Our beautiful Elsa just turned six. Sounds awfully grown up to me. Six year olds are big kids. Quick-growing kids. Well-on-their-way kids. And, there's doubt about it. Elsa's on her way. She's looking the part, too...
For her birthday, we let her in on a little secret. She would soon be the proud owner of her very own fish. Unfortunately, it's been ridiculously cold since her birthday, so we haven't yet subjected her future fishies to a frigid transport. The aquarium is ready and waiting...
Elsa's kindergarten year is going along well. Her teacher and classroom team are phenomenal - there's nothing they won't do or try for her. The biggest change of the past few months is that we're trialing two "talker" devices through Easter Seals to see which one will be the best fit for her. After filling out 37 pages of paperwork, obtaining physician prescription orders, and patiently waiting for insurance processing and order fulfillment, we're off and running...
Because Elsa's fine motor (hand coordination) is very delayed, she uses big buttons to navigate to what she wants to say via the tablet. The whole process takes an incredible amount of patience for Elsa, as it requires her to map the routes to her preferred phrases. This video shows how it works...
When Elsa gets in a rhythm of scan-scan-scan (hitting the red button repeatedly), her therapists say, "Not to worry." This is much like a baby saying, "Ba, ba, ba." Repetition and practice are how we learn language. While Elsa's style of speaking is different, "babbling" is expected and encouraged.
Since Elsa outgrew her stander, this poor West Elm chair has been getting a workout. It's at a good height for her to lean up against it, and if we stack things just-so, we can set up an activity/talker station for her to use, until she gets tired. When that happens, it's back to the chair.
The major reality in this talker-trial adventure isn't lost on us: We are incredibly blessed to live in a time and place where Elsa has access to these technologies and to therapists who've devoted their lives to helping kids express themselves in a verbal world.
We'll keep you posted on how the trials go, and how her talker use progresses. It's so exciting to see how engaged she is to use the device. I am certain that SHE knows that this is her communication tool. She's energized to figure it out (and her sisters are too). Yep, I think this is gonna be a big-girl year for our blue-eyed girl.