Back-to-school time: when the  smell of new crayons, paper, and books fills the air, and parents and kids are counting down the days (for different reasons).  Back-to-school sales are in full swing and kids need the latest and trendiest school supplies. I have worked at least partly in schools for my entire career, so I have never had to miss the thrill of excitement I get from shopping for new pens, paper, and other school supplies. As each year gets in to gear, however, I have noticed that a lot of kiddos start the year thinking they have everything they need for school, but end up needing my speech services as the year progresses. According to ASHA, speech and language impairments can negatively affect child's school work in the following ways: 

If you follow my Facebook page, you have probably seen a lot of links that have to do with AAC. You may be wondering, "What is AAC? Is she just saying the ABC's wrong?" Well, AAC stands for Augmentative and Alternative Communication. According to ASHA,  it " includes all forms of communication (other than oral speech) that are used to express thoughts, needs, wants, and ideas. We all use AAC when we make facial expressions or gestures, use symbols or pictures, or write." So, AAC is basically using any method other than speaking to communicate. If you sent a text today, you used AAC!