Summer camp brings enrichment to kids with speech delays
Camper Taylor Spiegel and peer mentor Matthew Cook.
– A group of children with severe speech delays recently attended a week-long summer camp to enrich their communication skills while learning about camping and animals. The Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Summer Academy was held at Atascadero Middle School and culminated with a visit to the Charles Paddock Zoo, where the children interacted with animals while putting their new language skills to use.
The camp, which pairs attendees with peer mentors who help facilitate language, is a partnership of the Diagnostic Center in Fresno and the San Luis Obispo County Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA). According to Michelle Austin, a speech-language pathologist with the Diagnostic Center, “participating in the AAC Summer Academy can be life-changing, as it offers an opportunity for children who use communication devices to meet, interact, and receive AAC instruction in a fun environment.”
Peer mentor Olivia Mariucci and camper Christopher Wiechmann
The experience is valuable for the peer mentors too. “I volunteered at the AAC Summer Academy because I like helping people and I wanted to understand my grandmother’s job better,” said 9-year-old peer mentor Melony Sallac, whose grandmother works for the SELPA. Melony also wrote and illustrated a book about her camping experience and gave it to 9-year-old Summer Smith, who she mentored at camp. The book was dedicated to “my best friend at summer camp.”
Just a few decades ago, children with severe speech delays or non-existent speech had no way of verbally communicating all their thoughts and ideas. Now, thanks to determination, technology, and innovative teaching strategies, children who previously would not have been able to speak are talking. Unfortunately, many of these children are the only ones in their classrooms or schools that use an alternative method to communicate. The AAC Summer Academy provides an opportunity for children who use communication systems such as an iPad or other speech generating device to engage with their peers while having fun at summer camp.
