Low-tech AAC

Also called Light-tech AAC, Paper-based AAC, No-tech AAC

Paper boards, books and cards. No battery, no crash, no update at the worst moment, and often the fastest tool in the room.

What it is

Low-tech AAC is aided communication that needs no power. Symbol boards, communication books, alphabet boards, photo cards, a whiteboard and pen, an eye-pointing frame. Some people say light-tech or no-tech; they mean the same thing.

It is not the beginner's version of "real" AAC. Some of the most sophisticated communication systems in use, like a full PODD book, are paper. Fluent device users keep a paper system too, because the device will, one day, be flat, wet, locked or in the other bag.

Who it can help

Everyone who uses AAC, at every stage. It is the right starting point for a child or an adult being introduced to symbols, because it can be made in an afternoon and changed tomorrow. It is the right tool on a ward, in a pool, at a funeral and in the rain. And it is the right permanent system for plenty of people whose partners are always close.

Its limit is reach. Paper needs a partner within sight who can read what is chosen, so a low-tech user can't call across a room, talk on the phone or be understood by someone who won't look. That is what high-tech adds, and why most people want both.

How it works

The person selects a symbol, letter or word by pointing, touching, looking or, where they cannot do those, by the partner offering options and reading a yes (partner-assisted scanning). The partner says the message back aloud, which is the "speech output" of a paper system and is why the partner's habit of voicing every selection matters.

Formats range from a single communication board for one situation, through a core board that covers most of language on one page, to a communication book with dozens of pages and a navigation system. Making them is a skill: cell size, grid size, symbol set, lamination, and whether the words stay in the same place from page to page (motor planning) all change how usable the result is.

Getting started

Print a core board today. ACE Centre and CALL Scotland both publish free ones; a 20 to 40 cell board with the words that carry most conversation is a good first size. Laminate it, or slide it into a plastic wallet, and put it where the person spends their time.

Make one situation board for the place that goes wrong most: mealtimes, the bath, the school bus. Six to twelve symbols is plenty. Use it yourself each time.

Copy it. A low-tech system should exist in at least three places: on the person, at home and wherever they go in the day. The version that lives in a drawer helps no one.

Where to get help

ACE Centre and CALL Scotland are the two best free sources of printable boards and guidance in the UK. Communication Matters runs low-tech workshops and its members share templates. A speech and language therapist can design a paper system around a person's own vocabulary and access.