Name: Pre-Conference Workshop: Together We Belong: Promoting Peer Engagement and Friendships for Students Who Use AAC
Start: 2026-11-04T12:00:00-0500
End: 2026-11-04T16:00:00-0500

Act now! We reach capacity and sell out every year. Registration closes Wednesday, October 28, 2026 — or sooner if capacity is reached.

Ticket Options

#TalkingAAC: Pre-Conference Workshop
Wednesday, November 4, 2026 | 12:00–4:00 PM
Kellogg Center, East Lansing, MI
- Choose one 4-hour workshop
- Cost: $100
- Full details click here
#TalkingAAC: Two-Day Conference
Thursday & Friday, November 5-6, 2026
- Build your schedule for this two-day event
- Cost: $300
- Price includes breakfast, lunch, & parking
- Full details click here

NOTE: To attend all 3 days, you must purchase both a Pre-Conference Workshop ticket and a Two-Day Conference ticket.

Registration & Session Planning

All registration and session planning will be handled via Sched:

Click the green Log In or Sign Up button below to access Sched.
Then proceed to purchase your ticket(s).
After you’ve purchased your ticket(s), you can plan which sessions you’d like to attend.
New to using the Sched app? To take a tour click here
Need to update your app to this year’s conference? In the Sched app, go to My Account > Change Events> type in the name of the event #TalkingAAC 2026
A new Guest Buyer option lets you purchase tickets for others without creating a SCHED account. Once ticket(s) are selected, choose Continue as Guest.

Ticket Purchase - Error Message

If you receive an error message when purchasing your ticket, please contact TalkingAAC at [email protected] or 517-299-5200 for assistance.

⚠️ Please do not attempt to purchase again, as this may result in duplicate tickets.

Refunds & Ticket Transfers

Refunds available up to 10 days before the event. Sched & Stripe fees are non-refundable.
Ticket transfers (e.g., to a coworker) may be approved before October 28, 2026.

Stay Informed

Watch for updates from #TalkingAAC and Sched with session details and reminders as the event approaches.

Questions?

www.talkingaac.org

[email protected]

517-299-5200

Pre-Conference Workshop: Together We Belong: Promoting Peer Engagement and Friendships for Students Who Use AAC

Wednesday November 4, 2026 12:00pm - 4:00pm EST

Limited Capacity seats available

Peer engagement and relationships are at the heart of what it means to be included and belong, and they also shape children’s development and learning in many important ways. Yet, students with disabilities who use or would benefit from augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) often face significant challenges to developing authentic friendships and engaging meaningfully with their peers. This half-day workshop provides educators, families, service providers, school leaders, and other communication partners with practical, evidence-based strategies to foster peer relationships, promote social communication, and create genuine opportunities for inclusion and belonging for students who use AAC.

The workshop will begin by examining the social experiences of children and youth who use AAC, focusing on both the barriers they encounter and the facilitators that support authentic connections. Through real-world examples and insights from students, peers, and educators, attendees will learn how to promote social communication skills through meaningful engagement with peers, and how AAC can be leveraged to support expression, connection, and relationship-building.

Information for this workshop comes primarily from the Enhancing Peer Networks Project, a multi-year research project focused on improving social communication skills and promoting authentic peer relationships for elementary-aged students with autism who are minimally speaking. By leveraging the findings and strategies from this project, this workshop will go deeper than general principles of inclusion to focus on practical application. You will learn evidence-based strategies to support meaningful peer engagement and interaction for students who use AAC, specifically by building classroom cultures of inclusion, creating intentional opportunities for positive peer interaction, and supporting peers as responsive communication and play partners. A core focus of the workshop is on sharing practical tools and resources to build students’ social communication skills naturally through genuine relationships with peers, rather than isolated interventions. Whether you are supporting one student or hoping to implement school or district-wide initiatives, you will leave this workshop with the tools you need to make inclusion and friendship a reality for students who use AAC.

Presenters

Elizabeth Biggs, PhD

Assistant Professor, Vanderbilt University

Dr. Elizabeth Biggs is a nationally recognized educator, researcher, and speaker with over 15 years of experience working with children and youth with disabilities who use or would benefit from augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). An Assistant Professor at Vanderbilt... Read More →

Wednesday November 4, 2026 12:00pm - 4:00pm EST

Pre-Conference Workshop, Peer Engagement

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#TalkingAAC 2026

Elizabeth Biggs, PhD

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