Pages

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Another Occupational Therapist Recommendations for Apps

Another Occupational Therapist top ten list of apps:


Alphabet Tracing - Oncilla Technologies Inc I love using this with my handwriting kiddos for fine motor skills, letter formation and identification.

Alphabet Song - Oscar's Apps One of my really autistic kiddos will sit and look and touch the highlighted letter and really attend to this app. This app helps with letter identification and recognition. ( I cannot tell you how many handwriting referrals I get and the child cannot identify the letters of the alphabet.

Virtuoso Piano Free 3 - Peter Nagy for cause and effect for my more severe and profound students. For my students with fine motor difficulties it is great for finger individuation and isolation.

Talking Carl - Awyse great for increasing a Childs vocalizations and verbalizations.

Wheels on the Bus HD - Duck Duck Moose by duck duck moose (love all their apps, itsy bitsy spider and baa baa black sheep) interactive music and cause and effect.

TapSpeak Button for iPad - Ted Conley Great for letting non verbal students choose activities and communicate. It is a BIG MAC on the Ipad. (could be used in so many different ways).

Pocket Pond HD - JOHN MOFFETT cause and effect (my multiply impaired kids LOVE THIS!

Vocal Zoo - iPad edition - Funny i Games great cause and effect, interactive and I love that is turns like the pages of a book. My more severe and involved kiddos are able to turn the pages.

Glow Draw! - Indigo Penguin Limited Great for my students working on prewriting skills such as vertical and horizontal strokes as well as imitating simple shapes.

TapToTalk™ - Assistyx LLC Reasonable communication system. However, this is better for someone who knows what they want and are just unable to verbalize it



Thanks Martha

Monday, January 24, 2011

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Jeremy Brown's App Recommendations for Students with Autism Part 2

LANGUAGE ARTS


Starfall ABCs - Starfall Education [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99]

Alpha Writer, by Montessorium - Montessorium, LLC. [Universal
$4.99]

Word Magic - anusen.com [Universal
$0.99]

ACT Spell - Cool Tool Apps [iPad
$2.99]

PhotoCross - Terrier Software [iPad
$1.99]

Word Play for iPad - Visual Hierarchy [iPad
$1.99]

Silly Story Maker iPad edition - Miller Designs [iPad
$1.99]

Sentence Builder for iPad - Mobile Education Tools [iPad
$1.99]

Build A Story - Girl's World Pty. Ltd [iPad
$2.99]



Children's eBooks

Barnes & Noble NOOK kids - The Largest Collection of Children's eBooks - Barnes and Noble Kids [iPad
FREE & purchase books individually]

Kiwa Media [iPad & iPhone\iTouch versions
$4.99\each]

Oceanhouse Media (Berenstain Bears, Dr. Seuss, etc.) [Universal
$1.99-$3.99\each]

ReadMe Publications, Inc. [Unviersal
FREE & additional in-app purchases]


MATH

My Underwear - Thumb Arcade [Universal
$2.99]

Intro to Math, by Montessorium - Montessorium, LLC. [Universal
$4.99]

Park Math HD - by Duck Duck Moose - Duck Duck Moose [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99] & Park Math HD [iPad
$1.99]

iTouchMath - KONSTRUCT LLC [iPhone\iTouch
FREE]

Audio Slide A Math Learning Subtraction - WILLHALL SIAU [iPad
$0.99]

First Calculator - Talking Calculator for Kids - St. Madeleine Sophie School [Universal
$0.99]

Math Step123 - wxyzsoftware.com [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99]

Coin Math - Recession Apps [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99]

Kid Klok - Animated Speech Corporation [Universal
$0.99]

Telling Time HD - My Turn Mobile [iPad
$2.99]


MUSIC & SONGS

Wheels on the Bus HD - Duck Duck Moose [iPad
$1.99]

Kids Song Machine HD + 10 songs - Genera Kids [iPad
$1.99]

My First Songs - Ringzero Game Studio [iPad
$2.99]

Discover Musical Instruments Free - Mathieu Brassard [iPhone\iTouch
FREE]

Magic Piano - Smule [iPad
$0.99]

Ocarina - Smule [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99]

Genikids Orchestra for iPad - Waterbear Soft inc. [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99]


FUN

Blocks!! - miSoft [Universal
$1.99]

Furry Friend - Plutinosoft [Universal
FREE]

LightMyPeg - Mark Schoer [iPad
$0.99]

PhotoMatch Kids HD - Weily Apps [iPad
$3.99]

Timber! - miSoft [Universal
$1.99]



Sorry it took so long for Part 2.  In my neck of the woods the internet and the weather are not always friends.  Thank you so much Jeremy for such a complete list.  Keep up all the hard work.
Bridget

Ipods for Autism

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Jeremy Brown's App Recommendations for Students with Autism Part 1

I am an elementary special education teacher. I work with students in grades 3rd through 5th who have autism. My students and I are fortunate to have two iPads and several iPod Touches to use in our classroom. Outside of school, I work as a Family Trainer helping parents implement behavioral and educational programming for their children at home.


BEHAVIOR
iReward - Grembe Inc. [Universal
$4.99]

RewardTimer - Hidden View Software, LLC [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99]

BehaviorTrackerPro - Marz Consulting Inc. [iPhone\iTouch $29.99]

CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT
Time Timer - Time Timer LLC [iPhone/iTouch
$4.99]

Autism Timer - ROUGE41 [iPhone/iTouch
$2.99]

Teacher Tools - Who's Next? - Naaptime Software [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99]

VISUAL SUPPORTS
ChoiceBoard Maker - Techno Chipmunk [iPad
FREE]

iCommunicate - Grembe Inc. [iPhone\iTouch
$34.99] or iCommunicate for iPad - Grembe Inc. [iPad
$49.99]

Pictello - AssistiveWare [Universal
$14.99]

Strip Designer - Vivid Apps [Universal
$2.99]

AAC
TapSpeak Button for iPad - Ted Conley [iPad
$9.99]

TapSpeak Sequence for iPad - Ted Conley [iPad
$29.99]

Expressive - Smarty Ears [Universal
$34.99]

TapSpeak Choice for iPad - Ted Conley [iPad
$99.99]

Proloquo2Go - AssistiveWare [Universal
$189.99]

Grace - Picture Exchange for Non-Verbal People - Steven Troughton-Smith [Universal
$37.99]

MOVEMENT \ SENSORY
MeMoves - Thinking Moves [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99]

Move Like Me - Ten Toed, Inc. [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99]

Rosita's Jump Count - Sesame Street [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99]

Dance Party Zoo - FizzBrain [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99]

Sensory Play - Mike Jones [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99]


CAUSE & EFFECT
Fireworks! - miSoft [Universal
$0.99]

Panda Dance Free - pandaapp [iPad
FREE]

Pocket Pond HD - JOHN MOFFETT [iPhone\iTouch
FREE]

VISUAL
Children's Puzzles Set 2 - Visual Learning Aids, Inc. [iPad
$1.99]

Jigzo HD - the Photo Jigsaw Puzzle for Kids and Adults - kinkiliba.com [iPad
$2.99]

Kid'z Maze - Omer Vinik [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99]

aMAZEing HD - Amy Faulkner [iPad
FREE]

FINE MOTOR SKILLS
Slide 2 Unlock - RJ Cooper & Associates, Inc. [iPad
FREE for limited time]

Draw with Stars ! Play with Musical, Animated and Glowing Shooting Stars ! - L'Escapadou [Universal
$0.99]

Cube Frenzy - Joe Hillman [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99]

Catch A Star - Stella Productions [Universal
$1.99]

Cut the Rope HD - Chillingo Ltd [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99]

HANDWRITING
Hairy Letters - Nessy [Universal
$2.99]

iWriteWords (Handwriting Game) - gdiplus [Universal
$2.99]

LIFE SKILLS
iWriteWords (Handwriting Game) - gdiplus [iPad
$49.99]

Steps - AdastraSoft [iPhone\iTouch
$9.99]

Chore Pad HD - Nannek [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99] or Chore Pad HD [iPad
$4.99]

Brush It Up - WonderApp [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99]

EMOTIONS
How Are You? - zuuka! GmbH [iPad
$9.99]

Smile at Me - FizzBrain [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99]

AutismXpress - StudioEmotion Pty Ltd. Inc. [iPhone\iTouch
FREE]

iSmilez - Take Note [Universal
$0.99]

Anger - Bee [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99]

SOCIAL SKILLS
Eye Contact - Toybox - FizzBrain [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99]

Look In My Eyes 1 Restaurant - FizzBrain [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99]

Turn Taker - Orderd.com [iPhone\iTouch
$2.99]

Model Me Going Places - Model Me Kids, LLC [iPhone\iTouch
FREE]

Model Me Going Places 2 - Model Me Kids, LLC [iPad
FREE]

CREATIVITY
Click Me Stick Me HD - Poldata sp.j. [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99] or Click Me Stick Me HD [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99]

Faces iMake - Premium! - iMagine machine LLC [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99]

Kids Paint - Virtual GS [Universal
$0.99]

PlayTime Theater - Make Believe Worlds, LLC. [iPad
$4.99]

DAILY ROUTINES
iTouchiLearn Musical Story for Toddler and Preschool Kids - Staytoooned [iPad
$1.99]

iDress for Weather - Pebro Productions [Universal
$1.99]

Mister Rogers Make a Journal for Preschoolers - PBS KIDS [iPhone\iTouch
$1.99]

COGNITIVE \ LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT
Talking Flashcards - theraTech Solutions, LLC [Universal
$3.99]

Autism Colors - ZBobbApps.com [Universal
$19.99]

Monkey Preschool Lunchbox - THUP Games [Universal
$0.99]

ABA apps by Kindergarten.com [iPhone\iTouch
$0.99\each]

Clean Up: Category Sorting - Different Roads to Learning, Inc. [Universal
FREE]

NLConcepts Autism: Sort & Categorize - Natural Learning Concepts [iPhone\iTouch
FREE]

Speech with Milo: Verbs - Doonan Speech Therapy [Universal
$2.99]

WhQuestions - Smarty Ears [Universal
$14.99]

Kiddie Questions - LIMNET [Universal
$2.99]


For more information on Jeremy and his classroom experiences you can join his Facebook group that he has created all about using iOS devices in special education: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_122716487786903.





Thanks Jeremy.  Hopefully I will have Part 2 of your list tomorrow.

Tam and Tao in Numberland

The wonderful app developers over at Tam and Tao in Numberland has been so generous to offer us 3 free codes to try out their app.

HXFN9RTWF4AX
NYJJY7XNMY9E
H47HA34Y7XHW

Tam & Tao in Numberland HD - Learn numbers with Montessori - Les Trois Elles Interactive

This app is more for a toddler with some fine motor control.  If you take a code please leave a comment below stating which code you are using and go to the app site and give a rating of that code.

Let us know what you think.

Monday, January 17, 2011

Guest Blogger Pam tells us all about her Best Investment

The Best Investment



This summer our family invested in an iPad. I was so excited because it had the potential to offer my daughter Makenzie, access to many different kinds of activities despite the limited motor skills she possessed in her arms and hands.

I had no clue the day I stood in the Apple store purchasing our iPad what a huge impact it would make in Makenzie's life!

We purchased a case from incase, a SD card reader from Apple, the invisisheild by ZAGG, and the bumper case with mount and bluetooth speaker from RJ Cooper to officially accessorized our new toy therapy tool. I wrote a review on my blog shortly after Makenzie began using her iPad on how we were able to set up the iPad with all of these accessories to best accommodate Makenzie's needs right  here.

We started with simple apps. I bought a bunch of flashcard type apps with letter, colors, shapes, and numbers. Makenzie also loves books so we found some Dr, Suess books, a Toy story book, and her favorite by far, Little Bella's I close my eyes. I also found a bunch of apps like  magic piano, vocal zoo,  the wheels on the bus, toddler Juke Box and I love Fireworks that were also a huge hit.

Makenzie reached out and touched her iPad with enjoyment, outside of therapy, for the first time since her accident. This mommy was so very proud and incredibly excited!!!



I began searching for apps that were a bit more challenging. With the help of friends and Babies with iPads I found several new apps that Makenzie really enjoyed. Sparkablities, Tap Speak Sequence, answers, rattle, shapes, letter trace, talking tom, numberland, choice maker, and Winnie the Poohs Puzzle Book.



Makenzie began to make choices, she showed us that she knew some of her letters, shapes, numbers, and animal names. She was isolating moving objects on the screen, touching smaller pictures with her pointer finger, and lifting her arm higher then ever before. Not only was she doing this with the iPad but she also realized she could use her arms to touch and play with so many other things.



I find new apps every day that help Makenzie learn and grow. Sometimes it seems like a silly thing to say but..... the iPad has changed Makenzie's life in so many ways! It is truly the best therapy tool I have ever invested in!

Thanks Pam and Makenzie...Beautiful Story

New apps that I found lately




My Family - Ana Roca Castro, Mobile Test Kitchen  Creates a little photo album with your family pictures and audio.  You can also use to create flashcards using familiar objects, etc. 

The Monster at the End of This Book (for iPad) - Sesame Street  My all time favorite book app.  I have downloaded a ton of books and this one is by favorite.

Verbal Victor - Seed Stage Associates  I love Verbal Victor for some kids.  It works great for a kid that can reach since it more vertical than landscape.  Also I wish there was a way to turn off the swipe.  (Let me know if someone has found that option.)

My Underwear - Thumb Arcade  Just plain cute but more for a preschooler than infant/toddler.

Tam & Tao in Numberland HD - Learn numbers with Montessori - Les Trois Elles Interactive  Again more preschool age but some toddlers will like it too.  It was free.

Red Apple - Wingedchariot  Very sweet story.  My second favorite children's book.

ChoiceBoard Maker - Techno Chipmunk  So many possiblities with this app from communication, to vision, cognition, pre-literacy.  The options are endless.  Would love to hear ideas on how everyone uses this app?

Dance Star Mickey - Fisher-Price  FUN FUN FUN.  I don't know why this app has so many bad reviews for the little ones it is perfect.  Some little ones may need help but the Music, Mickey and Dance moves are the perfect combination.  PLUS it is FREE!!!

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Tanya, a Speech Language Pathologist, offers her Top 10 List

I work as a speech-language pathologist with the birth-5 population, both in children's homes as well as in a severe classroom in an integrated preschool.



iCommunicate for iPad - Grembe Inc.

ArtikPix - Full - RinnApps

SoundingBoard - AbleNet

Speech with Milo: Verbs - Doonan Speech Therapy (By far my favorite app for verbs, as it goes beyond just showing a picture and shows Milo actually doing the actions.)

Wheels on the Bus HD - Duck Duck Moose

iTouchiLearn Words for Preschool Kids - Staytoooned

Cookie Doodle - Shoe The Goose

TapSpeak Sequence for iPad - Ted Conley

My Underwear - Thumb Arcade (great for extending length of utterance, compare/contrast, descriptive vocabulary etc.)

Story_Builder - Mobile Education Tools

Hope this is helpful!


 



Thanks Tanya.  I will be downloading a few of those apps this evening.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Guest Blogger...Kelly tells us about AnnaKate getting an iPad for Christmas

AnnaKate got an Ipad for Christmas. Sounds a little extravagant for a 4 year old, unless you are a special needs parent and then you understand. The Ipad has become quite the communication tool. I wanted to share how we have been using it with AnnaKate.



First, the case…

I was a little hesitant to get the OtterBox case but after a few negligent tosses by sweet girl…we knew it was the right move. The OtterBox makes the sleek, light Ipad a little heavy and bulky but it is great for protection. It even came with a screen protector that went on perfectly. I highly recommend this case if you have a rowdy child using the Ipad. :)

The purpose…

The purpose of the Ipad is to provide AnnaKate with an alternate way to communicate as she develops her speech.


The apps…

I have spent an extensive amount of time researching communication apps. The gold standard right now is Proloquo2Go - AssistiveWare. It is an amazing communication program. I have not purchased it for 2 reasons:

1. It is $199.99.

2. It is a little more than what we need right now for AnnaKate. I could program it to suit her needs for now but I have decided to try some less expensive and more simplified apps first.



Communication apps we are currently using:

Verbal Victor - Seed Stage Associates, iCommunicate for iPad - Grembe Inc.  and
My Choice Board - Good Karma Applications, Inc


We have set up one entire icon screen with all of AnnaKate’s apps. She knows to swipe to her screen to find her apps.





Here is a screen shot of Verbal Victor - Seed Stage Associates, . Right now it is AnnaKate’s favorite communication tool. It is very basic and only costs $9.99. I like that AnnaKate can easily move through the screens to find the phrase she may want to say. I can see how she could outgrow this app but it is easy to use and great for our needs right now.





This is iCommunicate for iPad - Grembe Inc.. I like this too but we don’t use it nearly as much as Verbal Victor. It is not as easy for AnnaKate to navigate by herself. It costs around $20.00


My Choice Board - Good Karma Applications, Inc is great! This helps us with alleviating some frustrating moments in our house. We have created boards for what she wants to eat for meals, what she wants to watch on television, what she wants to play, etc. She loves touching the picture and hearing the word. This app costs about $9.99. Visually it is the most “cute” of all the apps with the neat little clipboard.


Other uses…

I was very hesitant about AnnaKate using the Ipad for non communication things. I didn’t want it to become a play toy and not be used for the intended purpose. I quickly found out that she needed practice learning to swipe, move through screens, etc. So we downloaded some apps that would help with that as well. So these are fun apps but help with navigation too. They also all expose her to language. It was neat for us to see how fast AnnaKate picked up using the Ipad.


Fun apps..

She loves being able to play her own music with Toddler JukeBox: Twelve Children's Songs (Wheels on the bus and more!) - Tipitap.




Peekaboo Barn - Night & Day Studios, Inc. is a cute app that practices animal names and sounds.



This is a great interactive Sweet Dreams, Maisy by Lucy Cousins - Iceberg Reader book.




Duck Duck Moose has made some great apps. We have most of them. This is Baa Baa Black Sheep - by Duck Duck Moose - Duck Duck Moose. AnnaKate has to find objects, match objects and navigate through the pages.



Babies with Ipads (the blog and Facebook page) has been a great resource for us. It lists great apps and also notifies you when useful apps are on sale or free.


The Ipad has become a great addition to our family. It has helped AnnaKate’s communication immensely and has become a fun thing to do together.





*This is a picture of AnnaKate and Billy listening to music last night. AnnaKate was changing songs with her feet! Silly girl…

Apple iTunes


Thanks for sharing AnnaKate's experiences with the iPad so far.  Looking forward to reading more by visiting http://theweekesfamily.blogspot.com/.

A Productivity App that I LOVE to keep track of everything

I usually do not review productivity apps but the best .99 cents I ever spent was on a new app called Penultimate - Cocoa Box Design LLC  It is a basic note pad using your finger as a pencil to create notebooks.  I have downloaded numerous apps in the past that were similiar but this is just so much easier.  I have already created 3 different notebooks with my simple things to do lists and I am actually getting them marked off.  The main notebook is all the visits I need to reschedule because of the snow!!!!  Much cheaper than the 30 notebooks I have somewhere with one page used in each with my old lists.   Are there any other productivity apps that you prefer?

Apple iTunes

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Guest Blogger... Angie with Isaac and Speech Therapy with the iPad

Speech Therapy and the Monster at the end of this book


So The Monster at the End of This Book (for iPad) - Sesame Street is a HUGE hit! We've read this book to him since he was little - but there is something about having Grover tell the story makes my kids go nuts! They love this app for ipad. It is adorable. :)



Per Isaac's speech therapist's recommendation (and with her help), I programmed a storyboard on iCommunicate for iPad - Grembe Inc. with words like cow - with two sounds for the word - like moo moo, in order to encourage Isaac to make two syllables at a time. We talked about apraxia a lot and how in order to help with sequencing its good to encourage two of the same sounds at first and that will hopefully lead to two different syllable sounds later on. Wow I'm not very articulate at explaining that. Anyways, I have storyboards now with train - choo choo, clown - ha ha, owl - hoot hoot and so on. I also am making story boards with simple sounding words of the p, b, m variety. So pot, potty, pool, pop etc. just to encourage specifically the p sound. Its just like flashcards with my voice saying "pop pop pop" etc. I'm really excited because it sounds like a great way to encourage speech that we haven't really focused on. I mean we do flashcards all the time but this seems more . . . concentrated? Anyway I'm excited.

Apple iTunes

Guest Blogger... Stacy with Noah's Top Apps

My son is two, Noah, and suffered a global brain injury at birth as a result he is not yet talking, crawling, walking. His website blog is:


http://www.noahsmiracle.blogspot.com/

Noah is still learning cause and effect so he doesn't really recognize yet that he is influencing the Ipad, but has applications that he truly enjoys and that we feel is helping him learn and grow:


Answers:YesNo HD - SimplifiedTouch

Elmo's Monster Maker HD - Sesame Street

Magic Piano - Smule

iSteelPan - David A. Shamma

Peekaboo Barn - Night & Day Studios, Inc.

Speech with Milo: Verbs - Doonan Speech Therapy

Sparkabilities Babies 2 for iPad - Bottle Rocket

iCrayonMaker HD - Shreta Dupree

Learn to Talk - iLearn2Talk

Parents Magazine Flash Cards - Resolute Digital, LLC

Bubbles - Hog Bay Software

Tozzle - Toddler's favorite puzzle - nodeflexion.com

Kidzongs – Preschool sing-along fun - Stepworks

Apple iTunes

Many blessings,

Stacy, Noah's mommy