iPads for Learners

with Severe

Disabilities

Kate Ahern, M.S.Ed.

Easter Seals Massachusetts

Notes:

Apps, their design, their prices and availability change frequently, this list was correct at the time written.

This is NOT meant to be an exhaustive list of all apps in any categories, instead it aims to show the variety and selection in each area.

When used as part of an individualized education program apps should be chosen and used by experienced educators and therapists.

Assistive Technology and Augmentative/Alternative Communication should be chosen only after an evaluation by a qualified professional which uses feature matching and data collection during hands on trials.

Adjust Your Settings

• Avoid Deleting Apps

–General -> Restrictions -> Enable Restrictions

• Speak Selection

–General -> Accessibility -> Speak Selection

• Guided Access

–General -> Accessibility -> Learning -> Guided Access

Cases

• ArmourBox Kiddo

($20)• GripCase ($35+)

• Big Grips ($35+) • Lifeproof, OtterBox

and similar ($60+)

Cases

• ArmourBox Kiddo

($20)• GripCase ($35+)

• Big Grips ($35+) • Lifeproof, OtterBox

and similar ($60+)

Mounts

For wheelchairs, tables

and to prevent “tossing”

• Joy Factory Mount

($170)

• Loc Line Mount ($70-

100)

• Ablenet Mounts

($200-350)

Finding Apps

• Pinterest (try following Lauren Enders,

PrAACticalAAC)

• Google and Bookmark Free App Friday and

AppFriday

• Following Omazing Kids on Facebook

• Get the AppAdvice App

• Spectronics Online Website at

http://www.spectronics.com.au/online

• Jane Farrall Consulting www.janefarrall.com

• Techinspecialed Blog

• You Tube to search for reviews of apps you

are thinking of buying

Choosing Apps for Education

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Great Kids App Makers

• Toca Boca Series

• Duck Duck Moose Series

• Dr. Panda Series

• OM Books Interactive Books

Cause and Effect Apps

• Apps that can basically work as

cause and effect activity are

plentiful

• Apps Designed for Infants– Baby Finger HD

– Look Baby

– Random Touch

– Fireworks

• Apps Designed for Special Needs

Users– Hippi 1 and 2 by Leripa

– HelpKidzLearn Big Bang Series (switch

accessible)

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• Sensory Fun House Series of Apps (switch accessible)

• Fluidity, free, smooth moving response to touch,

relaxing

• Cognable Series of Apps (switch accessible) including

Sensory Cause and Effect Lightbox

Sensory Apps

Apps for Cortical Vision

Impairment

• Art of Glow

• Little Bear See and Tap N See Zoo

• Hatch Plus

• Fluidity

• Baby Fingers

Switches

• Built in Switch Access

• Switch Interfaces

– Bluetooth

• Tecla Sheild

• Inclusive TLC Applicator

• RJ Cooper Interface

• Ablenet Blue2

– Plug-in

• Pererro/RLS Steeper

• ZyBox

Switch Accessible Apps

• Find Lists at www.Janefarrall.com,

Bridging Apps and other sites

• HelpKidzLearn Apps

• Sensory Lightbox Apps

• Judy Lynn Apps

• Bitsboard

• Attainment Company Apps

• Laurete First Words

• Marblesoft Apps

Life Skills: Self Management

• Time Timer

• $2.99

• Customizable, visual

countdown timer

• http://bit.ly/1kE6HW5

• Picture Prompt Timer

• $3.99

• First/Next schedule

with visual countdown

uses your photos

• http://bit.ly/1ss1lhw

Life Skills: Vocational and Daily

Tasks

• Judy Lynn Software

• Sorting – Age

Appropriate

• $7.99

• Sequencing – Life Skills

Bundles

• $7.99

http://www.judylynn.co

m/ipad/

Behavior and Visual Support Apps

• Prompting and

cueing

• Visual schedules

• Multisensory

time tracking

• Reward charts

• Data collection

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First, Then

• Visual schedule app

• Display one, two or

multiple steps on the

screen

• Use stock images or

your own

• Record sounds or

speech for each item

18

iCommunicate

• Full set of SymbolStix

communication symbols as well as

some photos and clip art and the

ability to use your own photos

• Associate images with speech

• Create visual schedules called

storyboards

• Use their photos and recorded

speech or add your own

• This app has shown dedication to

improving and upgrading

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Other Visual Schedule Apps

• Choice Works

• iPrompts

• Visual Cues

• Visual Routine

• Now What

• PicMeCalm

• Autismate

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Advanced Visual Schedules

• Visual Schedule

Planner Pocket

Picture Planner

• Niki Agenda

• Wonkido

• Week Planner for Kids

• 4KidsCal Kid's

Calendar

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Behavior Tracker Pro

• Take frequency and duration,

ABC and/or high frequency

data

• Ability to add, remove or edit

content

• Track multiple students and

behaviors

• Built in data analysis

• Sync with Behavior Tracker

software or use alone

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Intervals and Duration

Recording Apps

• Whole or partial interval /

Duration recording

• Time sampling possible

• Track multiple students and

behaviors

• Export to Excel or other

programs

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Percentally

• Track multiple students

and multiple goals

• Tally total responses or

correct versus incorrect

• Automatically tabulates

percentages

• Email data file to yourself

or others

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Reward Apps

• A number of apps are

designed to track

rewards for one or

multiple behaviors in

one or more children

• Vary in price and

quality

– iReward

– iReward Chart

– Smart Chart

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Talking Photo Albums

• Photo Tell combine photos

with recorded messages

• Click ‘n’ Talk Insert photos

and record speech

• My Pictures Talk multimedia

photo/video album

• My Speech Journal

Story and Social Narrative Apps

• Model Me Going Places,

free, six stories each about

going to a community

location

• Social Skills by MDR,

$6.99, six social stories

about common social skills

like turn taking and task

avoidance presented on two

levels

Grocery Store Apps

• Photo Grocery List, $.99, create

grocery lists using your own

photos

• Need Food, $2.99, full grocery

store app with images

• Grocery Gadget, $3.99, full

shopping list app with all sorts

of features including photos

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Special Skills Apps• Special Words, $14.99 teach

matching picture to picture, word to

word and word to picture using

included sight words and photos or

your own

• Special Numbers, $14.99 teach

numeracy using simple matching and

basic numerical activities

Authoring Interactive Lessons

• Bitsboard, free, create and

download activities created by other

teachers with flashcards and

interactive games

• Choice Board Creator, free, create

choice making activities on any topic

which use audio recordings and

video for rewards

• Educreations, free, turns the iPad

into a whiteboard and you can

record a video of your work on the

whiteboard with narration.

Life Skills: Vocational

• MasterTask

• Free or $0.99 for

Dropbox Integration

• Use photos and

videos to create step-

by-step directions

• http://bit.ly/1srGv1Q

Life Skills: Daily Living

• Weather Wear

• $0.99

• Shows weather

conditions and how to

dress for it.

• http://bit.ly/1sbargN

Life Skills: Fitness

• Foov at the Ball Park

• free

• A fitness app for

most abilities – play

and learn about

baseball

• http://bit.ly/UZ9VHq

Life Skills: Age Respectful

Leisure

• Video Star

• free

• A music video making

app that is easy and

fun to use plus save

your videos for later

• http://bit.ly/1mjsXQ0

Life Skills: Age Respectful

Leisure

• ChatterPix

• free

• Use any photo, draw a

line for the mouth,

record your voice!

• http://bit.ly/1g5Ul6I

Life Skills: Age Respectful

Leisure

• Niki Play

• $2.99

• Create pages with

two to nine choices of

videos from your

video library or

YouTube, easy

access to favorite

videos

• Have Multiple Users

• http://bit.ly/1s8JNZ6

Featured App

• Pictello

• $14.99

• Create your own

books with text-to-

speech or recorded

voices, photos and

video clips

• http://bit.ly/1dOcAal

Thank You!

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