Parents' Guide to Proloquo2Go

Kids who can't speak or have limited speech but who gravitate toward technology will likely be able to use Proloquo2Go adeptly. With a tap, a swipe, and a tap, kids can drill down into the app to find just the right buttons that represent what they want to say. Words are organized in grids by most frequently or recently used, sets of things, general parts of speech (pronouns, verbs, nouns), and "little" words, which help make sentences more fluid, conversational, and even polite ("I want to go play baseball, please."). For parents or teachers who wonder if they can customize an app with such an enormous vocabulary base (14,000 symbols), Proloquo2Go offers an extensive user guide, FAQs, webinars, and more that make the experience easy and even fun. Even for kids who can't read, the symbols used along with the words are so highly customizable that they can use it to express themselves without knowing words. As long as a kid is able to navigate the device's screen and understands how symbols can represent words, including verbs and pronouns, they most likely will be able to use this tool to speak not only to ask for what they want or express how they feel, but also to speak in complete sentences and participate in the flow of everyday communication.

The $219.99 price tag is definitely higher than similar apps; however, there are no added costs (voice downloads included) and all of the webinars and online instruction are included. The extensive available support for parents who are setting up and optimizing the use of Proloquo2Go for kids is impressive. Proloquo2Go can help speech-challenged kids increase communication and decrease frustration, and it empowers parents to customize this powerful tool in ways that best suits their kid's current age and stage of development.