Tacpac - communication through touch and music
TACPAC®
communication through touch and music
Tel/Fax: 01865-772213
E: info@tacpac.co.uk
W: www.tacpac.co.uk

19 Florence Park Rd, Oxford OX4 3PN, UK

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TacpacTM One
(CDs 1, 2, 3, laminates and guidance booklet)
£72.50

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TacpacTM Two
(Cds 4, 5, HandyPac,
laminates and guidance booklet)
£72.50

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Price includes worldwide p&p

Objects not included

Order now
Extra set
of 3 CDs
£45
Extra set
of 3 laminates
£12.50
Extra booklet
£18

The benefits of Tacpac®

What is Tacpac?
What happens?
Using Tacpac over time
Who can benefit?
Tacpac Trainings
Tacpac brushing

What is Tacpac®?
Tacpac® is an activity resource for helping people with sensory or neurological impairment, developmental delay, profound and multiple learning difficulties, tactile defensiveness, and limited or pre-verbal communication. It provides a structured, emotionally safe framework for the 'receiving partner' to make contact with their own bodies, their environment and other people, and develop a relationship with these. The 'giving partner' ensures that each tactile experience is well organised and sensitively offered, and adjusted to suit the receving partner's responses.

What happens?

Tacpac® begins with the simple sense of touch with a familiar, easy-to-get-hold-of, everyday object, such as a kitchen sponge, a wooden spatula, or some furry fabric. The experience is then enhanced through the principle of 'sensory alignment'. We have then composed a piece of music specifically to match the texture, character, and even the emotional quality of the touch experience. The activity and object is announced on the CD before each piece of music starts. The receiving partner hears what they see and what they feel on their skin: sensory alignment - and sensory reinforcement for seeing, hearing and touching.

Through linking what becomes familiar music with objects, actions and people in a pattern of different activities, the partners communicate with each other.

Each Tacpac® session lasts around half an hour, and consists of 6 of these experiences in a sequence carefully planned for maximum variety of stimulus, always ending with a relaxing piece of music. To set up a session, you need a disturbance free zone, the Tacpac® CD, a CD player, the objects themselves, and the colour-matched A4 laminate that describes the six activities.

Using Tacpac® over time

A session like this could be repeated with the receiver perhaps twice a week for three to four months. To begin with, they might be unfamiliar with it, and wary of touch experiences - 'tactile defensive'. The reactions will give clues to what they like nad dislike (see guidance booklet included with every pack). As you repeat the sessions over a number of weeks or months (or over a few days eg within short term respite care visits), the receiving partner begins to recognise the music, and anticipate the next touch experience; they can relax more into the sessions, actively showing anticipation of their favourite objects or music, and interacting with them more. Over time, they may also begin to relate more obviously with the giving partner. It is the building of trust which can help both giver and receiver develop greater confidence in communicating with each other, perhaps meaningfully for the first time.

There are two packs - Tacpac® One and Tacpac® Two. Each pack contains 3 CDs with matching laminates, so material for 3 distinct sessions or potentially a year of work with each pack. (
How to order)

Who can benefit?

Tacpac® is used by infants, children, siblings, parents, portage workers, therapists, carers, education (nursery, primary and secondary) and health professionals, and is now also finding applications in adult day care centres and colleges, mental health, geriatric and dementia settings.

We are delighted that the quality of our work has been recognised by becoming a prizewinner in the UK Special Educational Needs Awards 2007 sponsored by nasen (National Association for Special Educational Needs) and the TES (Times Educational Supplement).

Tacpac® Trainings

Tacpac® is user-friendly and very easy to run. The more you use it, the more you will discover how adaptable it is to the different developmental needs of receiving partners. Tacpac® Trainings have been created to give a greater understanding of how our senses work, and how this relates to music, communication, observation skills, development and session planning.

If you are interested in learning more, and would like to receive training in your organisation or area, please get in touch with us on tel 01865-772213, or email us at
info@tacpac.co.uk.
Tacpac Trainings
Delivered so far for:
... primary  care trust
... conferences
... inclusion teams
... portage services
... early years teams
... hospice
... speech and language therapists
...
communication and play workers
... community nursery and learning disability nurses
... child development centre
... adult day care centres

For a list of forthcoming training dates and venues, click here.