AAC: Core Phrases for Teen Conversation
High-frequency conversational phrases for adolescent AAC users talking with peers.
Session summary (SOAP)
Stays on this screen. Nothing is saved or sent.
Mark a card Correct, Correct with cue or Incorrect and the summary writes itself here.
How to run it
Speed is the skill. Run these as fast turns rather than as sentences to be built correctly, and reward a fast Same here over a slow well-formed comment. Hold on, I'm still typing is the most useful card in the set and deserves its own practice: it buys the student the time everything else needs. Pair the board with a real peer conversation if you can — the phrases only prove themselves against someone who talks at full speed.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentSet up the moment, then wait with an expectant look for 10 seconds.Log as correct
- GesturePoint toward the device or the right area of the page.Log as cued
- ModelTouch the symbols on the device yourself while you say the message.Log as cued
- Partial physicalOnly if the team agrees and the student accepts touch: a light touch at the elbow toward the page. Never press the symbol for them.Log as cued
Adjust it
Fewer symbols on the page, and model the message several times before you expect it.
Wait longer before prompting, or expect one more symbol in the message.
Matching IEP goal
During structured activities, Student will use their AAC system to take part in the exchange in 8 of 10 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than a gestural prompt.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
Eight short conversational turns written for how teenagers actually talk: What's up? Same here. That's rough. I'm good, thanks. Wait — say that again. Hold on, I'm still typing. For real? I'll catch you later. Nothing here is a request. That is the point — most AAC vocabulary is built around getting things, and adolescents mostly need to hang out.
What to listen for
Watch for the student staying in the conversation rather than answering questions in it. A turn like For real? keeps the other person going, which is what a peer conversation runs on; answering a question and stopping does not. Notice how long the student's turns take and whether the peer waits. Progress is usually measured in the peer's behaviour as much as the student's.
Carrying it home
Siblings and cousins are better practice partners than adults here, because they will not slow down politely. Ask the family to let a group chat happen without editing it, and to take a short reply as a real reply.
What's in this activity
- What's up?
- Same here.
- That's rough.
- I'm good, thanks.
- Wait -- say that again.
- Hold on, I'm still typing.
- For real?
- I'll catch you later.
Questions
- These are very informal. Is that intentional?
- Yes. A device stocked only with polite complete sentences marks a teenager as different in exactly the setting where they least want to be. Register is part of the vocabulary.
- Do I need an account?
- No, it plays free with no login. Signing in only adds assignment and goal tracking.
- How do I fit this to a goal?
- Most fit under conversational turn-taking or social communication rather than requesting. Count maintained turns, not correct sentences.
Use this board with your caseload
With a free account, every correct, cued and incorrect mark is saved to the student and scored against their IEP goal, with the data written up for you. Assign it as home practice through the parent portal.
Track progress freeFree for SLPs. No card, no trial clock.