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What do you try to accomplish with this activity? What are the goals?
Although this activity accomplishes many purposes, there are three major goals.
1.
Mediate communication between home and school or other significant
environments
This gives the student the responsibility of sharing information about
himself. He learns more about sharing, telling, asking for information,
conversation skills, and remembering things he needs to be responsible
for. Most important, he learns to take more initiative for social
interactions.
2.
Stimulate and expand functional communication
It is not unusual for these students to miss the "Guess what I did!"
part of social communication. Perhaps they don't know how to initiate
a conversation. They may not remember what to talk about or what information
to share. Preparing and reviewing these tools is an excellent opportunity
to teach more about social conversation. This activity enhances development
of useful vocabulary. These visual tools can support the development
of verbal skills. They help students learn more about what to communicate.
3.
Provide more opportunities for the student to engage in communication
and conversation about his personal experiences
Since this activity focuses on the student's personal experiences,
there is a high level of interest. This structure helps students make
decisions about what information to share. It provides them with a
way of organizing their thoughts so they can communicate more effectively.
The Visual Bridges become a tool to support both the student and his
communication partner in a conversation about his experience. The
visual information provides cues for both people so they know what
to ask or what to tell. This serves to extend social interactions
and enhance the quality of information that is shared.
Are
you sure this is homework?
Not
only is it homework, it is really fun and meaningful for students.
One part of the homework can be having an experience; going somewhere
or engaging in some type of activity. Preparing to share the information
with others is the other part.
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