In January, Wheeler Elementary School debuted a special sign outside on its playground.
The sign has pictures on it and provides a way for students with different needs or communication styles to interact with their classmates and the school staff. The children’s needs can vary, ranging from not being able to speak because of physical or neurological issues to not speaking English as a first language.
“We just wanted to bring all that together so everyone could hopefully communicate better together, foster those social interactions and friendship skills and be inclusive to all,” said Emily Kurz, a speech pathologist at the school in the Millard District in Omaha.
According to a 2022 National Institutes of Health Library of Medicine compilation of research studies, unstructured play on playgrounds is beneficial to children’s development. The series of studies found that children with limited speech benefited from having access to alternative forms of communication on the playground because it better allowed them to participate in that unstructured play.
Wheeler had similar communication boards in places like the lunchroom or gym, and some students use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices, but none of those were being used outside.
“It can be hard to bring those AAC devices out to the playground or to use them effectively,” Kurz said.
Kurz had seen examples of outdoor communication signs on social media and thought Wheeler could benefit from having one.
When she researched, all she found were commercially made signs that didn’t meet her students’ needs
Instead, Kurz, with the help of the school’s media specialist and special education team, used funding from Wheeler’s parent-teacher association to create a banner that catered to the specific needs of the students.
The sign includes what are called core words — words like “go,” “stop,” “I” and “want.” Along with these core words, more-specific words like “basketball” or “slide” are included on the sign. With the combination of these words, the students can communicate their wants and needs by simply pointing at the images.
“The goal would be just more ownership in that communication, more independence with communicating, what the child wants to communicate, rather than us just guessing, or, you know, in a sense, putting words in their mouth,” Kurz said.
Kurz added the school’s staff has already seen students benefit from the signs, and that other schools have shown interest in creating their own.