Latest / AAC Access All Areas / What did we learn over the Summer?
Transcript
- Ali Battye (she/her): Hello and welcome to season two of AAC access all areas and we're both giggling because we usually decide who's going to start us off and we're clearly out of practice with this whole podcast malarkey because we didn't just agree that. So I'll hand over to Ruth now for today's question of the podcast episode. Ruth: Yeah and our question today which Ali floated the idea of and I think is great because we've both had a bit of a reprieve over summer and so our question was to ourselves what have we been learning reflecting and thinking about over the summer and I brought my list of one thing and Ali's got a list of eight things so clearly you can see who's been in the zone over the summer and who's maybe had a little bit of breather. Ali Battye (she/her): or who doesn't have young children. To be fair, Ruth, I have a 20-year-old and a 22-year-old compared with you are in the thick of a starting school and Ruth: Yeah, yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): primary school, aren't you? So, ugh. Ruth: gosh, yeah, yeah. Mine are seven and four and just started school this week and I will be totally honest, I drove to a new school I'm working with on Tuesday after dropping my youngest for their kind of second full day at school and I cried the whole way because I dropped them off in such distress. So it has been probably a of a heavy, a heavy week in the Jones household. and it feels nice to get to Friday. It feels very luxurious to have this time to chat with you all about AAC. I think it will be quite the tonic. And I'm thinking because you have eight things on your list, it might be worth starting with a couple of yours. Ali Battye (she/her): Okey dokes, right, and I am prepared. I've even written myself little notes today, which I don't usually do. So, the summer, I did have a two week break, almost two weeks, which was lovely, but I get twitchy. I think me and Ruth have talked about this before, that almost like our hobby is work, because we love our work so much. So I got straight back Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): into it after holiday. And a lot of mine... are connected with writing. So I'm having a bit of a writing year. So I've just submitted the manuscript of a new book, which is Neurodiversity Affirming AAC. So that was like a, that's nice to finish that. And then I got right into, I'm writing the second edition to my first ever book, which is Who's Afraid of AAC. And it desperately needed an update because it's like, 10 years since I wrote the last one or maybe even 11 and my thinking has changed so much like around neurodiversity affirming practice just learning much more around sort of like power dynamics and liberatory practice and and thinking about our profession, very much inspired by Warder Farah's work. If there's any speech and language therapists listening, please read Warder's book entitled White System Black Therapists, because there's just so much food for thought there that I think is applicable to so many minoritized identities. And we are, all of us, working with minoritized identities like one of those minorities. ties identities is communication differences. So you know even if there aren't other intersecting identities there's definitely that one to think about. So yeah, I've been doing a really big deep dive into the AAC research because that book is quite a technical one and it's aiming to cover like the entire AAC population, including adults. So I did feel as though I needed to do a lot of reading and updating myself. So some of the things I've been learning about, there's much more participatory research going on in AAC, which means Ruth: Mm-hmm. Ali Battye (she/her): AAC users are involved at every stage of the research, like from setting the research question to narrowing down the focus of the research to think about what's the point of the research, who's it going to benefit? And then like AAC users just guiding things like who could benefit from AAC? What are the potential long-term outcomes that we're looking for? And it's just, it is really lovely to see that model flourishing within the AAC world, where in other parts of our practice, that's what we're sort of trying to advocate for. But we've got like a model in AAC, it's happening already. So that's been really lovely. Yeah, and some really technical things that I've been learning about that blow my mind a bit. Computer brain interfaces have moved on. like where you've got a direct... like a bit like a cochlear implant that you've got like a receiver on your cortex. It's like a little operation to put an electrode array on your cortex and then like a receiver on the outside of your skull. So there's a man with ALS, which is a type of motor neurone disease, who is now using that and able to communicate because it's learned his way of thinking about words and spelling words so now he can form sentences just with that receiver which is kind of quite mind-blowing. And then haptics, have you ever thought about haptics Ruth and AAC because I haven't, with the vibration. So that's Ruth: yeah, yeah, like when your iPhone like does something when you move it or whatever, you can actually do that. Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah, yeah, jiggles when you want it to certain things, like for the alarm. And that's really useful Ruth: Hmm. Ali Battye (she/her): for the deafblind population. So I've been learning a little bit about that. So Ruth: No, no, no. Ali Battye (she/her): yeah, some really sort of like more technical things than I'm used to learning about. Ruth: That's really exciting. was taken back to before the summer. went to Marjane University to a conference that they held there. And there was a speaker whose name escapes me. feel like his name was Howard, but he had a implant and was using like a communication aid and did this talk with the, you know, with the implant. And I think they'd had like a problem and he had to go back and have it taken out and refitted. But Ali Battye (she/her): It's quite a big commitment. Ruth: Ultimately, is like brain. Yeah, it is quite equipment. That's it. And I had to go before the end of his talk. He had kind of quite a significant medical event, I think, sort of in his teenage-ish years Ali Battye (she/her): Mm. Ruth: that left him paralysed. And so it kind of took them a while to work out that presumed potential that... you know, like Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: the language was still there and that all those thinking skills were still there. And he'd been using AAC and then had the opportunity to go and have this chip fitted in his brain. And I was like, this is Ali Battye (she/her): Mmm. Ruth: terrifying and incredible all at once, you know. Yeah, Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Yes. Yes. Yes. And they have said they don't know what the long term implications Ruth: he is on Instagram, so I'll have to share it. Ali Battye (she/her): are, like they don't know whether scar tissue will grow over it or, Ruth: and Ali Battye (she/her): so it is specifically for MND at the moment because the life expectancy if you have MND is so short that they're kind of like trying it out with people who know they maybe have a couple of years to live. So it Ruth: Thank Ali Battye (she/her): may not be a solution for say cerebral palsy or other motor based problems. Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): But you know, at some point they might have something that doesn't involve drilling into your skull and implanting something within your skull. It might be something that goes completely external. But yeah, just a really Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): interesting area of research. Ruth: Hmm, I think like AAC technology is just constantly evolving, isn't it? I think when I trained iPads didn't exist. Like Ali Battye (she/her): Mmm. Ruth: they weren't even a thing. And so high tech AAC at that point was this thing called often a light writer, you know, like, it looked a bit Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: like a glorified scientific calculator, but it weighed about 50 kilos. And if you like dropped it, you couldn't pick it up again. it had a little screen and you could only type, it didn't have symbols or anything, it was only letters. And then now you look to where we get and you think, gosh, that's only in 16 years. What in another 16 Ali Battye (she/her): you Ruth: years might technology look like for AAC users? Not only the hardware in terms of the chips and Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Yes. Ruth: devices, but also kind of the software and the potential with AI and, you know, even things like predictive Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: text within AAC now, there's so much isn't there that can make Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah, yeah, because AI has been used within AAC for a long time, hasn't it? Sort of like probably Ruth: Mm. Ali Battye (she/her): for good 10 years. But I'm going, so what my number eight thing I've skipped ahead is I'm going to the Communication Matters Conference this weekend and I was just looking Ruth: you Ali Battye (she/her): over the programme and I love preparing for a conference because I go through and like put stars next to the things that I want to see and then there's always like six or seven things happening at the same time. So then I've got to narrow it down and which is my favourite for Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): all of those. but there's so many presentations about AI. would say AI is the hot topic this year at Communication Matters. So yeah, I'll be doing at least a couple on AI alongside other things. Ruth: I think it's really interesting because we think about sort of AI and communication. I think one of the things that historically that legacy thing has almost been like we have to teach children in that single word way with AAC that we have to build up their sentences. They've got to prove that they can use the language. Ali Battye (she/her): Mm-hmm. Ruth: Yeah, AI and kind of more modern ways of thinking is like, why are we making it harder when we should be making it easier? So if there are things that can predict a sentence and put it together for the child, and it's right, if there are things that can start to learn the way that an individual uses words and puts them together and it can help predict, AAC is not this sort of stepping stone to proving your thinking, which I think historically we've kind of had that practice around it and that proof, whereas now it's Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Yes. Yes. Ruth: like thinking more Just make communication as easy as possible. There is no requirement for all these steps Ali Battye (she/her): Yes, yes, Ruth: to be met. Ali Battye (she/her): yes, yeah, free up some cognitive load so that people aren't Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): using lots of effort for the sort of like operational side of things Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): and can focus on the things that they actually want to communicate about instead and live their Ruth: Mm-hmm. Ali Battye (she/her): lives as well as being able to communicate easily. Ruth: Yeah, well it kind of links in just before we came on, didn't we? We were talking about social media and how I've had this really luxurious break over social media and actually maybe for you over the summer you've had a bit more space because you finished one of the books, got that kind of sent off and we were just talking, weren't we, about the difference between being able to just point and talk at a camera and then actually the cognitive load of finding the words, putting them together, putting them down on paper to make visual images. Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: and sort of slides that people can swipe through on social media and even just for us as kind of efficient effective communicators most of the time using spoken language that difference feels very apparent if Ali Battye (she/her): Hmm. Ruth: you're an AAC user and you don't have access to that speedy version we don't want to make that written version whether it's symbols or single word typing and stuff we don't want to make it any more complicated than it has to be Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah, yes, yes, absolutely. Yeah. Shall I go on to another one and then I will give you a turn, Ruth, in a minute. I'm Ruth: No, no, it's fine, I'm a little bit listening. Ali Battye (she/her): sorry, I am dominating everything today. So another exciting thing is I've been working with an illustrator for Who's Afraid, AAC, and she's brilliant. So she illustrated, if anybody has come across, Bryony Rust's book. Ruth: you Ali Battye (she/her): It's about communication in the early years and I can't remember the exact title but it is lovely. It's a really lovely easy read and beautifully illustrated. Ruth: you Ali Battye (she/her): So I asked Bryony if she would mind if I use the same illustrator and she was more than happy for me to work with Victoria Eskandel or Vic and she has just done some really beautiful illustrations for the book. just showing images of AAC users and they've just got real character and it's just yeah it's really special to see those depictions of AAC users in everyday context. that's led me on to something else that's exciting so you know the YouTube books Ruth, you know the lovely picture books. Ruth: I love, love, them. Ali Battye (she/her): Yes, they're every speech and language therapist's favourite book. So it started off with You Choose and then there's like You Choose Fairy Tales and You Choose Christmas. Ruth: Mm-hmm. Ali Battye (she/her): They've just got like really rich pictures and sort of like children just get to choose their fantasy like Christmas dinner or... birthday cake in the You Choose party. And they so they brought out You Choose party time over the summer, which I was very excited about. And I've always liked You Choose for having like really good diverse accident incidental depictions of, you know, like different minority groups. And I had a conversation a few years back with the author Pippa Goodart because I was at Ruth: to reveal. Ali Battye (she/her): the Communication Matters then, the one that I'm going to this weekend. And I'd mentioned how much I love YouTube's books and it just happens that Pippa Goodart's daughter was in the audience. And so she came to me at the end and said, that's my mom's book. And we had a conversation and then I emailed her mom and we had like a conversation. We were talking about depictions of disability, just incidental Ruth: Bye. Ali Battye (she/her): depictions of disability. And in the YouTube's party time, So taking that on, well I'm taking credit for that, that's probably not me at all, they were just doing that because that's the kind of people they are. There were some really lovely incidental depictions of children with disabilities. So I just made a post about that and tagged Nick Sharrett and I just cheekily said maybe next time there'll be some AAC users in there. And he replied and said, we'll try and get that in for the next book. Look. Ruth: is you know what, like I talk to, I'm thinking about one particular individual that I work with and the conversations that I've had with their parents about representation. And if you Ali Battye (she/her): the Ruth: are a wheelchair user or a walking frame user with AAC, and maybe you've got hearing aids, maybe you've got, I don't know, visual, you might be wearing glasses. I work with quite a few children who use like sweeping sticks for their visual impairments, those kinds of things. And being able to feel, seen in a film, in a book is so powerful and these kids just don't get that in popular everyday Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: books that you know you do see around schools all the time so I think it's so lovely to have people like yourself who are opening those conversations but then also with receptive illustrators and authors who are thinking about it. Ali Battye (she/her): Yes, you need the receptive. Yes. Absolutely, yeah, yeah. So yes, that's really exciting. And then this is my last one before I hand over Ruth. I've also got together with another speech and language therapist and we are collecting parent stories, particularly from people themselves who are Gestalt language processors. So just collecting lived experience stories for a book because if you don't know anything about Gestalt language processors, I it's a relatively recent development in terms of lots of speech and language therapists and people knowing about it. It's been around probably forever. But there's a bit of resistance to it in certain quarters in the speech and language therapy world. So me and another therapist, she actually had the idea for it, which is a idea, to gather stories of lived experience. Because you just you can't argue with lived experience. Like if somebody says this is how I think and this is how I process language, you know, I don't think we as speech language therapists can then come and say, no, no, no, it's not a thing. It doesn't fit in with our models. So you've got some stories together. We had a working day in London, which was lots of fun and we read all the stories and sort of started to group them by theme. And they're just so powerful. These stories are so powerful of the difference it has made to children and adults when they have sort of like discovered what is going on, that this is a thing. And then putting in some of the supports that are recommended and the difference it has made for, you know, like wellbeing, connection with their child, understanding their child, being able to advocate for their child. So that was really exciting as well to be able to do that. Ruth: it sounds so lovely. I think there's something really nice, isn't there? Like you say, the powerful bit of what we do is not in whether somebody met a goal or a target. It is that nutritious, delicious richness that is the story behind that goal and behind the right support, isn't it? And if you listen to families who have... happened upon information about echolalia, now understanding it through that Gestalt language processing lens and supporting it through that natural language acquisition framework. The impact on the child and on the family is so Ali Battye (she/her): I know. Ruth: huge. And I think there's so much isn't there within neurodiversity affirming practice as well as within the Gestalt language processing practices we have where people in positions of power in those spaces, just say, I don't believe you. It's like Ali Battye (she/her): Hmm. Yeah. Ruth: this piece of sort of like, you know, irrespective of your question over research, over the quality of research, what is this gold standard, who are doodah? But what we do have to recognise is the practice based evidence that therapists day in, day out are seeing, hearing and noticing in the children and young people and families they're working with. But the lived experience of the children, of the adults who Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: now know that they were processing through Gestalt language processing, of the families who are seeing the difference in their interactions with their children. I, it just, I don't know, it just, I don't understand it. I always come from a place of... Ali Battye (she/her): Well, we don't have something, to me actually, it just occurred to me as you were talking there, it feels as invalidating to say like, gestalt language processing isn't a thing. That is as invalidating as saying gayness isn't a thing. You're not gay. You cannot say to somebody else what their identity is. So, yes, Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): it's bizarre and I, like you, I don't understand the resistance to it and I do, I've been thinking, we've both been thinking because we are both lucky enough to know Kate Boot, who's a speech and language therapist, who was sort of like introduced us to so much of this work and I think coined the term epistemic humility, which is Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): just the very human acknowledgement that we as speech and language therapists don't know it all. It's as simple as that. And so just being open Ruth: It is. Ali Battye (she/her): to new learning and new ideas, not from the speech and language therapy gang that we're already part of, but Ruth: Yeah. Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): opening our ears more widely to the families that we're supporting, to the other professionals that we're working alongside, and to the children that we're supporting, like really properly learning. from them. Yeah. Ruth: Yeah, and I think it is interesting because it takes me, in a way it takes me into the bit of reflecting that I've been doing and the bit of thinking I've been doing is September is always goal setting, annual reviews, that sort of stuff and I've been writing a couple of reports over the last week or two and I think within AAC EHC provision is something that I've been reflecting on so much because for some children whose families are funding my support and I'm working with them that way, we can have some very dynamic conversations because it doesn't really matter what's in the education, health and care plan. It's kind of an agreement over the goals. But there are other children I work with where what's in their education, health and care plan is what I deliver. And Ali Battye (she/her): in Ruth: if I'm writing updates for their education, health and care plan. And to take an example, there's a young person I'm working with, I've been working with them for a couple of years. Their education, health and care plan has X number of hours on it that I've been delivering. And that is X number of direct hours, which means me working with that child and X number of indirect hours, which means me doing all the notes, all the prep, all the AAC, you know, support in the background, Ali Battye (she/her): Thank Ruth: recording the training, liaising with family, liaising with the teaching team, delivering training, writing the reports, all that sort of stuff that... goes on in the background outside of that direct work and they've just moved class. So they're now in a new classroom with a brand new team. Prior to the holiday, I was seeing Ali Battye (she/her): mm. Ruth: that child for a longer stint once a month because Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: lots of little bits of that time divided up worked well, but Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: then it didn't work so well because actually I wasn't in class long enough. We didn't get to have those conversations with the team around that child as well as like having that therapeutic time. And now they've moved class. They've got a brand new team. There's no Ali Battye (she/her): and Ruth: teachers, TAs have moved with them into that classroom. So they don't really know any of the adults. The adults don't know really them. Ali Battye (she/her): Mmm Ruth: And their EHCP provision is what binds the work that I do. And it just started to kind of, you know, it's one of the problems, isn't it, with the EHCPs is that you have to be so specific, yet support needs to Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: be so dynamic and flexible. and you're sort of not in a position to make changes part way through a year without going through this whole process. I work with kids where we have their annual review and the system is so broken, EHCPs don't get updated for another year and a bit anyway, so no one really Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: knows what you're meant to be doing. But it just struck me and I think, you know, when we think about like the evidence base for how much therapy is the right amount and Ali Battye (she/her): Mmm. Ruth: you know, what our NHS colleagues would... be able to deliver or write into an EHCP versus what we would think about as an independent, but also Ali Battye (she/her): and Ruth: that the environment is so important for communicators. And so when that environment changes, by its very nature, we need to reconsider what support package that child has. Ali Battye (she/her): Yes, yeah. Ruth: Because if you're suddenly in a brand new classroom with brand new peers, with a brand new group of adults, what worked for you six, eight weeks ago, won't work or might not work for you when that environment around you changes, their communication skills haven't changed, but everything else has. And so if Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah, yeah, yes. Ruth: you've got, I don't know, training written into the EHCP, well, the training that I would have needed to do a year ago for a team that were quite AAC experienced and particularly Ali Battye (she/her): Okay. Ruth: experienced with that child is very different to the Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: environment, yet the EHCP provision hasn't actually changed. And Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: I guess it's just that frustration with this system that holds us to these stupid specific details that just don't work with dynamic communications. Ali Battye (she/her): Yes, just not dynamic and flexible enough, are they? Yeah, no, interestingly, I was thinking about this as well as I was driving back because I can't remember why I was on this little thought stream. But so I'm going to be a bit controversial here, but blow it. So. I think local services and regional AAC services are so restricted in the work that they can do now and the hours that they are allowed to spend supporting AAC users that I think there is a tendency to just sort of like use tracking tools once a year. I have seen Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): this happen. So they'll use a tracking tool like the DAG three, which is a terrible name for an assessment. one of the assessments. Ruth: of it. Ali Battye (she/her): And they'll set like four targets for the entire year. And it will be based on Janice Light's competencies, AAC competencies. Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): you know, like they might choose an operational one, which will be something about the child knows how to turn the volume up and down. And then there'll be a linguistic one, which is the child will combine two symbols. And then there'll be a strategic one, which is the child will know when to use which AAC tool for what purpose. And then what's the other one? The social one, they'll use it with a new communication Ruth: and Ali Battye (she/her): partner or something like that. they've got four very sort of very specific. goals. Whereas like when we've got the luxury of going in more regularly, it's so changeable and dynamic that I would say my processes, what are they into right now? What are they doing right now? What are they engaged with right now? And so Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): my job is just to notice that. And I'm sort of like mentally ticking off those skills when I see them rather than planning for them and trying to teach those skills. Because I think those sort of tracking tools assume that every child is on the same pathway and will acquire things in the same order. Ruth: Bye. Ali Battye (she/her): And we know that that's just not the the truth. Like there will be some AAC Ruth: Right. Ali Battye (she/her): users who maybe don't ever adjust the volume controls on their AAC. Ruth: and Ali Battye (she/her): But that doesn't mean that they failed or they might never combine two symbols, but they get enormous benefit out of having whole Ruth: Mm. Ali Battye (she/her): phrases on there. And they can actually sustain a brilliant conversation using single symbols, like really flexible conversation with single symbols. Ruth: and Ali Battye (she/her): So yeah, that's where I was going as well, where we are a bit straight jacketed with what you have to do for documentation purposes versus Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): what a child needs in the moment and how communication is so fluid. and bi-directional. It's both of us like building that moment and responding to what the child is into Ruth: and Ali Battye (she/her): and you can't possibly set that in a smart target once a year. Ruth: No, don't get me started on smart targets. But I think the thing that I found myself coming around to in this reflection is the environment piece. And actually for a lot of children that I work with where they don't really have much input from their local services and the local services maybe take more of a consultative approach where they will do that kind of they'll suggest targets and then maybe visit once or twice a year to check in. And one of the things that I really feel like is that quite often they're grounded in what a service should be able to provide. know, so some of these children might be in a special special school and what on the surface that school should be providing. Whereas what the reality is of a therapist when you're going into those provisions day in, day out is there are lots of staff changes. So you constantly on this treadmill of a TA leaves a new TA starts, they've got a shortage, they've got some agency in like how can you train up everybody and manage and monitor that situation? Ali Battye (she/her): you Ruth: Because it's constantly, that environment that they're in is constantly changing. And so having a regular visit from a therapist, whether that is weekly or fortnightly, monthly, half-termly, whatever it is, hold some space to really check in, tune in. Ali Battye (she/her): next. Ruth: and offer support and just notice what's changing in that child's communication environment because I think sometimes we presume, Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: we, that once you've got the provision in terms of they've got that placement at that place and we've got the AAC tool, that it then just is plain saying actually the reality of the environment and the reality of the people within the environment, the resource and the support means that Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: it doesn't mean that suddenly AAC is just getting used all day every day because even though Ali Battye (she/her): Yes, yes. Ruth: those classrooms might be low numbers of children, high numbers of staff, it just doesn't compute because there'll all be high support needs kids and there might be multiple AAC users with multiple different systems and all of these Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: complicated things. it just, yeah, and I didn't come to a conclusion. I found myself in a place where I could Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: write some nice goals for this young person and I wrote what I thought was a dynamic provision in terms of number of hours. Ali Battye (she/her): Hmm. Ruth: across an academic year that we could use flexibly as the needs Ali Battye (she/her): Okay. Ruth: shift and change throughout next year. Ali Battye (she/her): I think the flexibility is so key, isn't it, Ruth? So I have been trying to write provision into my reports when I'm recommending what the section F provision should be in an EHCP with more flexibility in mind, because I got this from Ruth: here. Ali Battye (she/her): another therapist in my local group, and she's brilliant. She's a total expert with EHCP provision. We can have that flexibility of, these are the amount of diuretics and indirect hours, but they may be used for classroom Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): support or one-to-one therapy or training or AAC Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): resources. And I do like that flexibility. I know some people would say, no, it needs to be tighter than that within an EHCP section F, I am more bending towards making it a bit more, let's make it flexible enough so that we can adapt to those on-the-ground changes like staffing. Yeah. Ruth: Yeah, that's it. And all that they really need is of numbers with an hourly rate to decide how much it's going to cost and whether they want to pay for it or not. You know, Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: if you ignore the whole dynamic of a human at the centre of it all. So whether Ali Battye (she/her): Thank you. Ruth: it's hours, whether it's weekly, if they've got that figure, that's Ali Battye (she/her): Hmm. Ruth: kind of where they that's the information that sits, isn't it, within that EHCP thing. So, yeah. Maybe that's a conversation for another day for all of our families and therapists that are listening. How Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: do I capture AAC provision within goals and EHCPs? In fact, that would probably be more than one half an hour conversation, wouldn't it? I'm Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: just getting back into the swing of things this week. So my glimmers really is just reconnecting with all of the children that I Ali Battye (she/her): and love Ruth: have missed so much over the summer holiday. Some of them I've seen this week, some of them I'm going to see next week. So it's just been so lovely being able to reconnect with them, find out how the summer's been. And then I also just get a chance to reconnect and sort of that interest of the new academic year. I think it really gets me Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: like, the new class, who's in your class? Like for them, Ali Battye (she/her): Yes. Ruth: it might not feel like that, but for me, I get that, you know, that sense of like, there's going to be a new teaching team to work with. And sometimes Ali Battye (she/her): Thank Ruth: that can be quite exciting. So think that's been my glimmer. What about for you? Ali Battye (she/her): Mine was from a TA this morning as I was going to get a child and I was going to be working in the classroom with this child and the TA who is new to working with that child just said, he's been doing so well and he was like really cheeky and used his talker to request something but then he added because he knew he wasn't allowed it in school so he added at home so he was saying that he wanted something but added it at end of his message at home. And then he did a similar Ruth: Bye. Ali Battye (she/her): thing with that he wanted to go out and play and he added later. like adding on those sort of like where and when bits to... a message is totally new and has also been typing a few words as well using the prediction. You know we're talking about saving effort. He's got an onscreen keyboard with prediction so he can type the first two or three letters and it comes up with the rest of the word for him. And so, yeah, he's getting that sense of accomplishment and competency because of AI integration within AAC apps. So, yeah, that was my Ruth: Yeah. Ali Battye (she/her): glimmer. for today. Ruth: my gosh, I feel like it's not a glimmer, it's like a glitter bomb that, that's incredible. Ali Battye (she/her): Yes, I love that. Yes, it was a glitter bomb going off in my head, yes. Ruth: you it has been so lovely to get back into this and we will be kind of working our way through a few outstanding questions and maybe some new ones on the Ali Battye (she/her): Thank Ruth: HCPs. And I think we're also thinking out we would quite like to try and get some other people in on our conversations Ali Battye (she/her): you Ruth: in season two Ali Battye (she/her): Yeah. Ruth: with maybe some AOC users and some kind of families, maybe some education. We'll kind of explore that, but hopefully that's a little taster of what we're. we're hoping we might be able to get together over this next academic year as we dive into this. So, yeah, thanks everyone for joining us and we'll be back soon. Ali Battye (she/her): Thank you, take care, bye bye.