Alphabet Charts & Books

ABC spelling charts

Encoded alphabet charts

Frequency layout spelling charts

High contrast charts

QWERTY alphabet charts

Charts with the alphabet + some words and phrases to point to

Coded alphabet charts

Letter codes

Alphabet communication book templates

Alphabets you can point to

Alphabets you can eye point to

Charts for Listener Mediated Scanning

Getting Started

Made by Ace

Digital Publications

Software

E-Books

Seasonal resources

Shop

Symbol Charts

Symbol charts with core vocabulary

Symbol charts for playing with toys

Symbol charts for imaginative play

Symbol charts for playing games

Symbol charts for active play

Symbol charts for reading, looking at photos & telling stories

Symbol charts for watching television

Symbol charts for creative play

Symbol charts for daily routines

Altered colours

Altered spacing to support direct access

Coded access

Combination access

Encoding

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<p dir="ltr" data-test-bidi="">Find videos and support materials if you or are a family member requires solutions to help communicate due to a progressive condition such as MND/ALS, PSP, MS, Parkinson&#8217;s disease.</p>
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Paper-based resources to support Communication for Adults with Progressive Conditions

<p>This guide provides information about paper-based tools and strategies that can support communication if speech is becoming or has become difficult due to an acquired progressive condition. It is written for people living with such a condition and also for family, carers and relevant professionals.</p>


<p dir="ltr" data-test-bidi="">For a more general all round introduction to low tech symbol based AAC, you could see another resource in this AAC Information Series, Getting Started with AAC: Using low tech symbol based systems with children.</p>


Access to paper-based symbol resources when pointing is difficult

<p>The aim of this resource is explore access to low tech symbol based AAC when accessing standard resources is difficult physically or visually. It is aimed at people who are familiar with low tech AAC, but want to find out more about how to adjust and adapt the resources to meet individual needs.</p>


<p>Please note that this resource is not suggesting that low tech is ‘best’, or that low tech is a prerequisite to a more high tech communication aid. It is simply about valuing the role of paper based communication systems, and sharing lots of ideas and strategies to help develop and support them. You may well find that many of the ideas and strategies are useful when it comes to other forms of communication too.</p>


Designing and using alphabet charts

<p>The aim of this resource is help you design and use alphabet charts with people who can’t rely on speech, enabling them to communicate to the best of their ability. Through communication we can express ourselves, learn, have fun, and be active members of society</p>


<p align="center">
<p align="center"><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/SsYAjiFRta8" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"><span data-mce-type="bookmark" style="display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;" class="mce_SELRES_start">﻿</span></iframe></p>
<p>The design of our Ace Centre E-Tran frame has been carefully considered to give the best experience for both user and communication partner.</p>
<p>This ergonomic and lightweight board allows for holding with elbows locked making it more comfortable to use for longer periods than other E-Tran frames. Extensive testing was applied by Ace Centre to find the best font and colours for ease of use and identification of letters.</p>
<p>The text has been printed directly onto the plastic to make it easier to wipe down. It’s manufactured from PET-G, a thermoplastic polyester, which means the Ace Centre E-Tran is longer lasting with improved chemical resistance during decontamination procedures.</p>
<p><b>Features and benefits:</b></p>
<ul>
<li>Ergonomic design for comfort</li>
<li>Lightweight and easy to use</li>
<li>Improved chemical resistance for cleaning</li>
<li>Wide central opening for eye contact</li>
<li>Printed and blank options available</li>
</ul>
<p><b>Specification:</b></p>
<ul>
<li>Weight: 400g</li>
<li>Dimensions: 377mm wide x 334m high. 3mm thick, 9mm thick at handles</li>
<li>Material: PET-G (thermoplastic polyester)</li>
</ul>
<p><b>Costs: </b></p>
<ul>
<li>
<div>Price exclusive of VAT</div>
</li>
<li>Free shipping</li>
</ul>


Ace Centre E-Tran Frame

Printed

Blank

You Matter - Education participant pack

10 Pack

5 Pack

<p><strong>You Matter is a remarkable training course for teachers, teaching assistants and therapists that brings together parents of children with significant speech difficulties and their supporting professionals.</strong></p>
<blockquote><p>A brilliant course! Should be available to all parents, carers and teaching assistants involved with AAC</p>
<footer class="citation"><cite>Course participant</cite></footer>
</blockquote>
<p class="red_text">You Matter has now been been fully updated with new case study material.</p>
<p>For children with significant speech difficulties, it’s the parents who can hold the key to developing effective communication for their child, if they are provided with the appropriate support.</p>
<p>The You Matter course brings together families and professionals on an equal footing in order to provide practical and positive ways forward for the children’s AAC (Alternative and Augmentative Communication) needs. It gives families the tools and the support needed to set their own goals, solve their own difficulties and become active decision-makers in supporting their own child’s communication.</p>
<p>Developed by therapists across three counties, You Matter provides an opportunity for professionals to learn from other disciplines, and gives families the platform to share practical experiences for the benefit of all involved.</p>
<p><a href="https://acecentre.org.uk/resources/you-matter/you-matter-course-summary/">Download course summary</a></p>
<p>The course requires the minimum of preparation. All of the materials and handouts are provided, including Powerpoint presentations, feedback forms and video resources.</p>
<p>Why the course matters:</p>
<ul>
<li>Empowers parents<br />
You Matter gives parents the skills and the understanding to effectively take ownership of aspects of their child’s communication, to be an equal and informed partner in the care of their child and to be able to set realistic short term and long term goals for their child</li>
<li>Supports the important SEND reform principle of family and child-centred working (Children and Families Bill 2014), where the aspirations of the family and child are clearly heard and reflected in the long and short term goals within Education, Health and Care Plans. You Matter helps parents and professionals to set realistic goals based on knowledge of their child’s aided communication stage, the specific strategies that are required to support their child and planning how this support can be delivered in partnership with professionals. Co-production is at the heart of planning and parents are able to contribute confidently with the knowledge and skills they gain from this course</li>
</ul>
<h2>What&#8217;s in the course?</h2>
<p>You Matter is divided into eight short sessions to be run flexibly, for example, over two full days or four morning, afternoon or evening sessions.</p>
<h3>Session One</h3>
<p>The first session aims to introduce participants, draw out their hopes and concerns, recognise the pressures they may be under and explore their expectations of the course. Overall aims for the course will be agreed during this session, matching what the participants want to gain with the information provided within the course content.</p>
<h3>Sessions Two and Three</h3>
<p>These sessions look at facilitating communication through aided systems. This is done by considering:</p>
<ul>
<li>What is meant by communication</li>
<li>The five stages of communication development using aided systems</li>
<li>How to select vocabulary at the right level for a child</li>
<li>How participants’ communication affects the child’s progress</li>
<li>How participants’ communication will change as the child gains skills.</li>
</ul>
<p>After the first three sessions, participants can be offered the opportunity to be videoed at home or in school with their child. The aim is to help participants to review their own style of interaction as well as express privately any concerns they may have about their child using aided communication.</p>
<h3>Session Four</h3>
<p>Session Four reviews the video experience and looks at involving others in the child’s communication system. It includes:</p>
<ul>
<li>The difficulties faced by children using aided communication when learning to communicate through their system.</li>
<li>The different types of communication we all use.</li>
<li>How the participants’ role changes as the child gains skill.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Sessions Five, Six and Seven</h3>
<p>These sessions bring in feedback from the video sessions, looking at where perceived communication problems lie, and address areas the participants choose to focus on. Session Seven finishes by discovering participants’ longer term aims for their child’s communication and looks at setting achievable goals for the future.</p>
<h3>Session Eight</h3>
<p>The final session is an additional half day which looks at each child’s personal aided communication system. Participants need to bring in their child’s system and either the appropriate communication aid supplier or someone who is familiar with the different systems needs to be available. It’s a session for participants to gain confidence with the programming of the systems, and/or the creation of pages or other low tech materials. A variety of activities are included during the course for participants to investigate some of the issues through working together in small groups.</p>
<h2>How the course was developed</h2>
<p>The course is the outcome of the You Matter project which was carried out as part of the Becta Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC) Innovative Projects funding stream.</p>
<p>The project aimed to highlight the importance of providing training for parents and closely-involved professionals in supporting a child using aided communication. There were two very different models of training courses, each offering contrasting perspectives on how parent-directed training could be successfully delivered.</p>
<p>As a result, the project has developed a range of ideas for putting training into practice leading to the same desired outcomes for parents, professionals and ultimately the child. During the training, all those taking part were asked to provide extensive feedback to inform this structure of the course. In addition, opportunites for in-depth discussion were provided during workshops which followed the delivery of the courses. These workshops included managers of services as well several lead/highly specialist speech and language therapists who had been delivering.</p>


You Matter- Family Edition

<p>Full You Matter Bundle &#8211; this includes:</p>
<ul>
<li>1x Tutor Guide, resource pack &amp; DVD</li>
<li>10 x Your Guide &amp; resource pack for participants</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://acecentre.org.uk/resources/you-matter-pack/">Additional packs available here</a></p>


You Matter - Participant pack

<p>The quoted price is for Look2Talk Complete. Look2Talk Reference Materials and the Look2Talk Binder are also available to purchase separately &#8211; details given below.</p>
<p>Look2Talk is the award-winning guide for parents and professionals who need to make and use a communication book for children who communicate using their eyes alone.</p>
<p>When speech can’t be understood, and using hands or fingers to point is difficult, eye-pointing to pictures, symbols or text can be a fast and effective way of communicating a wide range of messages. This guide introduces a step-by-step system that brings in symbols and pictures at a speed that suits both the child and the responder. It emphasises the importance of learning together in fun, relaxed activities where the child can take control.</p>
<p>Accompanied by a DVD that contains tutorials and real-life example clips, the guide covers all of the essential questions that need to be answered, such as:</p>
<ul>
<li>What vocabulary do I put in the book?</li>
<li>How many pictures or symbols do I use on a page?</li>
<li>Where and when do I start to use the book?</li>
<li>How do I develop the book over time?</li>
</ul>
<p>Look2Talk complements Clare Latham&#8217;s popular Developing and Using a Communication Book for children who can finger-point, and both books have similar key concepts:</p>
<ul>
<li>A stable core vocabulary, available on each page of the communication binder, that develops through five stages. This core, ranging from just two symbols in Stage Two to 24 in Stage Five, is based on the development of children’s functional language as opposed to syntactical language.</li>
<li>A fringe vocabulary designed to meet an individual&#8217;s interests, needs and varied environments.</li>
<li>The importance of a communication partner who is shown, throughout the process, how to use and model the symbols during communication and to support and scaffold the learners’ own communication attempts.</li>
</ul>
<p>We know of no other resource that provides such specific and comprehensive guidance to help this small but important group of children who struggle to communicate.</p>
<h2>What&#8217;s in the box?</h2>
<p>Look2Talk Complete contains a 60-page guide book alongside a custom-made communication easel binder (see below) complete with core and example vocabulary dividers. These materials are accompanied by a DVD of video clips and a CD containing templates for the topic pages. The binder and core vocabulary dividers are designed to form the basis for your own communication book.</p>
<h3>Symbol page templates</h3>
<p>There are Boardmaker templates for the core and topic pages, and additional Microsoft Word templates for the topic pages.</p>
<h3>Also available:</h3>
<ul>
<li>Look2Talk Reference Materials &#8211; £75.00 plus p&amp;p (no VAT) &#8211; this contains all the materials in Look2Talk Complete except for the binder</li>
<li>Look2Talk Binder &#8211; £80.00 plus p&amp;p (no VAT) &#8211; just the easel binder itself</li>
</ul>
<h2>The Look2Talk Communication Binder</h2>
<p>This A4 easel binder is a result of collaboration between parents and ourselves to find the best solution to the recurring problem of unsuitable off-the-shelf binders falling over, falling apart and generally hindering the communication process. As one parent said during the testing phase:&#8221;We LOVE the folder&#8230; it&#8217;s a HUGE improvement on all the other binders! Do we have to give the prototype back?&#8221;</p>
<p>Built to a very high specification, it features:</p>
<ul>
<li>Sturdy construction with reinforced corners</li>
<li>Large 50mm rings</li>
<li>Side panels to maintain the shape of the binder, even under heavy page loads</li>
<li>Firm press-stud fastenings to hold the binder open or closed</li>
<li>Spine-mounted carry handle</li>
<li>Clear insert on the cover for personalisation</li>
</ul>
<p>We recognise that not everyone will need the binder, so we also offer Look2Talk without it.</p>
<div class="rounded-img alignnone size-full wp-image-938"><img loading="lazy" src="https://acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/l2tbinderpic_3_836.jpg" alt="Look2Talk Communication Binder" width="350" height="131" srcset="https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/l2tbinderpic_3_836.jpg 350w, https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/l2tbinderpic_3_836-300x112.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px" /></div>
<h2>About Look2Talk</h2>
<p>This publication is the result of the two-year <a href="https://acecentre.org.uk/project/look2talk/">Look2Talk Project</a> run by the Ace Centre to support and learn from children who can only use their eyes to communicate. The authors are experienced practitioners who specialise in AAC for children with severe communication and physical difficulties.</p>


Look2Talk

Templates Only

Complete

Ring Binder Only

Reference Materials Only

<p><strong>This fully revised and updated illustrated guide describes what’s required to construct and use a communication book with a preliterate individual.  This second edition builds on all that was good about the original, much loved guide, incorporating the wealth of experience of the full Ace Centre team.  The guide offers clarity for parents, carers and professionals in developing communication books that progressively help people to communicate an increasing number of messages.  </strong></p>
<p>The guide sets out:</p>
<ul>
<li>An updated, stable core vocabulary that is available from every topic page to promote its use.  The core vocabulary is developed through five stages and includes a newly simplified Stage One.</li>
<li>Ideas for developing a fringe vocabulary that can meet an individual’s interests, needs and varied environments, with plenty of examples included.</li>
<li>A continued promotion of the communication of rich ideas through symbols rather than the production of grammatically correct sentences for face-to-face communication.</li>
<li>A new approach to organising pages and accessing vocabulary with a suggested menu, tabs and supports for navigating around the book.</li>
<li>The importance of a communication partner who is taught, through the guide, to use and model the symbols during communication and to support and scaffold the learner’s own communication attempts.</li>
</ul>
<div class="rounded-img wp-image-2831 size-thumbnail aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" src="https://acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Screen-Shot-2017-10-20-at-15.44.40-150x150.png" alt="" width="150" height="150" /></div>
<p>The guide itself with its sample pages is presented in an A5 file, but a learner’s communication book can easily be created at A4 size if this is preferred.  Templates for use with most resource making software are available for download along with worksheets to assist in generating page and vocabulary ideas. Download the templates here:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/woocommerce_uploads/2017/10/Boardmaker-V6-templates-A5.zip">Boardmaker V6 templates A5</a></li>
<li><a href="https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/woocommerce_uploads/2017/10/Boardmaker-V6-templates-A4.zip">Boardmaker V6 templates A4</a></li>
<li><a href="https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/woocommerce_uploads/2017/10/What-words-and-pages-do-I-need-in-my-book.pdf">What words and pages do I need in my book</a></li>
<li><a href="https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/woocommerce_uploads/2017/10/Identifying-vocabulary-for-topic-pages.zip">Identifying vocabulary for topic pages</a></li>
<li><a href="https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/woocommerce_uploads/2017/10/Boardmaker-Studio-templates.zip">Boardmaker Studio templates</a></li>
<li><a href="https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/woocommerce_uploads/2017/10/MindExpress-Templates.zip">MindExpress Templates</a></li>
<li><a href="https://backend.acecentre.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/woocommerce_uploads/2017/10/InPrint-3-files-1.zip">InPrint-3-files</a></li>
</ul>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>


Developing and Using a Communication Book

Resources