The Inclusive Movement

09/10/2026

Could you complete a five-minute communication-access check today?

Choose one room, activity, service or routine and check:

✓ The person’s full AAC system is available
✓ It is charged, positioned and easy to reach
✓ A backup communication option is ready
✓ Communication partners know not to remove it or speak over the person
✓ The person has a way to say what is and is not working

Ask the person directly wherever possible. Their experience is the most important measure of whether access is working.

Save this post for your next team meeting, classroom check-in or service review.

Access is not an optional extra. It is part of participation.

Download the complete access audit: www.inclusivemovement.com.au/aac-awareness-month



IMAGE DESCRIPTION

White checklist graphic with five access checks: the full AAC system is available, charged and positioned, a backup is ready, staff do not remove or speak over it, and the person can communicate what is working.

08/10/2026

08/10/2026

Communication access starts before someone speaks.

We often focus on what happens after a person begins to speak, point, gesture, type or use a device.

But access is already being shaped by:

whether communication tools are available

how the environment is set up

how much processing and response time is allowed

whether every communication mode is noticed

the expectations of communication partners

In our first AAC Awareness Month article, we explore the practical conditions that can make communication easier—or create barriers before an interaction has even begun.

Read Communication Access Starts Before Someone Speaks:
https://www.inclusivemovement.com.au/blog/communication-access-starts-before-someone-speaks
Then choose one place or routine and ask: what could we change here to improve access?



IMAGE DESCRIPTION

Teal blog title graphic with aqua rings. It reads “Communication access starts before someone speaks”.

Explore how AAC availability, response time, environments and communication-partner habits shape whether people can communicate and participate.

07/10/2026

How do we move from AAC awareness to communication access in everyday life?

Join Carol Hegan from The Inclusive Movement for a practical 90-minute webinar on Tuesday 27 October, from 1:00 to 2:30 pm AWST.

We will explore AAC beyond devices, common barriers to communication access, supportive partner habits and ways to make home, education, work and community settings easier to join.

This session is for families and carers, educators, support workers, allied health and disability professionals, and community or service teams. No prior AAC training is required.

Date: Tuesday 27 October 2026
Time: 1:00–2:30 pm AWST
Format: Live online (recording provided for on demand viewing)
Price: $29
Bookings: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/2002922252374?aff=oddtdtcreator

Live captions will be available. Participants may use voice or chat, and camera use is optional. Please contact [email protected] with other access requirements.



Image Description:
Square webinar graphic tiles in The Inclusive Movement’s dark teal, aqua and yellow campaign colours. An illustration shows a person pointing to a symbol communication board. Text reads: Communication Access in Action. Practical AAC support for everyday life. 90-minute live online webinar. Tuesday 27 October 2026, 1:00–2:30 pm AWST. Bookings essential.

07/10/2026

Week 1 mission: Keep communication within reach.

Before we ask someone to communicate, we need to check whether their communication system is actually available and accessible.

This week, choose one room, activity, appointment or community setting and ask:

- Is the person’s full AAC system with them?

- Is it charged and working?

- Is it positioned so they can access it?

- Can it travel with them?

- Is a backup option available?

- Does the person have the words they need for what is happening now?

Do not move, hide, switch off or lock away someone’s communication without their agreement.

Today’s action: identify and remove one practical access barrier.

Download the free campaign resources: www.inclusivemovement.com.au/aac-awareness-month



IMAGE DESCRIPTION

Teal Week 1 mission graphic reading “Keep communication within reach”. It asks readers to check AAC, charging, mounting and backups, with an illustration of a person beside a symbol board.

06/10/2026

AAC is more than a device.

Augmentative and alternative communication can include:

- gestures and facial expressions

- movement and signs

- objects, photos and symbols

- letter boards and writing

- communication books and boards

- apps and speech-generating devices

Many people use several communication modes together. Their preferred method may also change depending on the environment, topic, communication partner, sensory demands, health or energy available that day.

The goal is not to make communication look a particular way.

The goal is to understand and be understood.

Notice every mode. Respond to meaning. Keep the person’s own communication preferences central.



IMAGE DESCRIPTION

White graphic titled “AAC is more than a device”. Three cards list body-based communication, paper and symbol supports, and technology. It says that people may use several modes together and every mode should be respected.

05/10/2026

The 2026 international theme for AAC Awareness Month is:

AAC in Everyday Life: Today, Tomorrow, and Beyond.

AAC belongs wherever people live, learn, work, connect, make decisions, have fun and participate in their communities.

Bringing AAC into everyday life can mean:

- keeping someone’s full communication system available

- giving people enough time to respond

- recognising gestures, movement, writing and other communication modes

- offering different ways to participate

- building communication access into ordinary systems and routines

Where does communication access already work well around you?

Where could one practical change open the door?

Explore our Communication Access in Action campaign:
www.inclusivemovement.com.au/aac-awareness-month



IMAGE DESCRIPTION

Aqua graphic with the 2026 theme “AAC in everyday life: Today, Tomorrow, and Beyond”, plus an invitation to notice where communication access works and where one change may be needed.

03/10/2026

Happy Hub disco, tonight 5.30-7.30pm 🤗🪩💃🏼

02/10/2026

🦎 Meet the Cammy the Chameleon Bundle! 🌈

Sometimes feelings don’t arrive one at a time.

We can feel excited and worried. Happy and sad. Proud and nervous. And sometimes, we might not have the words for what we’re feeling at all.

The Cammy the Chameleon’s Mixed-Up Feelings Bundle was created to give children different ways to explore, communicate and make sense of those experiences - without needing to find one “right” feeling or communicate it in one particular way.

Created around Kooper Lily’s book Cammy the Chameleon’s Mixed-Up Feelings, the bundle includes:

📖 Cammy the Chameleon’s Mixed-Up Feelings picture book
💬 Book Chat AAC pillowcase with a 5 × 5 communication grid
🌈 14-page companion pack with posters and activities for exploring feelings, communication, body and brain clues, safe people and more

Children can talk, point, use AAC, draw, colour, move, write — or simply enjoy the story alongside someone they trust. Because communication is so much bigger than spoken words.

Designed for approximately 4–9 years and suitable for home, classrooms, therapy spaces, libraries and anywhere stories are shared.

Available now Instore and online @ The Inclusive Movement.



Image description: A product image on a white background showing the Cammy the Chameleon bundle. On the left is a purple Book Chat pillowcase featuring a 5 × 5 AAC communication grid. In the centre is the pink Cammy the Chameleon’s Mixed-Up Feelings book, written and illustrated by Kooper Lily, featuring colourful Cammy on the cover. On the right are several pages from the companion activity pack, including resources about mixed feelings and a mixed-up colour swirl activity.