Reach Every Voice

Reach Every Voice Reach Every Voice is a practice of educators working with nonspeaking and minimally speaking students. We also collaborate with families and schools.

We teach these students to express themselves with alternative communication. Reach Every Voice is dedicated to providing enriching learning environments and engaging activities for kids with non-traditional methods of communication.

The truth is out there, and this fall Emma is helping students find it.Case Files: Cults & Conspiracies is a new online ...
09/09/2026

The truth is out there, and this fall Emma is helping students find it.

Case Files: Cults & Conspiracies is a new online group class exploring extreme groups and fringe beliefs across history and today. Secret societies, UFOs, flat earth, and the tactics these movements use to recruit and persuade. It's a high-interest way to build real critical thinking skills: evaluating evidence, recognizing manipulation, and questioning claims.

This class is designed for communicators who use AAC, spelling, pointing, typing, and other modalities. All experience levels welcome. Sessions are recorded and sent to registered participants if live attendance isn't possible.

Saturdays at 12:00 PM Eastern / 9:00 AM Pacific, beginning September 19.

Registration link is in the first comment.

There's this mistaken idea out there that people who talk about presuming competence believe that all nonspeaking kids a...
09/07/2026

There's this mistaken idea out there that people who talk about presuming competence believe that all nonspeaking kids are "locked in geniuses."

That's presuming KNOWLEDGE and it's not the same as presuming COMPETENCE.

We don't know what we don't know. A lot of times our students know so much more than we would suspect - because they've been listening to everyone talk about and around them for years - but there's a lot they don't know, particularly if they've been in a segregated classroom learning the same repetitive skills day after day for years on end.

So instead of assuming that they KNOW everything, we're assuming that they CAN LEARN anything.

This presumption of competence is the foundation of our Accessible Academics course. This is a self-paced, ten module course that starts with the ideas of presuming competence and understanding motor/movement differences and builds to explain and model how to adapt age-appropriate academic tasks for students who communicate by making choices.

Struggling on how to teach phonics to a nonspeaking student? We cover that.

Not sure how to have nonspeaking students with motor difficulties use visual representations to model math equations? (We see you GenX and Millennials who have NO IDEA about this new Common Core math...) We'll show you how to do that.

Stuck on how to give nonspeaking students a meaningful voice in the creative writing process? Yup. We do that, too.

Additionally, we have an entire module devoted to language you can use to ask for specific accommodations, supplementary services, and meaningful IEP goals that align to real objectives but are accessible to complex communicators.

The best part? Your course access never expires!

Learn more or sign up at the link in our comments.

From our student TJ:"Dear Teachers,How you view me sets the stage for what I believe I can and can not do. Focusing on m...
09/04/2026

From our student TJ:

"Dear Teachers,

How you view me sets the stage for what I believe I can and can not do. Focusing on my limited capabilities has given me vast gaps in knowledge and self-confidence. How awful to always wonder how my life might differ given someone who truly believed in my understanding."

TJ Thompson
REV Student

[id: a gray background with bold white letters reading "Dear Teachers" above a cutout of Nick, a young man with shoulder-length dark hair and gray shirt. TJ's words are printed in white next to him. The words "listen to all voices" and the reach every voice website are at the top of the image]

We live in a society that privileges speech above all other methods of communication. If you’re someone fortunate enough...
09/02/2026

We live in a society that privileges speech above all other methods of communication. If you’re someone fortunate enough to be able to use speech reliably as your main method of communication, chances are you don’t have to spend a lot of time or energy thinking about how you access it.

That's a privilege.

Our society also frequently equates speech and emotional regulation with intelligence. If you've never had someone make a snap judgement about your capability based on your outward appearance or communication, you might not understand the pain of being misjudged, often for years.

That's a privilege, too.

At Reach Every Voice, we recognize the privilege that comes with speaking and being in control of our motor systems. And we work to amplify the words and ideas of those whose voices have been marginalized.

Our student Ryan proudly shares,
"I am a nonspeaker. My body does not always reflect what my mind is thinking. With patience you will see my true intelligence."

As you move through your day today, stop and ask yourself what you may have taken for granted and how you can work to reframe your assumptions around nonspeaking people.

[id: a photograph of a smiling young man in a baseball cap and hoodie sitting in his car. The words from the quote shared in the caption are on the photo surrounded by blue accents.]

We know the pain of finding high quality lessons and adapted content for students working on spelling or text-based comm...
08/31/2026

We know the pain of finding high quality lessons and adapted content for students working on spelling or text-based communication.

In addition to the almost 300 lessons in our lesson library, we've been tackling this problem on multiple fronts, including with our Speller's Companion Guides. These guides are designed to accompany popular published textbooks.

Read through a few real reviews from the hundreds of folks who have ordered or downloaded our companion guides and then scroll to peek inside the pages of our U.S. History companion guide.

Here's what our raving fans have to share in their Amazon reviews:

"This book was a lifesaver. Instead of trying to come up with questions on my own, I can use the ones in this book. I love the "Everything You Need to Know to Ace..." series and this companion to it is the best."

"Highly recommend this book to parents and professionals. The materials and lessons published by Reach Every Voice and Lisa Quinn are always high quality. I love having lessons on hand. Makes my life easier when working with my son on his spelling, typing, and pointing skills. Thank you!"

"So helpful for homeschool! This book takes the weight off having to find quality content and make sure I have good questions to go along with it. We have used resources from Reach Every Voice for years and know and trust their quality."

"I am a teacher and love this resource!! It's so easy to use with my students who come to me for lessons utilizing text based communication as well as those who communicate with speech! Awesome for history lovers!"

Want to get your hands on a copy? Check the first comment for a link!

REV's Communication Partner Skill Building Intensive returns November 13 to 15 in Gaithersburg, MD.Three days of hands-o...
08/28/2026

REV's Communication Partner Skill Building Intensive returns November 13 to 15 in Gaithersburg, MD.

Three days of hands-on communication partner training for parents, DSPs, SLPs, educators, and support professionals working with people who use multimodal and text-based AAC. Nonspeaking communicators lead as paid presenters, and participants build augmentative and alternative communication support skills by practicing with experienced AAC users before bringing those skills home. In our May cohort, every participant gained in both knowledge and confidence.

Seats are limited. As of posting, 4 scholarship seats remain at a reduced rate thanks to a donation to our nonprofit, REV AccessAbility.

Register at the link in the comments.



Keywords: AAC training, communication partner training, augmentative and alternative communication, nonspeaking communicators, AAC workshop Maryland, text-based AAC, multimodal AAC, presume competence

We need to let go of the image of an ideal learner being someone who is seated, holding their body still, and quietly lo...
08/26/2026

We need to let go of the image of an ideal learner being someone who is seated, holding their body still, and quietly looking at the teacher.

Too often we hear teachers say, "We have to get behavior under control first." And as a result, we're restricting the opportunities we provide that student.

Students don't need to "look like" they're listening in order to learn.

Sitting at a desk should not be a prerequisite for access to education.

[id: a teal and blue background with a white post it paper clipped in the middle. The words on the post-it say, "Reminder: Students don't need to Students don't need to "look like" they're listening in order to learn. Sitting at a desk should not be a prerequisite for access to education."]



**First Week of School Must‑Read:**What if the biggest barrier to inclusive education isn’t a student’s behavior—but our...
08/25/2026

**First Week of School Must‑Read:**

What if the biggest barrier to inclusive education isn’t a student’s behavior—but our misconceptions about movement and communication?

In “The Training I Wish I’d Had,” REV's founder Lisa Mihalich Quinn reflects on years of teaching nonspeaking autistic students—and what was missing in her training.

This one’s essential as we head into the new school year.

Check the first comment for a link to the article!

We're hiring, and the person we're looking for is probably one degree away from you.Reach Every Voice is adding a part-t...
08/25/2026

We're hiring, and the person we're looking for is probably one degree away from you.

Reach Every Voice is adding a part-time Communication Teacher at our Gaithersburg office to grow our afternoon, evening, and Saturday instruction this fall. The right person might be a teacher whose hours were cut, an educator looking for work that actually reflects what they believe about their students, or someone who has spent years alongside a nonspeaking person and knows exactly how much is in there.

No prior training in our approach is required. We provide it, and we pay for it, including a paid onboarding period working alongside our experienced teachers before taking on learners independently.

What we do ask for: experience with nonspeaking or partially speaking individuals, availability for weekday afternoons, evenings, and Saturdays, and genuine respect for the intelligence of the people you'll work with. Current and former classroom teachers are strongly preferred.

Link to the full description & application in the first comment.

If someone came to mind while you read this, tag them or send the post to them. That's how the best people find us.

What a difference it makes in our mindset and our teaching when we presume competence in our students and embrace the un...
08/21/2026

What a difference it makes in our mindset and our teaching when we presume competence in our students and embrace the understanding that what may look like "bad behavior" is quite possibly the response of a brain-body disconnect.

Our student Ethan Statter wrote these words to share about his experience of disconnection and struggle between his brain and body.

Hero or Villain

Oftentimes in life, people experience feeling like a villain and a hero. This is something I feel quite often. I am a villain to myself, when I can’t control my body.

The brain body disconnect I feel is real. It’s hard to describe.

Imagine an angel and a devil. The angel is my brain telling me everything I want and need to do. The devil is my body losing control and taking over.

Imagine what this daily battle feels like, when you know right from wrong.

My brain is the hardest working part of my entire being. I gear up for the war against my body each day, wondering if they will ever agree.

The angel has to win.

I have to love my body but how can I when it’s in a constant battle against me. Who am I? Am I my brain or my body? I’m tired of being torn in two.

I need to give myself grace. The grace to succeed and permission to love myself, even in moments of weakness.

Notes from Ethan: I was inspired to write this poem when my brain and body were not cooperating with one another. The challenges nonspeaking autistic humans face can be tough. At times our bodies don't match our thoughts. Hence the devil and angel comparison. The brain body disconnect is something I write about frequently because it is misunderstood. I know the others in this community can relate. We have to stick together.

[id: a photograph of Ethan sitting with his arms and legs crossed, chin resting on his hands. He is gazing toward the ground. Some words from Ethan's portion of the caption are printed on the photo in white text with teal accents.]

Address

800 S. Frederick Avenue Suite 210
North Bethesda, MD
20877

Telephone

+12406301785

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