James started saying words at age 3. Not everyone could understand them. The first time he told me he loved me, he was 4. Yes, I cried.
James has an interesting solution for communicating asking people questions he knows the answers to, scripting, and echolalia.
At 11, not everyone can understand everything James says. But he now can express himself (good and bad, this guy lets it all out). It's such a relief to feel like our communication window has opened wider.
Imagine being without words.
Autism Speaks has come up with an app to help: Able AAC. For the month of April, Autism Awareness month, it's free. FREE! Spread the word!
Showing posts with label apps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label apps. Show all posts
Monday, April 04, 2016
Wednesday, December 09, 2015
When Worlds Are Cross-Compatible
I know time is passing: I have kids and a garden. I know technology constantly evolves - I work with it. Sometimes, I am also not paying attention, so I get surprised when sometimes the way I used to do things ... gets replaced by an app.
Our old fax machine stopped working soon after I stopped my telecommuting work almost eight years ago and we never thought to replace it. I was not working so could make copies and take or mail them to where they needed to go.
More places increasingly accept photos that were taken with and emailed from a cell phone. HIPAA means that more records are being shared securely in PDF format.
Over the past year we've had to fax a lot of documents suddenly: applications for financial programs, job hunting, medical records, and school programs. Even though faxes are still needed, it's getting harder to find places to send them.
To keep cash outflow down, I haven't updated my phone since 2011 (which is almost as bad as a flip open phone in the tech industry). My Kindle takes nice pictures, but not PDF-worthy ones. The Kindle does have an app for translating photos into scanned documents, which then upload to the Cloud. Finally, I get Cloud Computing. Tonight I take Tiny Scanner out on the Cloud for a drive.
More places increasingly accept photos that were taken with and emailed from a cell phone. HIPAA means that more records are being shared securely in PDF format.
Over the past year we've had to fax a lot of documents suddenly: applications for financial programs, job hunting, medical records, and school programs. Even though faxes are still needed, it's getting harder to find places to send them.
To keep cash outflow down, I haven't updated my phone since 2011 (which is almost as bad as a flip open phone in the tech industry). My Kindle takes nice pictures, but not PDF-worthy ones. The Kindle does have an app for translating photos into scanned documents, which then upload to the Cloud. Finally, I get Cloud Computing. Tonight I take Tiny Scanner out on the Cloud for a drive.
I really want to Evolution Elves to take away my home office clutter:
Thursday, June 11, 2015
Reading Ignition App
This year, we finally acted on the reading app information that the school sent home in James' backpack for months (maybe even back over a year), and we are so glad that we did. The note was to let us know that if we had internet access at home, James could logon and use the reading program offered in the Special Day Class. This is a good tool, because while James can read and spell really well, his comprehension is not very good.
The learning system is called Lexia, and despite severe budget cuts that have plagued California public schools for as long as my kids have been school-aged, the Special Ed teachers have so far been able to make this program available for the kids.
James really enjoys playing around and finishing modules, spelling words, answering questions, filling in gaps, and using prefixes/suffixes. The exercises come at a topic from several different angles so that James is left with a multidimensional understanding of reading that was completely missing before. He sees Lexia time as a treat.
We just found out that parents can purchase a Lexia license a year at a time. Yes, we are now looking to budget for that too.
The learning system is called Lexia, and despite severe budget cuts that have plagued California public schools for as long as my kids have been school-aged, the Special Ed teachers have so far been able to make this program available for the kids.
James really enjoys playing around and finishing modules, spelling words, answering questions, filling in gaps, and using prefixes/suffixes. The exercises come at a topic from several different angles so that James is left with a multidimensional understanding of reading that was completely missing before. He sees Lexia time as a treat.
We just found out that parents can purchase a Lexia license a year at a time. Yes, we are now looking to budget for that too.
Saturday, April 05, 2014
Autism Awareness Month: Apps for Us
Technology is balance act, for parents of kids on the spectrum. It can help the nonverbal be expressive. It can feed their visual strengths. Be a great tool for learning.
And if your kid is like mine, they will latch onto movies or an iPad or mobile device and focus only on that for hours.
And if you are tired and sleep-deprived, like I am, at first you're all
and 
... and then um, oh. I guess that's not such a good idea, to have them obsess over something that is not a substitute for interacting with people and the world.
After six years of learning about autism, I probably let James have too much time with technology. He seems so happy when using it and being able to have iPad time is a great incentive for positive behaviours and rewarding good work. I also need a break from constantly being "on" and now, working full-time and making sure the school routines run smoothly(ish) once the kids are home. Oh, that is such an easy trap to fall into.
However, a nice benefit of Autism Awareness month is that there are interesting, non-Angry Birds/Minecraft/Star Wars/LEGO apps that are offered for free.
I thought this one looked interesting:
And if your kid is like mine, they will latch onto movies or an iPad or mobile device and focus only on that for hours.
And if you are tired and sleep-deprived, like I am, at first you're all
and ... and then um, oh. I guess that's not such a good idea, to have them obsess over something that is not a substitute for interacting with people and the world.
After six years of learning about autism, I probably let James have too much time with technology. He seems so happy when using it and being able to have iPad time is a great incentive for positive behaviours and rewarding good work. I also need a break from constantly being "on" and now, working full-time and making sure the school routines run smoothly(ish) once the kids are home. Oh, that is such an easy trap to fall into.
However, a nice benefit of Autism Awareness month is that there are interesting, non-Angry Birds/Minecraft/Star Wars/LEGO apps that are offered for free.
I thought this one looked interesting:
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| Articulation Station |
James actually plays math and spelling apps for fun on his iPad, so this might also be worth a try:
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| Splash Math |
And there are websites devoted to apps for interested parents to check out. It's kind of like trick-or-teating for apps for our kids. What did you find?
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Starfall Observed
James has been coming home saying things like "Q and U stick like glue" and "B ... OA ... T. That spells 'boat'," and "T ... tiger ... whatya doing, tiger?" I knew it came from a program at school, but did not think too much of it.
This past weekend, James started asking me to go type a word on my computer. The word was "Starfall." I asked him what it was. "Go to Starfall, Mommy. I want to see Starfall."
This is what I found:
I very fun and well-rounded explorations of letters: the sounds they make, and words that use them. Presented, sounded, used in words, and stories, with a little kinetic action along the way.
James was excited and I let him play with reading online for a while, After I got my computer back, I looked at other sections. This site covers materials from pre-K through second grade reading levels.
They even had a small selection of childrens' audio books, a section on music, and holiday-themed activitied, all tied in with their phonetic system. The organization and dedication involved in all this boggles me. I am not a teacher, but I was struck how well everything was laid out and coordinated. It's an incredibly well thought-out site and program.
There is an app! Actually, there are 2. Of course I downloaded them. He's playing Starfall almost as much as Minion Rush, which amazes and pleases me.
Starfall has apps at both the Apple Store for iPhone and iPad and Google Play for Droid phones.
The Starfall website is completely free!
So, some disclaimers: This is not a solicited or paid post. I forked over $2.99 per app that came from our household account. I am not a professional educator. I am a mom learning to parent an autistic child with developmental delays as best I can.
This past weekend, James started asking me to go type a word on my computer. The word was "Starfall." I asked him what it was. "Go to Starfall, Mommy. I want to see Starfall."
This is what I found:
I very fun and well-rounded explorations of letters: the sounds they make, and words that use them. Presented, sounded, used in words, and stories, with a little kinetic action along the way.
James was excited and I let him play with reading online for a while, After I got my computer back, I looked at other sections. This site covers materials from pre-K through second grade reading levels.
 |
| James loves plays and puppets; this is awesome. |
 | |
| Very cool and inviting, just like our real library! |
There is an app! Actually, there are 2. Of course I downloaded them. He's playing Starfall almost as much as Minion Rush, which amazes and pleases me.
Starfall has apps at both the Apple Store for iPhone and iPad and Google Play for Droid phones.
The Starfall website is completely free!
So, some disclaimers: This is not a solicited or paid post. I forked over $2.99 per app that came from our household account. I am not a professional educator. I am a mom learning to parent an autistic child with developmental delays as best I can.
Tuesday, April 02, 2013
Apps Fantastic for Autism Awareness Month
Yowza -- Smart Apps for Kids has a great post all set up with lists, links, and descriptions.
We don't have iPhones, but we do have iPads, and kiddos who love them. We're also on a very tight budget, and so appreciate all the speciall offers out there, however fleeting they may be.
After a quick look-through, I think we'll be trying:
Happy belated Easter?
If it gets them interested in the real-life chore counterparts, I am all for this one. Best of all -- it's free!
James is working on this at school for speech sessions, reading regrouping, and learning to write a story.
In fact, ever since the epic games of Hide and Seek with his cousins on Easter, we have been writing stories aloud about games of hide and go seek.
Another fun and timely app that's free for a limited period.
James is starting to experience frustration and anger more often, and I've been working with him to breathe deeply and communicate a little more maturely.
He's going to be a big guy. I want to get him some effective coping tools before the hormones hit.
What are other good apps out there for spectrum families?
Friday, March 08, 2013
New Apps To Try
We tried 2 new apps for the iPad this week: Scene and Heard (lite/free version) and Thinkin' Things, Collection 1.
Scene and Heard is an interesting program that lets you take pictures and record sentences about them. So far, James likes tapping the images already loaded into the program. I am hoping that by summer, he and his sister can build on this. It would be a great way for James to build his expressive language.
Bonus, it blends in with the picture schedulers he's used to seeing at school.
Thinkin' Things is a collection of games he met in his first grade classroom. He finally was able to ask specifically for this application last week, after an attempted visit to his old classroom didn't work out .... and he had a huge, Hulky, howling, meltdown. I figured that if he could pull himself back together after that extreme disappointment and form a calm and articulate request, by golly that deserved an attempt to get this thing!
It's older software, by a company that's been acquired, so it took a little sleuthing to track it down online. There are 3 collections, and James was Very Firm that what he wanted was collection 1. How lucky for us that this seems to be the one collection that's downloadable to the iPad. You can find CD ROMS on Amazon or elsewhere, but as my DVD drive died last month, they are not options for us at this time.
I had best results by conducting a Google Search using the following terms: "Thinkin Things, Edmark, Mackiev" -- and in the iPad App Store I had to search under "Mackiev" to find the app. Was it worth it? Definitely! His favourite game is the BOX- Flying Shapes. Well worth the $8.99 we paid for the download.
During my original search for this software, I was surprised to see a warm review of all 3 collections on a site for autism resources.
I even have my eye on our next free app to try: Squiggles. It was my code name for James before he was born, because that's what he did for 9+ months!
We're open to more iPad app suggestions too, if you have some.
For the record - no one is paying me to do write this post. This is just us, living our lives.
Scene and Heard is an interesting program that lets you take pictures and record sentences about them. So far, James likes tapping the images already loaded into the program. I am hoping that by summer, he and his sister can build on this. It would be a great way for James to build his expressive language.
Bonus, it blends in with the picture schedulers he's used to seeing at school.
Thinkin' Things is a collection of games he met in his first grade classroom. He finally was able to ask specifically for this application last week, after an attempted visit to his old classroom didn't work out .... and he had a huge, Hulky, howling, meltdown. I figured that if he could pull himself back together after that extreme disappointment and form a calm and articulate request, by golly that deserved an attempt to get this thing!
It's older software, by a company that's been acquired, so it took a little sleuthing to track it down online. There are 3 collections, and James was Very Firm that what he wanted was collection 1. How lucky for us that this seems to be the one collection that's downloadable to the iPad. You can find CD ROMS on Amazon or elsewhere, but as my DVD drive died last month, they are not options for us at this time.
I had best results by conducting a Google Search using the following terms: "Thinkin Things, Edmark, Mackiev" -- and in the iPad App Store I had to search under "Mackiev" to find the app. Was it worth it? Definitely! His favourite game is the BOX- Flying Shapes. Well worth the $8.99 we paid for the download.
During my original search for this software, I was surprised to see a warm review of all 3 collections on a site for autism resources.
I even have my eye on our next free app to try: Squiggles. It was my code name for James before he was born, because that's what he did for 9+ months!
 |
| Yes, because I make informed decisions like that. |
 |
| Angry Birds in space -- goes without sayin'! |
For the record - no one is paying me to do write this post. This is just us, living our lives.
Monday, April 02, 2012
Free Apps for World Autism Awareness Day!
Today, April 2, is World Autism Awareness Day. If you suddenly see a lot of blue lights, it's not K-Mart having a special, it's people trying to spread awareness through the Light It Up Blue program.
I received an exciting email from Dr. Lorna Catford, Director of the CATS Program, notifying the families that today only there are free or reduced app downloads available from the iTunes App Store that are pertinent to the autism community.
In the spirit of raising awareness, I am sharing this information while I download these apps. Please spread the word and help us find resources answers for our loved ones on the autism spectrum!
If you are interested in finding out more about Autism, check the links at the top right of this column (Titled "James Likes"). Read my recent post: "Autism Numbers Up: Why You Should Care." Please consider making a donation to our team for the Autism Speaks walkathon.
Thank you!
Free Apps for the iPad on April 2, 2012 (partial list):
(visit the Technology in Special Education website for more info and links)
Free Apps for the iPhone (partial list):
(visit the Technology in Special Education website for more info and links)
I received an exciting email from Dr. Lorna Catford, Director of the CATS Program, notifying the families that today only there are free or reduced app downloads available from the iTunes App Store that are pertinent to the autism community.
In the spirit of raising awareness, I am sharing this information while I download these apps. Please spread the word and help us find resources answers for our loved ones on the autism spectrum!
If you are interested in finding out more about Autism, check the links at the top right of this column (Titled "James Likes"). Read my recent post: "Autism Numbers Up: Why You Should Care." Please consider making a donation to our team for the Autism Speaks walkathon.
Thank you!
Free Apps for the iPad on April 2, 2012 (partial list):
(visit the Technology in Special Education website for more info and links)
- Autism Track
- Toca Store
- I See-quence
- Memory Game: Addition
- ABA Receptive Identification (2 apps)
Free Apps for the iPhone (partial list):
(visit the Technology in Special Education website for more info and links)
- 5 little monkeys (iPhone only; iPad is $1.99)
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