Summer camp gives nonverbal children unique experience

KANAWHA COUNTY, WV (WOWK) – A core childhood memory for so many kids is going to summer camp, and the nonprofit “Exceptional Possibilities” believes that should be the case for every child regardless of disabilities.

“We want to bring more awareness and acceptance to those who use AAC, which is Augmentative and Alternative Communication,” said Michelle Robinson, Camp Coordinator with Talking Time AAC Summer Camp. “This is important because there’s not always camps available for individuals with special needs and those who may be nonspeaking or have limited communication.”

Talking Time AAC Summer Camp gives children who are nonverbal, and who are AAC users, the chance to build unforgettable summer memories, go on field trips and have that magical camp experience.

“When we started this last year, we were really thinking that a lot of the kids and families that we knew might be hesitant to enroll their child in a summer camp because they didn’t have staff who were trained in AAC. We wanted to bring our experience together and create something that could be really fun and memorable,” Camp Director Alexa Kirkwood said.

Kirkwood, a former special education teacher who worked with AAC users and children with autism, said she has a passion for helping children make special memories and be active in their community.

14 campers total are registered for Talking Time AAC Summer Camp. Beginning on Tuesday, the camp will wrap up on Friday.

Kirkwood said, “We added a new field trip schedule, which we did today (Wednesday). We came out to the Southridge area. We started with a scavenger hunt at Target, then we went to five and below…. Then we had lunch at Texas roadhouse, and now we’re here at South Charleston Fire Station and all of our campers are able to check out the fire truck and the outfits, and we just had a lot of fun exploring the community today and practicing AAC while we’re out and about.”

Robinson also said this is the only summer camp of its kind in all of West Virginia.

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