Dawnmarie (DM) Gaivin: Spelling for Non- and Unreliable Speakers May 23, 2023

Dawnmarie Gaivin is the mother of 2 non-speaking teens with autism. DM realized that their inability to talk did not mean that they had nothing to say. Rather, it was because they were apraxia, and lacked the fine motor skills in their mouths, lips, tongue, and cheeks to form the words. To help them and others like them communicate, she started using letter boards. This method was so successful, that with an occupational therapist, she founded the Spellers Center of San Diego. Today she has helped hundreds of others be able to show their true abilities by communicating with letterboards. Furthermore, working with OTs and behavioral optometrists, her students are improving their fine motor abilities. DM was a part of the award-winning documentary, Spellers: The Movie. Listen in to learn about how to become a Spelling practitioner, and to get this important method into our schools. www.Spellers.com