Flexspeak lets you color-code tiles so AAC users and learners can spot word types faster. You can use Default colors (by grid area), Modified Fitzgerald colors (by word type), or—in Studio—Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) colors for high contrast.
Overview
- Default — Colors follow where words live on the grid (people, actions, topics, and other areas).
- Modified Fitzgerald — Colors follow word type (nouns, verbs, pronouns, and more) using Flexspeak’s modified Fitzgerald key.
- Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) — Studio only: black tiles with white text for low-vision access.
- Custom tile colors — Override the page or grid setting for individual tiles when you need a one-off fill.
- Display style — Choose whether colors show as a border, background, or both.
Modified Fitzgerald key (color reference)
When Modified Fitzgerald is on, tile colors map to word type:
| Color | Word type | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow | People words | I, you, we, he, she, they |
| Orange | Naming words | dog, school, apple, mom |
| Green | Action words | go, eat, play, want, help |
| Blue | Describing words | big, happy, fast, more |
| Purple | Question words | what, where, who, why, how |
| Gray | Little words | to, in, on, and, the, one, two |
| Pink | Social words | hello, thank you, please, yes, no, sorry |
Tips:
- Multi-word phrases usually stay white until each word is on its own tile.
- Common greetings and courtesy phrases (for example, “thank you”) color as social words even when they span more than one word.
- WH-questions like what and where color as question words even before grammar detection runs.
AAC app: change tile colors
Use this on the live communication grid (iOS, Android, or web).
Open tile color settings
- Open Settings from the grid toolbar.
- Go to Display & Navigation.
- Under Tile display, find Tile colors.
Choose a scheme
- Tap Tile colors.
- Select Default or Modified Fitzgerald.
- Default — Colors by grid location (people, social, action, describe, topics, prepositions).
- Modified Fitzgerald — Colors by word type (see table above).
Choose how colors appear
When Default or Modified Fitzgerald is selected:
- Open Default display or Modified Fitzgerald display.
- Pick one:
- Border & background — Color on the fill and frame.
- Border only — White tile with a colored border.
- Background only — Colored fill with no visible border.
- If borders are shown, adjust Default tile border width (thin, medium, or thick).
During onboarding
New AAC users can pick Default or Modified Fitzgerald on the Color scheme onboarding step. You can change this later in Settings.
Flexspeak Studio: change tile colors
Studio applies tile colors per page.
Open page tile color settings
- Open a visual in Studio.
- Open Page defaults.
- Find Tile color scheme.
Choose a scheme
- Open the Tile color scheme menu.
- Select one:
- Default — Each tile keeps its own color (manual fills and template defaults).
- Modified Fitzgerald — Colors follow word type on that page.
- Cortical Visual Impairment — Black tiles with white text across the page.
- Wait for All changes saved—Studio autosaves.
Custom fills on a page
If some tiles use a custom background color, they ignore the page scheme until you apply the page setting:
- After switching schemes, look for the banner that lists tiles with custom fills.
- Click Use page colors to apply the page scheme to those tiles, or Dismiss to leave them as-is.
Per-tile overrides in Studio
- Select a tile.
- In the Cell Properties panel, pick a background color.
- That tile keeps its custom fill until you apply the page scheme or clear the color.
Default vs Modified Fitzgerald
| Default | Modified Fitzgerald | |
|---|---|---|
| What drives color | Grid area / category | Word type (part of speech) |
| Best for | Users who learn locations on the board | Grammar teaching, Fitzgerald-trained teams, color-by-word-class goals |
| Where it works | AAC app + Studio | AAC app + Studio |
Export and print
- Studio PDF export includes the tile colors you see in the editor (Default, Modified Fitzgerald, or CVI).
- Switch schemes before export if you need a printout for a specific learner or goal.
Related articles
- Navigating Flexspeak — Default grid colors by category area
- Flexspeak Studio Guide — Building and exporting visuals
- Studio editor basics — Page defaults and tile editing
- Export and print from Studio — PDF export with tile colors