The A, B, C's and 1, 2, 3's of Switch Access
Learn to teach switch access effectively! This session covers key strategies, switch types, placement, and skill-building through play. Discover how to foster creativity, manage cognitive load, and create inclusive classrooms where every student can succeed. Perfect for SLPs, OTs, and educators seeking practical, engaging approaches.
Presented by

Heidi G. Brislin, MS-OTR/L is a dedicated Occupational Therapist and Assistive Technology Specialist making a significant impact in the Edmonds School District in Washington. As the owner of Heidi Brislin OT Consulting in Kingston, WA, she offers a range of services including professional development sessions, family consultations, team training, assistive technology evaluations, and power wheelchair evaluations. With a wealth of experience in school-based practices and adult rehabilitation, Heidi is a graduate of both Boston University and the University of Washington. Her passion lies in empowering teams to create authentic learning experiences for all children. She focuses on enhancing literacy skills, facilitating switch access, promoting power mobility, and helping children become confident, autonomous communicators.
Built for you
Who this course is for
Every minute is written for working clinicians, educators, and families. You walk away with real-world tools to try with your next learner, not abstract theory.
Speech-Language Pathologists
Occupational Therapists
AT Specialists
Educators
After this course
What you’ll walk away with.
You leave with concrete skills and frameworks you can apply in your next session, classroom, or family visit, not just ideas to think about later.
Earn your CEUs
Attend the full course and pass the post-session assessment at 80% or higher. Your 0.1 ASHA CEUs are reported to ASHA when you opt in on the assessment.
- 01
You’ll be able to
List three types of switches.
- 02
You’ll be able to
List three locations for switch placement for optimal student access.
- 03
You’ll be able to
Describe two examples of using repetition with variety when teaching switch access.
The full 1 hour
Your learning path.
- 1
Skill development through Play 10 minutes
10 minutes - 2
Importance of teaching switch access, being creative, and cognitive load for students
10 minutes - 3
Presume potential for all students
5 minutes - 4
Repetition with variety
5 minutes - 5
Review common switches and switch interfaces including their function
10 minutes - 6
Switch Placement
10 minutes - 7
Important things to remember when teaching switch skills
10 minutes
Earn ASHA CEUs in three steps
Free courses, ASHA CEUs when you opt in.
Register & attend
Register in under a minute. Join live or watch on-demand, whichever fits your schedule.
Pass the assessment
Complete the short post-course assessment with 80% or higher to confirm mastery.
CEUs reported to ASHA
Choose to be reported on the assessment and your 0.1 ASHA CEUs are filed to ASHA for you. No paperwork, no chasing certificates.
Ready when you are
Save your seat. It’s free.
Registration is short and free: no credit card, no trial, nothing to cancel later.
Keep going
More in Assistive Technology
Reimagining AAC: A Tool Based Approach to Meaningful Communication
This workshop reframes AAC as a continuum of tools that support communication across routines, environments, and stages of development. Participants will explore how gestures, subtle cues, core boards, switches, robust systems, and partner strategies work together to create a flexible communication toolbox. We'll examine how shifting from a device‑focused mindset to a tool‑focused approach reduces pressure, increases access, and supports joyful interactions. Attendees will learn to identify AAC tools across the continuum, support communication in natural contexts, model language authentically, build confidence through low‑pressure opportunities, and create environments where AAC users have multiple ways to express themselves.
Writing Real Goals and Collaborative Lesson Plans for Switch Users
This session will review some basics of teaching switch skills to students and then we will do deep dive into collaborative goal writing. You will learn what is recommended when writing collaborative goal from a joint paper from our professional organizations (AOTA, APTA, and ASHA). Real life samples of collaborative goals will be discussed and shared as a resource. Finally, in this session you will be provided with samples of daily switch planning guides and learn how to implement these as part of a student's daily routines.
Four Tools That Help Your Student's Get 100's of Swith Hit's a Day
In this session you will learn about four different switch activities that you can utilize to create opportunities for you switch users to get 100's of switch hits a day. These activities are designed with engagement and participation in academics, play, and leisure in both general education and special education settings. Having opportunities to develop switch skills with activities incorporating repetition with variety improves a student's access method to become more automatic. These four activities help students develop motor skills necessary for point or step scanning, as well as mouse emulation.