">Snaptype</a> (Pro – $3.99, Lite -free, ), an app that allows student to take a picture of a worksheet and then type in answers. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kidspiration-maps/id675321195?mt=8">Kidspiration</a> ($9.99, Lite – free) is also an app with a variety of graphic organizers to support students with writing.</p>
<p>For the second half of our evening, Lucinda shared her expertise on the ever-changing world of speech generating devices (SGD’s). She outlined how to trial SGD’s with students, and how to determine what is the most appropriate voice output device for each client. Lucinda also reviewed the SGD’s that are currently on the market, and the pro’s and con’s of each device.</p>
<p>[caption id="attachment_9383" align="alignleft" width="259"]<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/avaz-pro-aac-app-for-autism/id558161781?mt=8" target="_blank"><img class="wp-image-9383" src="http://thehellofoundation.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/avaz-pro-300x225.jpeg" alt="" width="259" height="194" /></a> Avaz Pro app for iPad[/caption]</p>
<p>Lucinda’s favorite SGD right now is the <span style="font-weight: 400;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/avaz-pro-aac-app-for-autism/id558161781?mt=8">Avaz Pro</a> app for iPad (AvazInc. $199.99). It has </span><span style="font-weight: 400;">35 languages, access to Core & quick words at all times, a keyboard, mini games to teach skills, tracks use & progress, and is easy to program. Specialists can obtain a </span>Free evaluator copy of AVAZ for AAC trials <a href="https://avazapp.viewpage.co/Workshop">here</a>.</p>
<p>It is amazing to see how the development of voice output devices is changing given the availability of iPads and other tablets. Each device clearly has its own advantages – it will be interesting to see how the field of AAC/AT changes over the next 10 years.</p>
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Last week Hello folks gathered for our Fall Professional Development event to learn about the latest tricks of the trade in Assistive Technology. Gina Ossanna MS, CCC-SLP shared tools used to support students with learning challenges in the general education classroom, and Lucinda Bowman MS, CCC-SLP shared her expertise and reviews of speech generated devices…. (read more)