AAC Core Communication Board
40 words that make up most of everyday spoken language, color-coded in the standard Fitzgerald Key system — plus a guide to modeling and adding fringe vocabulary.
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Why core words, not a topic board
A topic board (farm animals, foods, colors) only works while that topic is relevant, then gets swapped out. Core vocabulary — pronouns, common verbs, descriptors, question words, social words, negation — is the small set of words that make up most of everyday spoken language, and it stays useful in every setting: recess, lunch, circle time, home. That's why AAC teams build the board around core words first and add topic-specific fringe vocabulary around the edges, not the other way around.
Aided language modeling is what makes the board work
Handing a student a communication board without modeling on it rarely leads to independent use — the same way a child learns to talk by hearing spoken language around them, an AAC user learns the board by seeing an adult point to words on it while talking. Point to a few words on the board during normal activities throughout the day (not as a separate drill), and expect it to take time before the student starts initiating with it themselves.
Need token boards and break cards too? See the Visual Supports Pack →