Teach me to Talk with AAC: Curriculum and Course
A 16-Week Core Word Curriculum for Teaching a Child to use AAC for Basic Communication
Includes:
A 16-Week Program for Teaching AAC Using a Core Word Approach
This purchase includes everything you need to teach a child to communicate using an AAC device or system.
The Core Word Approach is a research-backed method for helping a child find their voice with any form of AAC, such as an AAC app, device, picture board, or sign language. Our program includes core word therapy activities that can be done in therapy, at home, or in the classroom.
This program includes over 16 weeks of lessons, activities, homework pages, and strategies to help your entire team support language development for non-speaking or minimally verbal children.
The whole plan, already written for you
From the goal you paste into the IEP to the boards you print for snack time — every piece of teaching a first-time communicator is in here, in order. No prep.
Goal & present-level text
Written-out goal language and a present level of performance you can copy straight into your report, IEP, or therapy plan — then adjust the numbers for your child.
Monthly data probe
A 10-minute tally sheet with modeling and prompting scripts, plus a year of dated boxes and goal-met checks. Get a baseline today, rerun it once a month.
12 core word lesson plans
One page per word, each with three play-based activities and the same three steps every time: model it, tempt them to use it, then prompt only if they need it.
Home & school practice pages
A matching handout for every word, written for parents and teachers. Send it home with the board so the same words get practiced everywhere the child goes.
Printable AAC boards
A trial board and core word boards using Boardmaker PCS symbols. Print, slip in a sheet protector, and start today — even if a device is still months away.
Introductory story
A short picture-supported story that shows a child using AAC through an everyday snack routine — an easy, no-pressure way to introduce the whole idea.
Putting words together
Activity pages for modeling lots of words inside real routines — bubbles, board games, snack, cause-and-effect toys — plus wait-time strategies that build independence.
20-minute training video
Carrie walks you through the program start to finish, with demonstrations of what modeling and prompting actually look like with a child or teen.
Team support handouts
Classroom and home support suggestions for children who use AAC, so the adults around the child know how to respond — not just what to practice.
The first 12 words you'll teach
High-frequency core words that work in dozens of activities — not nouns a child only needs once.
- hi
- my turn
- help
- eat
- drink
- up
- down
- go
- stop
- no
- more
- all done
Open it up and start today
Copy the goal
Paste the goal and present-level text into your report or IEP and tweak the expectations.
Take a baseline
Run the 10-minute data probe once to see where the child is starting from.
Print and teach
Print the packet, pick one word, and work through its activities until it's solid. Send the home page along.
Recheck monthly
Rerun the probe once a month to show progress — then move on to the next goal.
What this does for the child — and for you
A child doesn't learn AAC from a device sitting on the table. They learn it from adults who model, wait, and make communication worth it. That's what this program teaches — both sides of the interaction.
From Carrie, CCC-SLP
Pick one word. Get it working in three activities. Then add the next. Slow and solid beats a board full of buttons nobody uses — and it takes the pressure off everyone, including you.
- ✓Gives the child a voice right now. Wants, needs, and ideas get expressed today — which means less frustration, fewer behaviors, and more moments of being understood.
- ✓Starts with words that go everywhere. Core words like more, go, and help work in play, meals, and classroom routines — so every activity is practice.
- ✓Teaches the adults, too. Model, tempt, prompt — the same three steps on every page, so parents, teachers, and paras all run the activity the same way.
- ✓Builds carryover on purpose. Every word has a home and classroom page, so the child hears and sees it modeled all week — not just in your session.
- ✓Turns play into progress you can document. Bubbles, ball, hide and seek — with a monthly probe and goal text that make the growth easy to report.
- ✓Saves you the planning. No more chaos, no more guessing what to do next session. Just print and go.
Ready to give this child a voice?
Instant digital access to the complete printable packet and the training video. Print the first board today.
Buy now →Frequently asked questions
Will using AAC keep a child from learning to talk?
No — and this is one of the most studied questions in AAC. Research does not show that using AAC prevents or delays speech. Reviews of AAC studies with children who are late to talk, non-speaking, or minimally verbal have found that speech either stayed the same or improved after AAC was introduced.
In many cases, spoken communication actually speeds up. Giving a child a reliable way to communicate reduces frustration, builds back-and-forth interaction, and pairs the spoken word with a picture every single time you model — all of which support talking, not replace it.
Who can use this program?
SLPs, SLPAs, teachers, special education staff, and parents or caregivers — anyone who spends time with the child. The lesson plans are written in plain language with the exact words to say, and every core word comes with a home and classroom page so the whole team can run the same activities.
Do I need a specific AAC device or app?
Nope. The activities work with any form of AAC — a dedicated speech-generating device, an app on a tablet, a printed picture board, or sign language. Printable boards are included, so you can start while you're still trialing systems or waiting on funding.
Which children is this level right for?
This is the beginner level: emerging communicators who are non-speaking or minimally verbal and are just getting started with AAC. It's about skill level, not age — the activities can be adapted for toddlers through teens, and the goal is basic, functional communication of wants, needs, and ideas.
Is continuing education credit available?
No. There are no continuing education opportunities or CEUs available for this product. The 20-minute training video is included to teach you how to run the program — it isn't offered for CE credit.
How long does the program take?
There's enough material here for 16 weeks and beyond, but you set the pace. The word pages don't have to be done in order — pick the word that matters most to this child, work it until it's solid, then add another. Home practice pages take about five minutes, once or twice a day.
What do I get, and when?
Instant digital access after purchase: the complete printable packet plus the training video. Print the pages you need, when you need them — no shipping, no prep, no materials to gather.
I'm new to AAC. Will I be able to do this?
Yes — that's exactly who it's built for. Watch the 20-minute video, print the trial board, and start with one word. Every page tells you what to say, what to wait for, and what to do if the child doesn't respond yet. You've got this.
How does this fit with the SLK Curriculum?
This packet is one piece of the Early AAC Curriculum inside the full SLK Curriculum. Buying it on its own is perfectly fine — you get the complete beginner AAC program. If you'd like every curriculum area, the courses, and the AI-powered paperwork tools, that all lives in the membership at Hub.SpeechAndLanguageKids.com.
Want the whole thing?
This packet comes from the SLK Curriculum — our full library for the adults who support kids with communication challenges. One membership, every skill area, birth through 18.
Life's too short for stress. Let's do this!
Explore the full SLK Curriculum →- More curriculums for every skill area
- Courses & trainings from Carrie
- Therapy materials, print and go
- Themed activities all year long
- AI-powered paperwork tools
- Community & support when you're stuck
