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AppleVis is a website by and for blind and vision-impaired users of Apple devices, primarily iOS device users but including some resources for Mac OS X users. The focus is on VoiceOver users but there are some resources for other blind users who use zooming to access devices too.

Check out this collection of quality apps designed to help young children develop their skill at handwriting, sentence construction, or planning and drafting a story.

The advocacy organisation Autism Speaks estimates there are hundreds of apps built for use on iOS devices, specifically for autism. A search of the Apple iTunes store brought more than 580 autism-related apps, while an Android Market search for autism apps yielded about 250 results.

 

"The more we dig, the bigger the rabbit hole is and we're starting to think tech is a really big key for how we can develop therapies quickly," said Marc Sirkin, vice president of social marketing and online fundraising for Autism Speaks.

 

However, the organisation is cautious about the iPad's popularity. Its quick ascent means no one has actually studied which apps are of therapeutic benefit. Sure, Sirkin said, parents may hear anecdotal stories of apps completely changing a child's life, but there is no measurable proof yet that the apps really work.

 

"The challenge with iOS apps is a lot are developed by well meaning parents but under no guidance with autism experts," Sirkin said. "For us, it brings in questions as an evidenced-based organisation and we're starting to ask: Does any of this actually make any difference... the danger is that the iPad becomes a really expensive toy."

 

But some parents are OK without the proof just yet. Eric Tanner, the father of an 8-year-old with autism, said what the iPad really offers is accessibility and hope that a better life is possible for his child.

You just invested in a shiny new iPad for you child with special needs. Next, you lay out some more money to purchase a few communication apps, install them and your child is off and running with a $500 piece of equipment. Minutes later  you see the iPad less bounce its way down those beautiful wooden stairs of yours…

 

And then you woke up from your nightmare.

 

You were smart enough to purchase a protective case for the iPad. Your child gets to develop communication and social skills while dad becomes an Angry Birds champion.

 

Make sure you don’t have an iPad nightmare…

 

here are 13 great cases that will protect your iPad investment!

As a parent of a child with special needs, I understand firsthand the financial struggles that come with the job.  When I discovered the iPad and the benefits it could have for my son, it became my mission to find a way to provide one for him.  This is a simplified version of the steps I took in getting my iPad covered by insurance, and it is my hope that others can benefit from this information. 

a4cwsn is committed to helping the families and carers of children with special needs and the wider community of educators and therapists who support them, by producing videos that demonstrate how products designed to educate children and build their life skills really work from a user perspective. Our aim is that these videos, along with relevant information and advice from an independent source you can trust, provides valuable insight into whether a product is suitable for its intended purpose or not, enabling sensible buying decisions to be made.

“Robert adores it,” Cindy said. “It’s not the cure for autism, but it is doing amazing things for kids who are nonverbal.”

SNApps4Kids is a community of parents, therapists, doctors, and teachers who share information on how we are using the iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch and Android devices with children who have special needs.  We have found these mobile devices to provide accessibility for children who may have been previously disengaged from the world because of challenging language, motor, or other developmental delays.  Given the rising number of apps on the market and the diverse skills of children with special needs, parents have found each other to be one of the best resources for choosing apps to enhance everyday life for our children.  While our group is primarily parent-driven, our efforts are naturally collaborative with the people who help our children develop particular skills — therapists and educators.

The goal of iAdvocate is to share and develop specific strategies with parents for working collaboratively with a school team to improve their children’s education. iAdvocate uses problem-based learning strategies, simulations, and provides contextual access resources to build parental advocacy skills and knowledge.

iAdvocate provides parents with both information and most importantly, strategies in regards to their educational rights and getting their child’s needs met. The goal of iAdvocate is to share and develop specific strategies with parents for working collaboratively with a school team to improve their children’s education and to provide the most inclusive and meaningful educational environment for students with disabilities.

This post is part Seven 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 need for the iPad is an obvious one for children with special needs. But what if you can’t afford one for your child, what do you do?

So, you have a kid with autism and you know iPads can be awesome for kids with autism but your family budget isn't accommodating expensive right now, no matter how much of a difference an iPad could make for your child's ability to learn and play.

To try and make sense of all of this we have put together a nine part series on the iPad and useful applications.

 

In this series we will try and provide guidance and resources that will make it easier for those looking for more information about the iPad, new apps and special education.

The goal of iAdvocate is to share and develop specific strategies with parents for working collaboratively with a school team to improve their children’s education. iAdvocate uses problem-based learning strategies, simulations, and provides contextual access resources to build parental advocacy skills and knowledge.

There's a whole new way to read your kids to sleep these days — or to distract them while you are trying to get something done. If you have a smartphone or an iPad, you can download a kids' book app in no time. From classics to stories created specifically as an app, these enhanced e-books include narration, animation and interactive features. Some children are even getting their first exposure to books on a digital device.

The iPad is a device that many lust after as a shiny new toy, but many people with disabilities can benefit from what it has to offer as a functional tool. Students with learning disabilities can enhance and develop their communication skills, learn how to adapt to situations, and develop social skills. Check out this collection of iPad apps that can make a difference in the life of a learning disabled child.

the point I am trying to make is that if the iPad is to be a useful tool in supporting children with autism to achieve their developmental goals and become the capable and fascinating adults we know they will be then it is how we use the iPad to support development that is most important — and the miracle there, as it always has been, is the parents and professionals who work with children with autism.

They include iPads and iPods, smartphones and laptops. They already cost far less than more specialized technology and their price is dropping still further. But their potential to help change the course of U.S. K-12 education is limitless and their educational impact could soon include nearly every American child, including those with disabilities, according to noted education researcher and author Milton Chen, who calls these increasingly ubiquitous devices, “weapons of mass instruction.”

As the Technology Coach for Educational Vision Services, the program in the NYC Department of Education that serves students in our school system with visual impairments, I have been looking for a way to provide students with low-vision access to large print using the iPad. Our students are registered with Bookshare.org but it has been a stumbling block converting the DAISY formatted books into the epub format that can be read on the iPad. While there are numerous options for our students who are auditory or Braille readers, there has been a large disconnect in taking advantage of technology for our students who require large print and alternate contrast for visual reading.