Six Steps to get the iPad into your Child’s Special Education Classroom

by Tzvi on Thu, March 31st, 2011 This post is part Eight of the Special Needs iPad & App Series. Almost from the day the iPad was launched there was an immediate buzz about the special needs apps that were available in the iPad app store. Apple quickly realized that the iPad was perfectly suited to enhancing the lives of individuals with special needs and created a special education section of the app store. Websites and blogs sprung up dedicated to reviewing apps for Assistive Communication, Social Skills, Life Skills, Scheduling and more. The word is out that the iPad is an effective device to help your child communicate. Apparently most school districts haven’t heard the news yet. You may have an iPad at home to help your child communicate, but what happens when he goes to school? Is your child stuck with an unwieldy device that is hard to use? Do you want your school to provide an iPad for your child but don’t know where to start and who to speak to? In this post we give you 6 steps to convince your school to provide an iPad for your child (make sure to watch t he videos below. 1.Make sure your child qualifies There is no point in making a stink if your child won’t qualify for an AAC Communication Device. If your child does not qualify for an AAC Device there is no way a school will provide an iPad. The iPad is much more than an assistive communication device and is a great tool for children that are verbal as well (For example Life Skills & Social skills apps for kids with Asperger’s etc). Unfortunately most school districts will only contemplate an iPad for communication purposes and nothing more. 2. Make sure your child can use the iPad The iPad may not be suitable for Children who have difficulty with fine motor skills. You must make sure your child can hold his or her hand steady long enough to tap and scroll the screen. On a cognitive level your child also must be able to differentiate between different pictures. 3. Know why your school doesn’t like iPads Before you make the case for an iPad find out why your school isn’t into it. Knowing why your school won’t provide one will help you prepare your case for getting one. Some of the more common reasons are: The iPad includes Non- Educational Elements Schools want to make sure that they are providing materials that will be used to its fullest potential. Knowing that the iPad could be used for movies and games makes them cringe. Stimming A claim is made that kids start stimming while using the iPad. Instead of going from one step to the next the child will start repetitively tapping the same picture or sound. Change It takes bureaucracies a long time to make changes and schools can be no different. Instead of being innovative and forward thinking you may have a school that wants to keep the status quo and not make changes to what is already in place 4. Explain why you need an iPad over other AAC Devices Prepare a list of pros for iPad and cons for the regular communication devices Some ideas to inlcude: Why the standard AAC Device does not work for my childA. It is hard to program B. It is bulky and heavy C. Makes my child stick out and look different D. A battery charge only lasts a few hours Why an iPad will work for my childA. The iPad provides the most sophisticated and up to date communication applications B. Very intuitive display and layout, making it easy for a child with special needs to use (and makes it easier for their parents to program) C. Extremely light and easy to transport D. Battery last 10 hours 5. Speak Out A. Start with your child’s teacher. Explain to the teacher why you feel your child needs an iPad. Make sure you are not confrontational. Advocate for your child in a calm and respectful manner. B. If your teacher is unwilling or unable to help take it to the next level ask to speak to the person who coordinates augmentative communication in your district. If that doesn’t help go up the ladder to the Superintendent of Special Education. C. If you are still finding the going tough ask other parents in similar situations (parents with a child who goes to the same school and needs an AAC device to help communicate) to work together to change the schools mind. The voice of one may be ignored but an outcry from many parents will not be drowned out. D. Bring in outside advocates who will stand by your side and will help request, cajole and maybe even threaten legal proceedings. A professional advocate knows how to talk the school’s language and can cut through the red tape. 6. Be Informed- Resources to back up your claims To further prove your point show them that schools all over the country are starting to implement iPads in special education classrooms. Here are some links to articles and videos about schools all around the country using iPads in the Classroom.

iPad Apps for Autism

      iPad Apps for Autism

• Model Me Going Places 2 – Social Stories – Free 
• Is That Gluten Free? – Nutrition – $7.99
• Sentence Builder for iPad – Language – $3.99
• TapToTalk – Language – Free
• Story Builder – Language – $3.99
• Understanding Autism – Educational – $2.99
• Proloquo2Go – Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) – $189.99
• Question Builder for iPad – Language – $3.99
• AutoVerbal Talking Soundbox – Language – $9.99
• iCommunicate for iPad – Language – $29.99
• MyTalk Tools Mobile – AAC – $39.99
• iDress for Weather – Life Skills – $1.99
• MyTalkTools Mobile Lite – AAC – Free
• TapSpeak Button for Ipad – Language – $9.99
• Grace – Picture Exchange for Non-Verbal People – Language – $37.99
• Alexicom AAC – AAC – Free
• AACSpeechBuddy – AAC – $44.99
• Visual Impact – Living Safely – Life Skills – $34.99
• Off We Go – Going to the Dentist – Social Stories – $4.99
• Off We Go – Going on a Plane – Social Stories – $4.99

November 29, 2011, 11:47 am

Finding Good Apps for Children With Autism

By PRADNYA JOSHI

Shannon Des Roches RosaLeo Rosa, son of Shannon Des Roches Rosa, of Redwood City, Calif., plays with Spot the Dot, an educational app for the iPad.

The Apple iPad has been hailed as a savior for assisting children with autism spectrum disorder or other special needs. It was portrayed as a minor miracle in a recent segment on “60 Minutes” and has been found to help even the very young quickly learn.
Anecdotally, teachers, parents and therapists describe the profound difference that apps for Apple and Android products have made in helping autistic children develop skills. IPad programs have provided a means of communicating for some children with autism who cannot speak or have language delays. Other apps help children learn to handle social situations that can be stressful, like crowds at malls. And many programs can help develop fine-motor skills, which promote functions like writing or manipulating small objects.
Sami Rahman of Houston said that his son, Noah, 3, who has cerebral palsy, was woefully behind in fine-motor skills, speech and cognitive skills before he began therapies and intervention programs. But in four months, the apps he used — along with sessions with therapists and teachers — have put him ahead of the curve in all these areas, Mr. Rahman said.
The iPad “has lowered the cognitive base you have to have to interface with a computer,” Mr. Rahman said. “You touch it, and something happens.”
But as is the case with so many categories of apps, it’s daunting to know where to begin when sorting through the thousands of programs available. “There are so many apps, and not all of them are great,” said Shannon Des Roches Rosa of Redwood City, Calif., whose son, Leo, 11, has autism.
To that end, several good Web sites have been created to review special-needs apps. Most of these sites are not driven by advertising nor do they receive referral fees for recommending apps:

iPad Apps for Autism A Google docs site maintained by Ms. Rosa that grew out of a project she did for the Hollyrod Foundation. The apps she has reviewed and recommended are classified into categories like art, language and music. Jordan Sadler, a professional speech therapist in Chicago, and Corina Becker, an adult with autism, are among the main reviewers. Among the developers she recommends are Injini, Toca Boca, Duck Duck Moose and Oceanhouse Media. “Specific companies produce great apps,” Ms. Rosa said.
Other sites she recommends for app listings include Technology in (Spl) Education, which includes a list of free and discounted apps, and Speech-Language Pathology Sharing for language development.

SNapps4kids.com The site, a program of the Easter Seals, lists more than 700 apps but includes about 60 that have been professionally reviewed. The reviews are all done by a special education teacher or certified therapist, many of whom are a part of the Easter Seals network. Mr. Rahman and Cristen Reat, who has a son with Down syndrome, co-founded the site to help identify useful apps. The reviews and categories are organized based on skills learned rather than what disability or diagnosis is targeted. “It’s really for all ages,” said Ms. Reat. “We know stroke victims and people with Alzheimer’s who are using our Web site.”

a4cwsn.com This site, which stands for Apps for Children With Special Needs, features 500 video reviews done by Gary James of Oxford, Conn., who has a son with autism and a daughter with epilepsy. He says he has reviewed some 5,000 apps, but only lists reviews of apps that he believes do what they promise. If an app passes that test and is listed, developers can pay to be on the home page of his site. But that revenue does not cover all the costs of operating the site, he said.

iAutism.info This database contains over 400 apps for iPad/iPhone and nearly 70 for Android. The site was started by Francesc Sistach and his wife, Susana Vila, who live in Spain. Iván Soriano, another parent of a child with autism, is also a main reviewer. Mr. Sistach says the app he finds most interesting is See.Touch.Learn, an app based on Applied Behavior Analysis, a common early intervention therapy for autistic children. “This app can complement expensive one-to-one sessions with a therapist with self-learning sessions using a tablet,” he said.
The site also includes Spanish and other foreign language apps. “Many U.S. developers are forgetting that there are many, many users in other countries, and they only publish their apps in English.” Mr. Sistach said. “ We encourage all developers to translate their apps to other languages, and we are even helping some of them in this process.”

Spaceboard App

WOW, I won a Spaceboard App this weekend, I have been trying for a couple of months to win one!! YEAH thank you to Ron @ Smart Apps for Kids for having an open house this weekend!!  Here is the link to the Spaceboard website http://www.space-boards.com/Home_Page.html  and here is the link again to Smart Apps for Kids http://www.smartappsforkids.com/  be sure to tell them that Apps for Autism sent you!!

A4cwsn

This organization is absolutely FABULOUS, Gary James, the founder, is on a mission to see that kids with disabilities have access to iPads & iPods to enhance these childrens capabilities.  If you check out any site let it be this one. 
Here is a link to the Facebook page to:
https://www.facebook.com/a4cwsn?sk=info

Tell them that Apps for Autism sent you=)