Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Tar Heel Reader
There is a great resource for free accessible books. It is called the Tar Heel Reader. It is a wonderful project. These books are speech enabled and are great for those kids who are emerging readers. They have several Christmas titles that you can use in your classrooms. http://tarheelreader.org
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Princess for a day
Just wanted to share a video for a special project that was done for a special girl.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Blooming Kids
I just purchased several programs from Bloomingkids.com. Their software is designed for kids with learning disabilities, autism, PDD and ADD. The software keeps track of progress on the lessons and will even generate charts. They currently have 37 programs. What I really like is the price. The software programs run between $14 and $16. They are also available for Windows or Mac. The Windows programs are available by download and the Mac software currently needs to be ordered.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Zac Browser
There is a neat web browser that was designed for children with autism. It was developed by the grandfather of a young boy with autism. It only runs on the PC platform. Here is a little description from the website - "ZAC is the zone that will permit your child to interact directly with games (a LOT of games) and activities (focused on MANY interests) that cater specifically to kids who display the characteristics of autism spectrum disorders, like impairments in social interaction, impairments in communication, restricted interests and repetitive behavior. ZAC has been an effective tool for kids with low, medium and high functioning autism."
Friday, May 2, 2008
Social Narratives
If you are creating your own social narratives (social stories) for kids, there is a great resource that has a collection of social narratives and power cards that are already done. The Kansas Autism Spectrum Disorders website has a large collection of social narratives in various formats. Check it out, the social narrative you are going to create may already be done.
No post for a while
Sorry for not posting for quite a while, but my mother passed away unexpectedly and I just did not have the time. I am back at it again and will be posting on a more regular basis.
Monday, March 24, 2008
AAC Matrix
There are a couple of resources that can help when looking for AAC devices.
There is a Matrix from Pacer Center . This is a good resource for information on various devices and some pricing information.
Another site is the AAC TechConnect website. They have a free trial of their Device Assistant which will assist you in narrowing down your device search.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Scan and Read Matrix
Pacer Center has a matrix that compares the various scan and read software programs. This can be useful when searching for programs for a specific child. The Scan and Read Matrix .pdf is found at the www.pacer.org.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Boardmaker Downloads
Every month Mayer Johnson has free BoardMaker symbol downloads. An example is this month they have symbols for Dr. Seuss, Harriet Tubman, Mother Teresa, Princess Diana, Susan B. Anthony and women's history month.
Boardmaker Boards
This is a list of Boardmaker boards listed on
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Teachers' Domain
Teacher' domain ( http://www.teachersdomain.org ) is a free website hosted by WGBH the PBS station out of Boston. It has an extensive digital library of media resources for teachers and students. They are organized by subject, topics, grade level. There are also lesson plans that are correlated with our state standards. They also have videos and resources that are available through iTunes. Example video 
Saturday, February 23, 2008
PulpMotion
PulpMotion by Aquafados is great program for creating presentations and slideshows. It very easy to use and has lots of options. Another nice feature is that is has many options for exporting from e-mail to High Quality DVD. They currently have around 35 themes and continue to add. This is a Mac only product at the time. The cost for educators is $37. Below are 2 videos created by PulpMotion. This is student created art using adapted equipment.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Comic Life
If you haven't tried out Comic Life by Plasq, you have to give it a try. Until recently it was only available for the Mac, but now it is also available for the PC. Probably the best feature is you can take your own photos and create comics out of them. Comic Life shipped with several models of Mac computers. So for Mac users, Comic Life may already be on your computer. If you don't have it, it is available to educators for $19.95. You may also download a free 30 day trial for Mac or Windows. It is a great program for creating writing activities, social stories, worksheets, flash cards, etc.....
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Tech Matrix
Doing a Google search for software to use with a specific student can be quite daunting. You are never really sure if the software has the features you need for the student. There is a resource that can help you easily find software. TechMatrix.org makes it easy for you. You just type in the type of software you want or a specific learning support. Then click generate matrix and it generates a matrix showing all the matching software and a features match. It can make your search easier or at least put you in the right path.
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