Q&A with Lisa Domican of Grace App

Why did you decide to create the Grace App? I discovered that picture exchange communication was the best way to prompt and reward independent communication for both my children with Autism. I could observe their interests and needs, then create a picture with which I could prompt them to communicate their wishes and get the reward. With my son, I could model speech with the images which he imitated and within three months, he started talking independently. With my daughter, it took longer, and I had to create and store over 400 pictures in her vocabulary file before she began trying to imitate the words. I wanted to keep encouraging communication but needed to make it easier to bring the pictures everywhere. In 2008, I had the idea to create what became the Grace App.

I understand your kids use the Grace App.

Yes. Gracie goes to a special school, where they do cook once a week. Gracie likes making the rice crispy buns because they are made of chocolate. However, the idea is that the children will learn to try new foods, so the recipe changes every week. One day they were making chocolate brownies in the classroom, and the tutor working with Gracie was surprised to find that Gracie did not want to co-operate with measuring out the ingredients, as she usually likes to do. She kept trying to prompt her, but Gracie picked up her i-Phone and asked for “kitchen” where the breakfast foods were kept. The tutor thought it would help to see what she wanted, so together they went downstairs to the kitchen. Gracie opened the Grace App,  took a photograph of the Rice Crispie breakfast cereal then put it on her sentence, “I want, Rice Crispies, Chocolate, Bowl” – She wanted to make rice crispies buns AGAIN! The tutor thought the communication was very effective, and let her make them, and EAT them of course. ]]>