Rationale: Just as an artist paints an image with his PAINTBRUSH, adjectives paint an image in your mind, by describing nouns. For esample, is I say "DOG", who knows what image will pop into your head. But if I say "Small Brown Fat Dog", I have described which dog I was talking about, and you have a better picture in your head.
WARNING (Tip of the Day): Adjectives are the only part of speech that don't have their own page. You find them by hitting an Icon (aka category) key, and the Paintbrush (or one of it's forms with +er or +est with it). For instance, the word LITTLE is DICE+PAINTBRUSH (dice are little).
Rationale: Old Mother Hubbard (noun) went to her CUPBOARD (noun) to get her poor dog a BONE (noun). You will also notice there is an icon right next to it with more than one item in her cupboard. This is used to represent plural nouns!
Pronouns are very important! Not only are the used frequently, but they are what I like to call shortcut keys! Any time you can find a phrase or sentence in less hits, that is a GOOD thing. Pronoun Phrases only take 2 icons, rather than 4 to say the same thing. For instance, if you wanted to say "I WANT", you could hit I 2 times, and then WANTED, then the verb (Action Man, or Herb the Verb). That is 4 hits. You can simply say it by hitting the I one time, and the WANTED man. Only 2 hits. Works for questions the same way. Insert NOT into the middle, and you have negative pronoun statements or questions.
Tips of the Day: Since pronouns are used so often, we changed our color to my child's favorite color. This was not easy, getting each one changed, but it is done. Another tip: Make the kids feel like they are sort of cheating, or getting away with something (they are, only hitting 2 keys instead of 4, LOL). This will get them using them more and more usually, therefore making their communication quicker!
OOPS! Sorry, this should have been before the Question Words.
Rationale: Prepositions are words that you can do to or with a bridge or cloud.
Tip of the Day: If you need more of a static display (that doesn't change, like for charges with vision issues), put the settings of Embellished Icons OFF in the FEEDBACK MENU in the toolbox. This is also very helpful to use when using Literacy Through Unity (the materials use the CORE icons), and when they are first learning to use the device.
I couldn't figure out a good video to put here. I figure you can always practice answering and asking them though, so this isn't a really hard concept to grasp for device users.
Tip of the day:
To ask a question on the device, reverse the icon order you would use to make the same statement. For instance, the statment "You Want....", would be YOU+WANTED (person in jail). If you wanted to ask "Do you want....?", you would just hit WANTED+YOU.
This was a hard time to find a video for. If anyone knows of one, please let me know and I will replace it. Here is a way to explain two determiners, THIS and THAT!
Rationale: Determiners are things that the wizard can point at with his wand.
Definition: Determiners include many of the most frequently used words in English or other languages, for example: the, a, my, this, or their foreign equivalents. Determiners are used with nouns (this book, my best friend, a new car) and they limit (i.e. determine) the reference of the noun in some way.
Determiners include: articles - a, an, the demonstratives - this, that, these, those possessives - my, your, his, her, its, our, their quantifiers - some, any, no, many, much, few, little, both, all, either, neither, each, every, enough numbers - three, fifty, three thousand, etc.some question words - which (which car?), what (what size?), whose (whose coat?)
When these words are used as determiners, they are followed by a noun (though not necessarily immediately): this book is yours some new houses which colour do you prefer?
Many determiners can also be used as pronouns. These include the demonstratives, question words, numbers and most of the quantifiers. When used as pronouns, these words are not followed by a noun – their reference includes the noun: this is yours (= this book, this money, etc.)I've got some which do you prefer
I created this blog as an easy way to help PRC communication device users teach parts of speech to their clients/children. Some of you may not be familiar with YouTube, so I will just put the School House Rock videos some of us Old Timers use to watch as kids on here. I will put them in the order they appear on the 84 location, as that is what I am most familiar with. Show them to your charges over and over, until it is ingrained in their head. My daughter never knew what School House Rock was, until my sons gave me the idea to look it up on YouTube. Who can not look at the train grammar icon, and burst into the chorus of Conjunction Junction, what's your function?
Just proof that sometimes, the simple cartoons we use to see during every commercial break on Saturday mornings, would come in so handy to us in the future. Also proof that sometimes, the oldies really are the goodies!
For the Wikipedia definition of School House Rock videos, please go here.
First tip of the Day: Give each part of speech it's own color. Verbs are already green, and nouns are already orange. We used Magenta on the Fireworks key, because it is a bright color that pops. We used Purple on the Wizard/Determiner key, because on the cartoon PROUD FAMILY, LITTLE WIZARD is dressed in Purple. Conjunctions are dark orange, no specific reason, LOL We did change the prepositions to a little darker shade of pink than was original. When you are on each part of speech page, make sure all the words for that part of speech are the same color as your original. I found this just helps to identify them all a little more.
A single mom with 3 grown kids and a teenager. I work in the Deli at Walmart. I am doing my best to navigate the world of special needs for my youngest daughter, Kendra.
