Nonverbal or low verbal children can be helped to communicate immediately while simultaneously learning to read. Research shows fewer than 50% of children with AAC learn to read, and have few opportunities for gaining phonemic awareness, sight words, phonics or other reading skills. Yet reading is the mode of communication used by successful adult AAC users. The sound cues on the card also encourage children to use vocalization. A study by M. Banajee (2007) showed that AAC children with severe impairment gained significant reading, phonemic awareness, and alphabet skills in just a few weeks using Phonic Faces materials. Can easily be used in play or during storybook reading, where nonverbal children can communicate about all of the fun and exciting events of the story. Phonic Faces storybooks (used by Banajee) provide ideal stories for children to learn about sounds and phonemic awareness even when they can't produce sounds themselves. Why use artificial symbol systems like PicSyms, Dynasyms, PECS, Blissymbols or others that don't lead to reading, when MorphoPhonic Faces can be used as young as 12 months and lead to reading?
