INSPIRATION

ON REFLECTION

I was told from someone that this class was for me, that I would really enjoy it and would learn a lot. I was not disappointed. I'm thrilled that I learned how to create a blog, take pinterest a step further by creating links, use bookcreator, imovie and the list goes on. Being able to see everyone's presentations was very worthwhile. I have a lot more knowledge and insight on how to find the right assistive technology for people. What better feeling could one have than being able to teach others how to open doors and create limitless possibilities for themselves.

LIST OF BLOGS

SHAUNA-   http://shaunaynay22.wix.com/shauna-at
included is a link to her case study in Prezi

REAGAN-   http://atmcmeekin.blogspot.ca/
http://assistivetechnologycataloguemcmeekin.blogspot.ca/2014/06/assistive-technology-for-speech.html

CHRIS-  http://mister-acadian.blogspot.ca/

THERESA-    http://tmnickerson.blogspot.ca/
http://www.pinterest.com/teachingehtozed/    AT Catalogue  

SUSAN-    http://sueassistivetechnology.blogspot.com/

WHITNEY-   http://cmw5173.blogspot.ca/

ELEANOR-   http://assistivetechmsq.blogspot.com/

BERNADETTE-   http://bernadettemacinnis.blogspot.ca/

MACKENZIE-  http://mackenzie5173.blogspot.ca/

On a final note I would like to end with an inspirational video. This is TedTalk by Aimee Mullins. It's 22 min long but worth a watch. It's about making the shift in our thinking, and not thinking about disabilities but thinking about the range of human capacity. It's a great clip for reflecting on opening doors and empowering individuals.A feeling that I'm sure all of us felt on the completion of this course. Learning about Assistive Technology has not only opened doors for us but will open doors of possibility for so many others. 

CASE STUDIES AND AT CATALOGUES

CASE STUDIES AND AT CATALOGS

NIKKI
AT Catalogue- WORD document

• empahsis on low, med, high tech
• How do you distinguish between all three?
• tabletop scissors-low, adapted school chair-mid
• nicely organized, pic, description, price, place to buy, and low, mid or high tech

Two ATs I would like to look into:

• livescribe smart pen
• mini silent bikes for self regulation, healthy mind

Case Study

• student tranisition to junior high focus of functional skills no EPA support when going to junior high
• visual checklist, schedule, binder organization transition to junior high

Overall: keeping it simple is sometimes the best thing

SHAUNA
AT catalogue- WIX

• beautiful layout
• Simon Flash can get as an app

Interesting: liftware spoon $295. for parkasins

Case Study- autism

•  doesn't like to use pen and paper
• classroom suite
• A mobile device would benefit this child
• MyTalkToolsLite- I liked the First, Then Next step-up

Overall- a mobile device would change this child's world

CHRIS
AT Catalogue- Blog

ATs I would like to look into:

• Chair Master- would be great for my mom
• One hand cutting board- great for some of my students
• Hand Free Card Holders- great for one of my students

Case study

• challenges with organization
• Ireward Chart App; colorful, pay out system
• improved homework communication, cleaner bedroom, limited rewards allowed

Overall- Would benefit from EpicWin-creative, imagination, builds a character

WHITNEY
AT Catalogue- INSPIRATION with clickable links in adobe

ATs I would like to look into:

• talking watch -med tech
  

Case Study- BIRT Classroom

• wants constant one to one support
• lacking social skills
• will apply standard font, size, spacing, to WORD documents
• ClaroSpeak and Dragon Dictation

Overall- Clarospeak rules! Clarospeak and Dragonspeak work well together

SUSAN
Case study- personal

• Complex Regional Pain Syndrome
•  extreme pain, swelling
• loss of independence
• sense of helplessness
• ONE HANDED CUTTING BOARD

•  Personal Hygiene- Hair dryer stand

Overall-Appreciation for other people's disabilities and the challenges of simple tasks of life. Thanks for sharing Susan


ELEANOR AT Catalogue- WIX

• well organized, colorful
• brought low tech items in

Case Study- Grade 12 -Learning Strategies-Journal Writing-making connections to his learning,

• relies heavily on teachers/resource/parent support

• Popplet-for generating ideas, organizing ideas

 

Overall- Great organizer

THERESA
AT Catalogue-Pinterest

• lots of practical pieces
• great site to refer to Theresa Nickerson on Pinterest
• Talking shampoo and condition bottle

Case Study- Down Syndrome, speech and fine motor

• written output 
• Read Me Stories, Book Creator

Overall- Incorportating social stories in a timely manner. Clicker Sentences might be a good option.

REAGAN
AT Catalogue- Blog

• scalp massager
• Overdrive-audio versions

Case Study- Distribution of iPads

•  struggles: no training, no accounts, no budget, no apps, blocked usage
• Claro, ReadIris, FireFly

Overall- Getting teachers and EPAs on board sometimes can sometimes be the biggest struggle 

BERNADETTE
AT Catalogue- ibooks author

• Well.ca- will deliver free items to your home
• Colored Light Pointers- fluency

Connect ipad to mac and it will automatically open
Save as ibook  on desktop- Publish

Case Study-Abby

• to find an assistive tech app 
• Story Jumper-class list, backgrounds and characters, type text
• Co-Writer

• Future recommendations- BookCreator, and use voice input

Overall- Book Creator and imovie would be beneficial for so many students

MACKENZIE
AT Catalogue-KeyNote

• able ring writer
• illuminator door holder
• NetFlix- closed captioned feature

Case Study- Co-writer, four grade 8 students

• Co-writer- text to speech, assistive in word choice, predictive software, topic specific dictionaries
•  increased writing output

Overall- Finding the right assistive technology can change a person's life

A few things I'd like to try with some of my students:
Stretchie coil shoe laces
shower loofahs- buy lots and hang around
smellie balls
scalp massager
Story Jumper
Book Creator and imovie

STORIES

Proloquo2Go: AssistiveWare for students

Communication and programming is essential team work- when developing cells, make them relevant and age appropriate. The message I took away from this class, when thinking of my own students, is to make sure Parents, Speech Language, Autism and Assistive Tech are present and we are making the decisions together. 

Make the main folders, then extend from there. You can build folders within folders if required.

There are three main AAC devices:

Tap Speak Plus

Go Talk Now

Prologue2go

Social Stories are also easy and fun to do. My three top ones were Tellagami, Symbol Support, and Book Creator.                        

                  

Symbol Support  (Created by Theresa and Bernadette)

Two of my favorite take aways from the class today will be to use Book Creator and imovie. Best used on the iPad. What a great way for students to present their work.

10 Different Ways to use imovie in your Classroom

book trailer

fun introduction for first day of school

social story

steps for showing an activity-cooking

role playing

photo journals

science experiments

field trip

a reflection

story telling

The thing I love about youtube and have now realized that whenever I am stuck and need to know how to figure out apps and devices...youtube has the answer.

WORDLE WORDLE

ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY IN THE HOUSEHOLD

TIPS FOR USING WORDLE:
1. "Create"
2.  Post in Gallery
3. Take a snapshot "Command", "Shift", "4" (This will allow you to frame what you want to take a   snapshot of.
4. Then insert image into Blog

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WELoJutEYHo
AN INSPIRATIONAL VIDEO OF A YOUNG GIRL USING AT IN THE CLASSROOM

EFFECTIVE/EFFICIENT COMMUNICATION

MAYBE I'LL JUST START A DIGITAL PHOTO JOURNAL

HERRING COVE VILLAGE

HERRING COVE LOOP

SUNDAY MORNING MEDIATION

AAC DEVICES

INSPIRATIONAL VIDEOS:
http://www.janefarrall.com/aac-systemic-change-for-individual-success
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7oYSY_ttU4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_P8OG04wqc

TIPS FOR INSERTING A DOCUMENT:

• inserting a WORD document into blog; Save as PDF, convert into JPG (using a conversion app), then insert as an image into blog
• using speech to text on a MAC; click on "Edit", scroll down to "Start Dictation"
• using text to speech on a MAC; press "option" and "escape" together

AUGMENTATIVE AND ALTERNATIVE COMMUNICATION

WAYS TO COMMUNICATE:

Sign language

Body language

Eye contact

Texting

Facebook

Postcards

Emails

Writing

Sounds

Touch

Drawing

Moods

Symbols

Tellagami

Voice

Expressions

Listening

Pictures

Stories

Physical

Pictures (photos)

Poetry

Text to speech
humming
tones

WHAT IS COMMUNICATION?

Communication is a way to relay a message to another

 WHAT IS AAC AUGMENTATIVE AND ALTERNATIVE COMMUNICATION? enhances

 AAC is the ability to transfer thoughts, ideas and emotions to another person other than oral speech.

Possible signs and symptoms of communication challenges may include:

• No or limited purposeful verbal speech
• Difficulty expressing needs and wants
• Echolalia (Repeating a word or phrase that has been previously heard)
• Loss of words that the child was previously able to say
• Inability to identify objects (poor vocabulary development)
• Difficulty answering questions
• Limited attention to people and objects in the environment
• Poor response to verbal instructions

http://ca.dynavoxtech.com/conditions/autism/

WHO IS A TYPICAL USER OF AAC?

• those who can not communicate using speech
• those who can not be understood clearly
• those who are deaf 
• those who have parkinsons, ALS

WHAT ARE 3 CRITERIA FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION?

• message being relayed
• message being understood
• message being recognized 
• you need a common language
• you need a communication partner
• joint attention

EYE OPENING MOMENT: Today was an excellent example of how one can communicate using alternative ways of communicating. I introduced Tellagami to my class, they had 20 plus min. to explore and experiment with it. One student, created a character from her favorite book, and the character introduced all the other characters. Great Book Review tool.  Another student, created a character, who resembled himself, and typed in a message, on how others see him, and how he feels when others will not let him join conversations. Very insightful. And another student who has a very difficult communicating orally (Autism and Apraxia), used Tellagami to hum a tune. His way of expressing how happy his was in the moment. Who would have thought by just introducing a fun simple app that there would be so many ways of students being able to communicate to their teachers and peers.