The video emphasizes the importance of teaching students to identify first sounds before accurately using first letters to spell. Students can learn more by experiencing how words change when they start with different letters. For the First Letter activity, a letter board can be used, which can be a voice output, phonemic voice output, or keyboard. Teachers can play a game of “deep diving” by having the child choose a letter and listening to the story to see how many words they hear that start with that letter. Students can use their device to indicate when they hear a word or use a switch. The goal is to bring awareness to the beginnings of words. During the reread activity, students can choose a letter from their AAC system and read the story while listening for words that start with that letter. The teacher can indicate when a word is heard, and words can be listed on a whiteboard.
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The Special Education Technology Center
The Special Education Technology Center (SETC) provides training, an assistive technology lending library, and consultation services to help connect parents and educators with appropriate assistive technology to support preschool through 12th grade students with disabilities. We provide coaching to districts on the use of accessible technology tools to increase engagement in curriculum and instruction. SETC’s work integrates AT and accessible tech with statewide initiatives, such as Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS). https://specialedtechcenter.com/