The Anna Shaw Children’s Institute ASCI), part of Hamilton Health Care System, will host a Language Acquisition through Motor Planning (LAMP) workshop on Friday, Feb. 10 from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The program is in conjunction with The Center for AAC & Autism.

“This workshop is open to the community and is an excellent opportunity for caregivers and educators to learn strategies to communicate with non-speaking individuals,” said Terri Woodruff, executive director of ASCI.

LAMP is an augmentative alternative communication (AAC) approach designed to give individuals who are nonverbal or have limited verbal abilities a method of independently expressing themselves through the use of a speech-generating device. There are no cognitive prerequisites for implementing the LAMP approach. Intervention can begin at the cause-and-effect level and systematically build upon the stages of natural language development.

This course covers implementation rationale and strategies with an introduction to the LAMP Words for Life language system. The cost of the class is $139. A discounted rate of $69.50 is available for students and parents. Seating is limited.

Two 15-minute breaks and a one-hour lunch break will be provided. During the lunch break, participants have the option of eating in the Hamilton Medical Center cafeteria, bringing a lunch or leaving the campus for lunch. Two of the five LAMP-certified professionals in the state of Georgia are therapists at ASCI. They include Hannah Cannon, lead pediatric therapist, and Laurie Shaw, speech therapist. “Hannah and Laurie are stellar therapists,” said Woodruff. “To have forty percent of Georgia’s LAMP-certified professionals providing care at Anna Shaw Children’s