Friday April 19, 2024

Carol Allen

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We are all sensory beings and our sensory preferences and challenges influence how we access, utilize and retain information. This applies to every student we work with however is often only considered if there is a neurodivergent diagnosis. This lively, and practical session will look at the benefits of taking a sensory approach in our work with a combination of theory and practical ideas that will inform your own daily practice. How can we use a sensory approach to improve handwriting; to make learning common spellings easier; to improve reading ability? All of these and many more ideas and strategies should provide you with the impetus to revisit a sensory approach to teaching and learning.

Select for more information about Erin and her sessions

Session Description:

Talking Mats is a simply brilliant approach to how we learn what is most important to a person and how we can better support them. Talking Mats originates from the UK, where it has helped people of all ages and with a wide range of disabilities communicate what matters most. Better yet, Talking Mats helps families, educators, and clinicians to be better communication partners. It is a predictable, structured routine that combines visual supports, wait time, and open-ended questions and statements. The routine of a Talking Mats conversation is proven to elicit more detail and information, by putting the person with the communication disability in the driver's seat of the conversation. Talking Mats is particularly useful for anyone supporting transition-age students, but we will explore how the broad framework can be easily applied to our youngest students as well as we teach them the skills to share their perspective and participate in decisions. Come experience this hands-on introduction to the power of Talking Mats! Special educators and clinicians will find it highly relevant to students with a broad range of communication, cognitive, and executive functioning challenges.

Select for more information about Penny and her session

Session Description:

This session will present a team-based system for completing AT assessments. An effective, efficient AT Assessment process will be explained. Specific, easy to follow forms will be provided as well as many resources related to AT assessment. It is most beneficial, but not required, that participants attend as a team. There will be opportunities to review materials and discuss how you might use them.

Are you looking for an efficient, effective way to determine a student's need for Assistive Technology? Are you looking for ways to increase follow through with recommended AT? Are you looking for an efficient, effective way to determine a student's need for Assistive Technology?

Learner objectives:

1. Participants will understand the requirements for assessing a student’s need for AT.

2. Participants will review the Wisconsin Assistive Technology Initiative (WATI) forms for completing an AT assessment.

3. Participants will identify at least two additional AT assessment tools to use in their practice.

Select for more about M'Lisa and her sessions

Session Description:

This 90-minute skill-building session will focus on using a coaching interaction style to build the capacity of parents, teachers, and other care providers to select, attain, and use assistive technology to promote child learning within the context of everyday routines and activities in school and community environments. Participants will reflect on (and practice) their skills to coach the important adults in the child’s life regarding assistive technology selection, acquisition, and use to build caregiver capacity now and for the future.

Course objectives:

1. Explain the rationale for using a coaching interaction style with parents, teachers, and other care providers to support selection, acquisition, and use of assistive technology

2. Understand the characteristics of coaching practices and implementation fidelity

3. Review the federal definition of assistive technology services under IDEA

Kelli Suding & Michelle Soriano

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Session Description:

During this fun and engaging session, presenters will share the importance of accessibility in education and common misconceptions, such as it being considered "cheating" for students with disabilities through shared experiences and data. Multiple meanings of accessibility in education will be discussed and how they relate to equitable access by creating inclusive learning opportunities for all students. Participants will have access to no-cost digital resources that can be used to support accessibility and inclusion.

Michelle Lange, OTR/L, ABDA, ATP/SMS

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Session Description:

Children may be positioned in a variety of adaptive equipment, including a wheelchair seating system. If a student is not positioned well, they will be unable to use their body as functionally as possible. This course will present a checklist for determining if a student’s positioning is adequate or if further evaluation is required.

Erin Sheldon

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Session Description:

AAC modeling is an important naturalistic strategy to develop students’ symbol knowledge and expressive and receptive vocabulary. Many of our classrooms rely heavily on AAC modelling or isolated drills to teach words such as AAC core vocabulary. But many students need intensive, explicit instruction in word meanings and uses, and their teachers need practical routines that can be administered by a range of classroom staff. This session will demonstrate a simple daily vocabulary instructional routine (borrowed from research on explicit alphabet instruction) that can be embedded in common routines such as morning meeting or shared writing. This instruction leverages the unique attributes of a robust AAC system to maximize instructional impact. Come explore how common AAC features - such as graphic symbols and fringe categories - are powerful vocabulary instruction tools for any student. Participants will leave with a practical, predictable daily routine that supports students to learn and use a range of new words.

Select for more about Therese and her sessions

Discover 101 assistive technology solutions it can be made in minutes to achieve educational success for communication, vision, hearing, intellectual, and physical impairments . Each person will make two multi Use AT solution to take home with them.

Note: Limited to 40 participants

Select for more about Michelle, Kelli and their sessions

Session Description:

Come join the fun as CAST's TA Specialists at the National AEM Center clarify the concepts and relationships of accessible materials, assistive technology, and technology for supporting students with disabilities. Presenters will explore how these components differ and complement each other, and provide examples of how they rely on one another to provide access and accessibility for students who require them. Presenters will also share resources and best practices for implementing them, and facilitate discussions and reflections among participants to help them apply the knowledge to their own contexts.

Erika Bare

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Session Description:

We provide practical and immediately applicable strategies to reinvigorate and improve systems, allowing educators to navigate behavioral conversations with both increased confidence and effectiveness. Together, we will do a deep dive into how to leverage communication as a Universal Design to improve student behavior and outcomes. This session will explore how connected communication as UDL is beneficial for all students, and especially critical for those from historically marginalized groups, including students with exceptionalities.

Michelle Lange, OTR/L, ABDA, ATP/SMS

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Session Description:

When recommending a power wheelchair, a number of features must be considered, such as driving method, seating, and drive wheel configuration. Before picking out colors, however, we first need to determine if the client is truly ready for a power wheelchair and, if not, develop readiness. This course will present strategies to determine and develop readiness.

Select for more information about Carol and her sessions

Session Description:

The term, ‘Play’, is used on a daily basis and usually carries connotations of unstructured, random engagement with activities that carry little or no educational weight. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth and play is a complex and effective strategy which both engages and empowers our learners.

This lively session will explore the nature of play and in particular, how we can ensure that our learners benefit from opportunities to access our curriculum areas and targets via a play based pedagogy.

Combining theory with opportunities to experiment, the session will look at activities and ideas that you can use in your classrooms. Access to resources and links used and mentioned in the session will be available to participants after the session.

Erin Sheldon

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Session Description:

When students are still learning to use language to communicate, it is easy for families and school teams to make decisions for them instead of with them. These students may leave school without meaningful experience participating in the most important decisions about their lives, such as where they will live, who they will live with, and how they will spend their days. The more emergent a student's skills, the more explicit support and planning they need to participate in decisions. Teaching students to participate in decisions is an essential life skill to ensure they can evaluate their adult services and advocate for what they need to live their best life. This session will explore simple tools and strategies that can be used across the lifespan, with even the youngest and most emergent students. These resources will help you elicit and gather information about what is most important to your students, what is working and not working for them, and what changes they may like to see. Even better, these tools help us document this information so that everyone supporting the student can be on the same page and respond consistently and respectfully to how the student participates in decisions. These tools will be particularly helpful to anyone with transition-age students, but no student is too young or too emergent to increase their involvement in decisions!

Select for more information about Therese and her session

Discovering solutions by seeing the world differently. How Neurodiversity is truly a gift for creating rapid assistive technology solutions. Each person will make a silent, nontoxic, multi-use fidget item to take home.

Note: Limited to 40 participants

Select for more information about Wendy and her session

Session Description:

Come learn about the process that begins with an inspiration to find a solution. We talk about exploring options, designing your project and seeing the design come to life in the build. We will share best practices and resources to create your own AT makers group. Hear the challenges and successes of real students in real schools with real builds to support students with disabilities.

Select for more information about Noelle and Carrie

Session Description:

Writing and comprehensive literacy instruction is a team effort. Research has proven that most students in both special and general education benefit from explicit instruction in writing. Writing is an integral part of receptive and expressive language development. Learn tips and tricks from an SLP and OT who have spent years supporting young authors of all abilities, including those with the most complex needs. Learn about our Share-Access-Language (SAL) framework and walk away with resources and fun activities to start using today!

Gayl Bowser

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Session Description:

In January of 2024, the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) issued guidance to schools about assistive technology. This document summarizes and clarifies many questions that schools have had since the inclusion of AT in IDEA. In this session we'll review the myths and facts discussed in the OSEP guidance in light of current practice in Oregon and offer participants a chance to ask questions and share possible implications for their practice.

You will be able to:

1. Discuss the overall content and context of the Myths and Facts document issued by OSEP

2. Identify two implications for changes in your AT practice based on the content of the guidance document.

3. Share your ideas of additional guidance and questions that could be addressed.

Michelle Lange, OTR/L, ABDA, ATP/SMS

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Session Description:

Switch assessment determines the optimal switch location and switch type. This course will review the latest available switches and provide clinical indicators for selection. Access evaluation is also used to determine the optimal location for a switch. This course will present assessment criteria and a hierarchy of possible switch placements. Switch Access can be used to control speech generating devices, computers, mobile technologies, and power wheelchairs. Switch access is one means of controlling these devices.

Bethany M. Sloane, PT, DPT, PCS, PhD (c)

Child Development & Rehab Center at OHSU

and

Danielle Benjamin, PT, DPT, PCS

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Session Objectives:

1. Summarize the evidence focusing on the ON-Time mobility framework and use of assistive technology to support mobility and play.

2. Discuss resources on how to obtain assistive technology in Oregon.

3. Identify ways therapists can promote and progress ON time mobility and play interventions in clinical practice.

4. Provide examples of goals, routines, and social opportunities to support integration of assistive technology into family life.

OTAP&RSOI

1409 NE Diamond Lake Blvd, Suite 110

Roseburg, OR 97470