SentenceShaper.com
An innovative approach to language software for aphasia
An innovative approach to language software for aphasia
PLEASE NOTE: The FAQs below were developed for the original version of the program and haven't yet been updated for SentenceShaper 2.
Click on any of the questions below. Please contact us if you have questions that are not answered addressed below
1. What is SentenceShaper?
2. How does SentenceShaper help people with aphasia?
3. How exactly does SentenceShaper work?
4. Can SentenceShaper help the user to find words?
5. What about languages other than English?
6. How is SentenceShaper different from other communication devices used
by aphasic individuals?
7. What kinds of people with aphasia can benefit from SentenceShaper?
8. How do I train my patients to use SentenceShaper?
9. Are reading or writing abilities required in order to use SentenceShaper?
10. What kind of computer skills are required in order to use SentenceShaper?
11. What kind of hardware and software do I need for SentenceShaper?
12. Do I need a touch screen monitor to use SentenceShaper?
13. Can I try out SentenceShaper before I buy it?
1. What is SentenceShaper?
SentenceShaper® is an innovative, patented communication aid (computer software) designed to help people with aphasia create spoken sentences and entire narratives. It was inspired by research indicating that people with aphasia may retain extensive knowledge of their language, but can't use this knowledge because language processing is slowed down -- it takes these individuals longer to think of words, and words often vanish from memory before they can be combined into sentences.
The purpose of SentenceShaper is to tap into these hidden language abilities by "turning off the clock." It allows the user to record spoken fragments, play them back, and build them into sentences by manipulating icons on a computer screen.
2. How does SentenceShaper help people with aphasia?
Published research from studies funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and conducted by the internationally recognized neuropsychologists and SLPs (Speech-Language Pathologists) with whom we have partnered has demonstrated that:
- SentenceShaper allows some people with aphasia to create markedly more structured and informative utterances, in their own voices, than they could produce without the system.
- Regular SentenceShaper use can lead to changes in spontaneous, unaided speech, including increased utterance length, structure, relevance, and/or fluency. These changes mirror the qualities of speech produced on SentenceShaper; thus the user's speech without the system may come to resemble his speech with the system.
These research studies and publications about SentenceShaper are detailed in the professional part of the website.
3. How does SentenceShaper work?
The program runs mainly from this screen, which is easy to use once you become accustomed to it:
SentenceShaper is user-friendly for aphasia and other language problems, as the user does not need to be able to read. Even though words are shown on the screenshot above, if the user clicks on any of the buttons with words on them, the word is pronounced by the software. Also, the user never needs to type in any text.
SentenceShaper was designed to have a very simple interface with as little distraction as possible. For that reason, it actually covers the toolbar the usually appears at the bottom of the screen on Windows computers. For the same reason, it doesn't have the usual three little boxes in the upper right corner of the screen. To exit the program, you use the arrow at the bottom left.
There is more detail here on how SentenceShaper works.
4. Does SentenceShaper help the user to find words?
Although its primary function is to provide processing support, SentenceShaper does provide two kinds of help with word-finding. The Side Buttons, the 36 buttons surrounding the Work Area (see screen shot above), display printed words. When clicked, each of these buttons plays a sound file of the word. The WordFinder (entered by clicking the question mark icon on the lower right of the screen) is a list of printed words, organized by meaning, which can be played by clicking. Once the user has found the word he wants to use, he records the word in his own voice in order to incorporate it into a sentence. Both word-finding tools can be customized easily by family or clinician.
5. What about languages other than English?
The core functionality of SentenceShaper is completely language-neutral. If you do not need to use SentenceShaper's two word-finding tools, then you can use the system for any language at all. Furthermore, you can add words to the Side Buttons or WordFinder for any language that uses what is called the ISO-8859-1 format, also known as the "Latin 1" encoding; this character set includes Spanish, French, Dutch, Italian, German, Portuguese, Finnish, Norwegian, and Swahili.
6. How is SentenceShaper different from other communication devices used by people with aphasia?
Probably the main difference is that SentenceShaper is more than simply a word-finding tool. Although SentenceShaper can give the user help with word-finding, its most remarkable effects derive from the processing support it provides. However, like other communication systems, SentenceShaper can also help the user to find words. And it allows the user to record words directly, without looking for them on the system.
You do not need to choose between SentenceShaper and another device. You may wish to create messages on SentenceShaper and then transfer them (by manually recording them) onto existing AAC devices such as MessageMate™.
7. What kinds of people with aphasia can benefit from SentenceShaper?
Many people with aphasia experience some kind of an aided effect: that is, they are able to produce better speech using SentenceShaper than they can usually produce spontaneously without the system. Even people who can hardly produce any words at all may be able to assemble utterances on SentenceShaper by using the word-finding tools.
Some of these people will also show gains in their spontaneous, unaided speech after a period of SentenceShaper use. We are still studying this question, but, to date, the most striking treatment results (that is, improvements in spontaneous, unaided speech) have come from people with non-fluent aphasia, such as Broca's aphasia.
Some kinds of people are less likely to benefit from SentenceShaper use, although it is possible that techniques may yet be developed to help them make better use of the system. This aphasia software is less likely to work well for people who are unable to repeat even a single word, or show very poor single word comprehension, or suffer from cognitive deficits which prevent them from learning new skills or attending to a task for any period of time.
In terms of severity, we have observed treatment effects at both ends of the spectrum. Subjects who are already able to produce longer utterances may still increase the informativeness of their speech and create even longer and more well-formed utterances than they were previously doing.
8. How do I train patients to use SentenceShaper?
We have put on this site four pages, Suggestions for Clinical Use, 2, 3, 4, taken from the SentenceShaper manual, and we plan to offer more detailed materials on this topic in the future.
9. Are reading or writing abilities required in order to use SentenceShaper?
No. Although some text is displayed by the system, this text is always associated with a button which plays the spoken word or phrase.
10. What kind of computer skills are required in order to use SentenceShaper?
Using this software requires only the most basic computer skills: single-clicking and dragging are the main kinds of operations required. Family members and clinicians who wish to customize the system (by adding words or pictures) should be able to do so without difficulty if they consult the SentenceShaper manual.
11. What kind of hardware and software do I need for SentenceShaper?
The program runs on Windows 2000/XP, and runs on Vista with a few quirks (described in the QuickStart Guide) which will be fixed in the next release. It frequently runs well on earlier versions of Windows, but we cannot guarantee that it will. It does not currently run on Macs. The computer must have a sound card and a microphone, and enough disk space to store sound files created by the system. The program itself requires 120 MB. You will need a screen resolution of at least 1024 x 768 pixels, which is pretty standard.
12. Do I need a touch screen monitor to use SentenceShaper?
We have found that people often find it easier to use SentenceShaper with a touch screen monitor than with a mouse. (Even touch screen monitors that require you to use a stylus are generally easier to use than a mouse.)
Some laptops (for example, Hewlett-Packard's model HP Pavillion tx2510 us) come with a touch screen that does not require use of a stylus. Another way to get a computer with a built-in touch screen is to use a Tablet PC. However, note that the tablet PC must have a screen resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels and Windows XP (XP Tablet Edition is fine).
That said, if you don't have a touch screen monitor, you can still use this software. How difficult it will be will depend on the physical capabilities of the user.
13. Can I try out SentenceShaper before I buy it??
Yes! You can download the SentenceShaper install program at no charge from our download page, or pick up a copy of the CD at a conference.