All in the (AAC) Family

[Earworm alert!]  We are fam-i-ly.  All you AAC users, communication partners, and me.  We are fam-i-ly.  Get up everybody and raise awareness! 

Okay, it may not be quite as catchy as the Sister Sledge song.  

Have you read Dana's #AACfamily Friday blog post over at Uncommon Sense?  If you haven’t, please pop on over there and read it.  Dana is an AAC Mama.  She came up with the idea of #AACfamily after watching her daughter (who uses an AAC device to communicate) become elated every time she saw another person with an AAC device.  In this post she writes:

We AAC families are, well, a type of extended family. We are lumped together in the public eye: people who “use some device to talk” (or people who have a family member who uses something to talk, or therapists who are often seen using devices to talk as they model and plan).

We are bound together. An #AACfamily.

Go read the full post.  Really.  I love it!  So true.  And now I can’t get “We are family…” out of my head. 

Dana has declared the Fridays in October (AAC Awareness Month) to be #AACfamily days. 

She is inviting us to post pictures of anything AAC-related on Facebook.  She is inviting us to make a concerted effort to share-to-raise-awareness.  Share pictures, links, anything AAC-related.  

I am passing her invitation along.

• Post AAC-related pictures from your journey: an AAC-user communicating via their AAC system; a sibling or other family member communicating via the AAC system; working on using the AAC system in therapy; programming the AAC system; devices charging; anything AAC-related.  I would love to see them posted to my Facebook page (or submitted to Dana for her Friday #AACfamily posts).  Increase the power of your contribution by posting them to my Facebook page and your personal Facebook page, Twitter/other social media, etc. along with the #AACfamily hashtag.

• Have a favorite AAC-related blog, website, Twitter account, Pinterest page, Facebook page/group, YouTube channel, etc.?  Or a resource you have just discovered?  Post links or send them my (or Dana’s) way to post on Fridays with the #AACfamily hashtag.  

• Spread the word.  Share, share, share about #AACfamily Fridays!  Let’s get as many #AACfamily members engaged as possible.  Let’s get every AAC device/system represented.  Let’s help spread knowledge and resources about AAC.

So, #AACfamily, who’s with me?  Join us in celebrating communication (in all its forms), sharing our diverse communication journeys, and spreading the word about AAC.  Don’t forget to use the #AACfamily hashtag!