Giving Every Child a Voice
Every child deserves a reliable way to express their thoughts, make choices, ask questions, and connect with the people around them. For children whose speech is absent, limited, or difficult to understand, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) provides that pathway. At Front Range Speech in Greeley, Colorado, we specialize in AAC evaluation, device selection, programming, and ongoing therapy to help children communicate as fully and independently as possible.
AAC is not a last resort—it is a bridge. Whether a child is preverbal, has a motor speech disorder that severely limits intelligibility, or uses some words but cannot yet meet all of their communication needs through speech alone, AAC provides access to language right now, during the critical years when vocabulary, grammar, and social communication are developing most rapidly.
What Is AAC?
Augmentative and alternative communication encompasses a broad spectrum of tools and strategies. “Augmentative” means supplementing existing speech; “alternative” means providing a primary means of communication when speech is not functional. AAC systems are generally categorized as:
Low-Tech AAC
Communication boards, picture exchange systems, core vocabulary boards, and PODD (Pragmatic Organisation Dynamic Display) communication books. These systems require no batteries or electronics and are highly portable and durable.
Mid-Tech AAC
Simple voice-output devices with pre-recorded messages, such as single-message switches and sequential message devices. These are often used as stepping stones or for specific communicative functions like requesting and greeting.
High-Tech AAC
Speech-generating devices (SGDs) and tablet-based communication apps that produce synthesized or digitized speech. Examples include Proloquo2Go, TouchChat with WordPower, LAMP Words for Life, and dedicated devices such as the NOVA chat series. These systems offer robust vocabulary, grammatical flexibility, and the ability to communicate novel messages.
Our AAC Evaluation Process
Selecting the right AAC system is one of the most consequential clinical decisions in pediatric speech-language pathology. A device that is too complex will be abandoned; a device that is too simple will limit a child's ability to grow. At Front Range Speech, we use a systematic feature-matching approach to ensure the best possible fit.
Feature Matching
Feature matching is the process of aligning a child's motor, cognitive, linguistic, sensory, and communication profile with the features of available AAC systems. We assess how the child accesses the device (direct selection with a finger, eye gaze, head tracking, or switch scanning), the vocabulary organization system that best supports their language level, the symbol representation that is most meaningful to them, and practical considerations such as portability and durability.
Device Trials
Before making a recommendation, we conduct structured device trials in which the child has the opportunity to interact with multiple AAC systems during functional communication activities. We observe ease of access, speed of message generation, engagement, and the child's ability to learn the system's organizational structure. Device trials allow us to make data-driven recommendations rather than relying on assumptions about what a child “should” be able to use.
AAC Systems We Specialize In
Our clinicians have advanced training and hands-on experience with the AAC systems most commonly used in pediatric practice:
LAMP (Language Acquisition through Motor Planning)
A therapeutic approach paired with the Unity vocabulary system that emphasizes consistent motor patterns for word retrieval. LAMP is particularly effective for children who benefit from motor-based learning and need a system that supports both single-word and multi-word message generation.
Proloquo2Go
A widely used iPad-based AAC app with a Crescendo™ vocabulary that grows with the child. It offers extensive customization, natural-sounding voices, and a grid-based layout that supports core vocabulary access.
TouchChat with WordPower
A flexible AAC app available on iPad and dedicated devices, offering multiple page set options including WordPower, which uses a core-word-based organization with word prediction.
NOVA chat
A dedicated speech-generating device line from Saltillo that runs the TouchChat software on a durable, purpose-built hardware platform with built-in amplification and keyguard compatibility.
PODD
Pragmatic Organisation Dynamic Display is a communication book system designed by Gayle Porter that organizes vocabulary by communicative function, making it intuitive for communication partners to model and for children to navigate across a wide range of communicative contexts.
Aided Language Stimulation
Aided language stimulation—also called aided language input or modeling—is the single most important strategy for teaching a child to use AAC. Just as hearing children learn to speak by listening to thousands of hours of spoken language, AAC users learn to communicate on their devices by watching others use the same system. During aided language stimulation, the communication partner points to symbols on the child's AAC system while speaking naturally, providing a consistent model of how to combine symbols to express a range of communicative functions.
At Front Range Speech, aided language stimulation is embedded in every AAC therapy session. We also train parents, siblings, teachers, and classroom aides to use this strategy throughout the child's day, because research demonstrates that the frequency and quality of aided language input is directly related to the child's rate of AAC learning.
Communication Partner Training
An AAC device sitting unused in a backpack helps no one. The success of any AAC system depends on the people around the child—the communication partners who model language, create opportunities for communication, and respond meaningfully to every attempt. Our communication partner training program teaches families and school teams how to integrate AAC into daily routines, how to avoid common pitfalls (such as testing the child or requiring device use only for requesting), and how to support increasingly complex language over time.
Insurance Funding and Device Acquisition
Dedicated speech-generating devices are often covered by Medicaid, private insurance, and other funding sources. The process of obtaining funding can be complex and time-consuming, involving detailed documentation, letters of medical necessity, and device justification. Front Range Speech assists families throughout this process—from the initial evaluation report through device ordering and delivery—to ensure that financial barriers do not prevent a child from accessing the communication system they need.
Serving Greeley and Northern Colorado
Our clinic in Greeley, Colorado, provides AAC services to families across Northern Colorado, including Fort Collins, Loveland, Windsor, Evans, Johnstown, Milliken, and surrounding communities. Whether your child is just beginning to explore AAC or already has a device that needs updated programming and expanded vocabulary, Front Range Speech offers the specialized expertise to help your child communicate with confidence and independence.