by Mateo Moreno
I tell everybody I like to talk to strangers. It's true. I'm outgoing. I’m an extravert. I like to meet new people. My parents and my sister are introverts and it drives them crazy when I run to start up a new conversation with a random stranger, and then try to introduce them to this new friend I met out in the community. Maybe it’s unexpected that someone who has struggled to talk their whole life LOVES to communicate.
Since I was young, I’ve loved going to Disney World and I still do. It’s probably the first public place that I felt really comfortable talking with my device. Now I like talking to strangers who are nice. There, there are tons of cast members and other guests to talk to. We’re all waiting in lines for rides and sitting together to watch a show. Places like Disney World give me lots of opportunities to talk to new people.
I can’t go to Disney all the time, and many people never have the opportunity to go, but there are strangers to meet everywhere like at restaurants, libraries, parks and stores. I think AAC users need to have opportunities to talk to new people. It's boring to have the same conversations with the same people, over and over again. In schools, make sure students are meeting new people and having lunch with their peers. Make sure students always have that device with them in the community, like when you’re on fieldtrips. Make sure it’s available even at recess because that’s when kids are playing and socializing. Even at school kids need to talk with new people about interesting things--not just the weather, the date, and how they are feeling every single day at circle time. No offense, but that is really, really boring.
Honestly, being able to talk to strangers is what convinced me to take my AAC device everywhere and get better at communicating. We need to persuade parents of the importance of taking that AAC device out into the community. This gives kids opportunities to talk to different people and to ask new people for help. Like finding an item in a store or ordering a meal at a restaurant or trash talking with a fan of a rival team.
On thing that helped me learn to remember to take my device with me when I left the house was our communication station. At home, I always know where my device is. It’s charged on a cabinet in the center of our house between our kitchen and family room. Pretty much from the beginning, my parents never let me leave the house without it. Since I knew where it was, it became a habit to grab it while running out the door.
It took me a while to figure out how to start conversations with strangers. I learned to talk about a shirt they are wearing, or a baseball cap. If they seemed to be a fan of a rival sports team, I might congratulate them on a big win. At Disney World, I might ask about their favorite ride. At an ice cream shop, I might ask what flavor they like. Obviously I avoid saying stuff that would freak out people or make them feel uncomfortable. It took a lot of practice to learn who to start up a conversation with and who to avoid, like people who are obviously stressed out, busy or already having conversations with someone else.
When we encourage children they should have their device everywhere it sends the message to the child – and the world – that AAC is normal. That it’s not something we do just in school, or just at home. We communicate everywhere, all day long.
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Communicators In Action