Guides
Core words for AAC: the first words to teach, with Speech Assistant
The Speech Assistant Team
October 2026 · 2 min read
Core words are the small set of words that make up most of what we say every day. They work in almost any situation, so they're the best first words for AAC.
Core vs fringe
- Core words: I, you, it, want, more, go, stop, help, like, look, all done. Used everywhere.
- Fringe words: pizza, grandma, swing, iPad. Personal and topic-specific; still important.
- Studies of everyday speech find that a few hundred words cover most of what people say.
Which words first?
Start with words the person can use many times a day:
- more: food, tickles, music
- stop: when something isn't right
- help: anything hard
- go: leaving, starting, cars
- all done: ending an activity
How to teach them
- Model. Tap the word on the board while you say it. No need to ask them to copy.
- Repeat across the day. "More" at breakfast, at the park, at bath time.
- Add one word. "more" → "more juice" → "I want more juice".
- Accept every attempt. A tap counts as communicating.
Core Words in Speech Assistant
- The Core Words board is the first board, ready on first launch: 18 words including I, you, want, more, go, stop, help, yes, no, all done.
- Colours follow the modified Fitzgerald Key: pronouns yellow, verbs green, describing words blue, social words pink.
- Each word stays in the same place on iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, which helps motor memory.
- Also in Spanish, French and German.
Next: your first week of AAC.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between core and fringe words?
Core words are the few hundred words used in almost every conversation (go, more, it). Fringe words are specific to a person or topic (pizza, grandma, swimming).
How many core words should we start with?
A handful. Pick three to five that the person can use many times a day, and add more as they use them.
Why are the tiles different colours?
Speech Assistant colours core words by word type using the modified Fitzgerald Key, so a word is easier to find.
Speech Assistant - AAC Pad
Free AAC for iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
