TLC Spotlight - Happy Holidays

Have a Safe and Wonderful Holiday!


The Technology Lending Center

Department of Labor Trying to Improve Job Opps for People with Disabilities

On December 9, 2011, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs proposed revisions to the regulations implementing the non-discrimination and affirmative action regulations of section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended.

This change introduces a goal that at least 7 percent of workers employed by most federal contractors be individuals with disabilities.

"This proposed rule represents one of the most significant advances in protecting the civil rights of workers with disabilities since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "President Obama has demonstrated a commitment to people with disabilities. This proposed rule would help federal contractors better fulfill their legal responsibility to hire qualified workers with disabilities."

Establishing a 7 percent hiring goal for the employment of individuals with disabilities would be a tool for contractors to measure the effectiveness of their affirmative action efforts and thereby inform their decision-making. The proposed rule also would enhance data collection and record-keeping requirements — including for documentation and processing of requests for reasonable accommodation — in order to improve accountability. Additionally, it would ensure annual self-reviews of employers' recruitment and outreach efforts, and add a new requirement for contractors to list job openings to increase their pools of qualified applicants.

"For nearly 40 years, the rules have said that contractors simply need to make a 'good faith' effort to recruit and hire people with disabilities. Clearly, that's not working," said OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu. "Our proposal would define specific goals, require real accountability and provide the clearest possible guidance for employers seeking to comply with the law. What gets measured gets done. And we're in the business of getting things done."

For a complete look at the revisions visit the federal register here. Comments on the revision will be accepted until Tuesday, February 7th.

You can submit comments identified by RIN number 1250-AA02, by any of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
• Fax comments to: (202) 693-1304 (for comments of six pages or less) or
• Mail comments to Debra A. Carr, Director, Division of Policy, Planning, and Program Development, Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, Room C-3325, 200 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20210.

APP Attack! Apps for Public Speaking

Our APP Attack for today comes from Gregory Swanson's Apps for Education Blog and focuses on Teleprompter apps for public speaking.

The main feature of these apps is the ability to load in your speech and the app with scroll the text on the screen as you speak.

Check out the list HERE.

Do you want to learn more about APPS?

Do you want to learn how to implement iPads in your school?

Contact us - we can help! We will work collaboratively with your team to determine an effective course of action for your specific situation.

Email Mike Marotta, Assistant Director, ATS Dept. at mmarotta@advopps.org

APP Attack! Switch Accessible Apps

Today's App Attack come from Clair Judas, Special Education Technology Specialist, Assistive Technology Team, Area Education Agency 267 in Cedar Falls Iowa.

Clair compiled a list of switch accessible apps for the iOS devices. While not meant to be all inclusive - this is a great starting point for apps that allow for alternative access.

Apps with switch access…

• SoundingBoard: AbleNet: www.ablenetinc.com ; (iPhone/iPod/iPad) Access devices: AbleNet Blue2

• Predictable: TherapyBox www.tboxapps.com ; (iPhone/iPod/iPad) Access devices: RJ Cooper iPad or Therapy Box

• Scene & Heard: TherapyBox < www.tboxapps.com > (iPhone/iPod/iPad) Access devices:

• TapSpeak Choice: www.conleysolutions.com; (iPad) Access devices: RJ Cooper iPad or Therapy Box

• TapSpeak Sequence: www.conleysolutions.com (iPhone/iPod/iPad) Access devices: RJ Cooper & AbleNet Blue2 Bluetooth

• GoTalk Now: www.attainmentcompany.com > (iPad) Access devices: Attainment Switch app or RJ Cooper Switch Interface

• Alexicomm AAC: www.alexicomtech.com; (iPhone/iPod/iPad) Access devices: RJ Cooper Switch Interface

Thanks Clair for this list! If you would like to contact Clair, his email is cjudas@aea267.k12.ia.us

Do you know of other switch accessible apps? Leave a comment below and share your resource.

Do you want to learn more about APPS?

Do you want to learn how to implement iPads in your school?

Contact us - we can help! We will work collaboratively with your team to determine an effective course of action for your specific situation.

Professional Development Webinars

Would you like to learn about AT without going to a national conference?

ATIA has just announced their schedule of webinars for the first half of 2012.

Learn for nationally recognized speakers without having to leave home! The schedule includes:

• Assistive Technology & UDL in a Multi-Tiered System of Supports
• Core Vocabulary: Why Use It?
• Family Experiences with Autism and Speech Generating Devices
• and many more!

For more info, click HERE.

TLC Spotlight - DynaVox Xpress

DynaVox Xpress


The Xpress may be appropriate for people who are on the go and want a portable communication device.
Xpress is an ultra-portable, dynamic display, communication device. Due to its small size and powerful InterAACt language framework - Xpress fits easily into the lives of children and adults who require communication support and are on the go.

Learn more about the Xpress click here.

What do you think? Do you want to TRY IT before you BUY IT? Then join our Technology Lending Center. Click here to join today! 

TLC Spotlight - Franklin Language Master

Franklin Language Master

Franklin Language Master is great for individuals of all ages who are challenged by blindness, visual or speech impairments, learning disabilities or dyslexia.


A lightweight hand-held dictionary offering full speech controls to read screens or speak individual words at the speed you choose. At less than 6" square, it is also lightweight.  Low vision users will appreciate the large-type display option, high-contrast screen and black-on-white QWERTY keyboard. For blind users, orientation features include active screen announcing and raised dots on location keys.  Headphones can be used for private listening and without disturbing those nearby.

130,000 words and 300,000 definitions, 500,000 synonyms (words with similar meanings) and over 10,000 antonyms (words with opposite meanings)

11,000 Classmates (category words - for example with tiger you might also find cheetah, lion, cat) - A Franklin exclusive!
Features Phonetic Spell Correction (type the word like it sounds)
Installed grammar guides enables you to write or speak with confidence
Large screen, 3 font sizes showing up to 8 lines of text and adjustable screen contrast
Hear the pronunciation as needed with the press of a button
Port for Headphones (sold separately) so you can listen to your device in private and without disturbing those nearby

What do you think? Do you want to TRY IT before you BUY IT? Then join our Technology Lending Center. Click here to join today! 

APP ATTACK! Spelling Notebook Lite

I am always looking for apps that allow you to customize. On the hunt for something for spelling that wasn’t just a sight word program. Spelling Notebook Lite is an app that you can customize the words. You can create a weekly spelling list. You can pick a word that is on the list or you can add a word if not present in the program list. Once you select the word, it announces the word. You can record the word in your own voice. Or for a student that struggles with typing, you can have them record a sentence for the word. When the student clicks on the word, they hear their sentence as they recorder it. You can delete the recording and allow the digital voice play the word.

The app has two specific features: you practice your words with a model or you test your words. This app is for elementary all the way to high school.

Things that I would like to see added even in a paid app.

• Change of font size.
• Ability to do some of the activities that teachers expect from their students in elementary. Alphabetic order, definition, building sentences.
• Ability to turn off modeling in practice

Company Website: http://www.spellingnotebook.com/
iTunes Website: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/spelling-notebook-free/id461225509?mt=8

Cost: Free for the lite

Cost: Full Verison $0.99

A little trick, if you want the ads to go away while your students are working, turn off the internet access to the device. The ads only work while the device is connected to the internet.

Do you want to learn more about APPS?

Do you want to learn how to implement iPads in your school?

Contact us - we can help! We will work collaboratively with your team to determine an effective course of action for your specific situation.

The "Badass Project" - Feel Good Fridays

I have not been able to write a Feel Good Friday post for a few weeks, but when I saw this website, I knew I had to get back on the wagon.

Straight from the website, "The Badass Project exists to share these amazing people with the world. To celebrate the ways in which they kick it. And to put the excuses that most people make in their proper place."

It is a compilation of interviews of people with disabilities doing very cool things. Things that, the founder Johnny says, people might think they shouldn't be doing.

There are many good ones on here, but I will highlight one for today.

Michael McKeller is a motivational speaker and daredevil. He decided that being born with spinal muscular atrophy would not stop him from doing things he enjoyed.
To read Michael's full story and to check out his video, click here. You won't be disappointed.

Enjoy and Happy Friday!

TLC Spotlight - USB Mini Keyboard

Micro Smallest Mini Keyboard with Retractable USB Cable for PC Laptop


Features & Specs:
- 56 keys office keyboard
- Interface: USB
- Fn & Num lock change function
- Static resistant magnetic,field disturb resistant
- Silent switch feeling,feel comfortable
- Compatibility: WIN/2000/XP/VISTA
- Size: 17 x 87.5 x 1.8cm (L x W x H)
- Color: Black

What do you think? Do you want to TRY IT before you BUY IT? Then join our Technology Lending Center. Click here to join today! 

APP ATTACK! Money Money Money

Today we are going to discuss 2 money apps. They are made by the same company. These are two money apps that I feel are worth downloading.

The first is Counting Money. The description from the website is an app designed to help people of all ages count money. There are two game play types. In practice mode the user must answer the question correctly in order to proceed to the next question.The user presses the check button after each attempt to check the answer. In quiz mode the user has an opportunity to answer the question correctly. There are two difficulty types, beginner and normal. You use four coin buttons to add to the tally.

Pros:

• Actual Currency. This is extremely important as children don’t often see parents model using cash and some does not handle money as often to get practice.
• Data collection. The apps scores and grades the answers.
• You can set it for visually or mentally tallied.
• Sound can be turned off.
• Has a timer 1, 2, 4, and 8 minutes
• Set expectation 10, 20, 30 or 40 questions.

Things that I would like to see added even in a paid app.

• A method for the student to send their teacher the data either email or capturing the screen.
• A way to set up a class list so you can customize each student activity.
• A way to change the background – solid colors.

Company Website: http://kingsapps.webs.com/
iTunes Website: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/counting-money/id469420537?mt=8
Cost: Free

The second app is My Money Counter. It is made by the same company that makes Counting Money. This app is a simple app that allows a user to count their own money. The user counts the number of coins and dollars they have in their wallet and the Alps calculated how much money they have in total. The user can then also subtract money spent. This app can be used when going grocery shopping with students or adults that need support handling money, making change and identifying how much money they should have left after their purchase. This can be used to work on word problems with students. The possibilities are endless.

What I would like to see:

• This app made for the
itouch or iPhone so that it is portable for an individual to use in public.
• Speech. Say how much money in total.

Company Website: http://kingsapps.webs.com/
iTunes Website: Free: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/my-money-counter-free/id446496983?mt=8
iTunes Website: http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/my-money-counter!/id466277633?mt=8

Cost: Free or $0.99

Do you want to learn more about APPS?

Do you want to learn how to implement iPads in your school?

Contact us - we can help! We will work collaboratively with your team to determine an effective course of action for your specific situation.

Email Mike Marotta, Assistant Director, ATS Dept. at mmarotta@advopps.org

TLC Spotlight - ChesterMouse

One-button computer mouse the ChesterMouse


A tiny single-button mouse with no scroll wheel, that’s easy to control and made of rugged plastic for strength and durability.

Young children can be confused about whether to use the right or left button on a mouse, and clicking on small objects, using drag-and-drop and click-and-move can be frustrating. A standard mouse doesn’t fit into small hands or the buttons are just too far apart. Welcome Chester, a tiny single-button mouse with no scroll wheel, that’s easy to control and made of rugged plastic for strength and durability.  

What do you think? Do you want to TRY IT before you BUY IT? Then join our Technology Lending Center. Click here to join today! 


 

 

APP ATTACK! Teacher Cast

Today I put out a tweet asking, what App should I review for the blog. You would think that I would get suggestions chirping at me. This was the first suggestion I received, Teacher Cast. It isn’t a drill and skill App, it is not an activity App at all. It is an information App for educators that are seeing information on technology in the classroom.

The TeacherCast does App Reviews, Podcast, Blogs and Screencast it allows you have education references all in one place so you have the latest information as it hits the social and news networks.

If you are an educator and are looking for the best ways to teach your students, look no further than TeacherCast. We bring you TeacherCast Podcasts, and AdministratorCasts with some of the best teachers in the world.

The TeacherCast Podcast: A weekly podcast featuring teachers and administrators just like you who discuss their philosophies on teaching, and how they use technology in their classrooms. There are 40 Podcast to listen to.

App Spotlights: Discussions with app developers about the Apps for education.

App Reviews: Also having teachers discuss how the app may benefit the classroom.

ScreenCasts: TeacherCast features Screencasts demonstrating todays hot Apps, as well a screencasts to showcase hidden features that can make your teaching day run smoother.

Blogs: TeacherCast features blogs written by staff, as well as other education professionals to help you decide how to best educate your students.

The App is a useful tool for educators and parents to have so they can keep up with the forever changing landscape of technology in education. The website and app gives you access to information in a fast format at a glance. Both the website and app has a very clean layout.

This is a must have for educators every click of the mouse or tap on the screen brings you information that can be used with your students or classroom management.

Cost: FREE

Company Website: http://teachercast.net/

iTunes Address: http://itunes.apple.com/pk/app/teachercast/id460774278?mt=8

Pod Cast: http://itunes.apple.com/pk/podcast/teachercast/id451067212

Do you want to learn more about APPS?

Do you want to learn how to implement iPads in your school?

Contact us - we can help! We will work collaboratively with your team to determine an effective course of action for your specific situation.

Email Mike Marotta, Assistant Director, ATS Dept. at mmarotta@advopps.org

Happy Halloween .... ideas for suggestions

This isn't really a technology based post. However, Halloween is this weekend. If you are still scrambling for ideas, I hope this post helps.

Individuals with disabilities often need creative ideas to include their wheelchairs. I found some resources that you may find helpful for fast some easier than other costumes.

Here are some of my ideas:

Dictionary Page, White Pages: Take a white plastic tablecloth cut a hole out of the top so you can slip it over a person's head. Then write with a permanent marker either words from a dictionary page or white pages. (OLD SCHOOL)

Whiteboard: Same as above except you can have people can add messages.

Take a large box fit it around the wheelchair….

You can decorate it as a bed. You can add monkeys jumping on bed (10 little monkeys jumping on the bed).

Make it look like a picnic table. Place plates all around. Ants on the table.

PVC:

If you make a box out of PVC:

You can do one of the following:

Puppet Show.

Fortune Teller: The old fashion fortune teller in a box.

Motorcycle : http://specialchildren.about.com/u/sty/youradviceneeded/halloweencostume/Biker-Costume-Makes-Wheelchair-Part-of-the-Ensemble.htm

Giant Kick Scooter. All you would need is the single handle bar that comes directly in front of the individual and a piece of cardboard with silver paint lays under the wheelchair to be the “platform”.

Here are the links to some creative ideas bookmark them for next year.

http://bridgeschool.org/activities/halloween/index.php

http://specialchildren.about.com/od/inthecommunity/qt/costume.htm

http://celebrations-holidays.helium.com/topic/4744-costumes-for-kids

http://www.halloween.com/halloween-handicapped-costumes.php

http://www.mdausa.org/publications/Quest/q55hallo.html

Web 2.0 Wednesday! EtherPad

Today we will look at a tool I discovered at the 2011 NJAET conference. I attended a session by Kevin Jarrett titled, "Do-It-Yourself Professional Development: Building your Personal Learning Network (PLN). (Great session, by the way, and you can check out the WIKI for the session at diy-pd.wikispaces.com Connect with Kevin on Twitter @kjarrett )

During his session, we were all able to collaborate real time using this web 2.0 tool called EtherPad. This free web based word processor tool allowed us to collaborate in real time - with any changes / additions instantly sent to all our screens! Very cool tool - think about the possibility for projects.

The tool provides many of the features you would expect from a word processor: text editing features, bullets, etc. But the best feature (my opinion, of course!) is the ability to assign a color to each contributor. That way we can track participants responses and contributions to the document.

Overall a great tool - and one I plan on using extensively during some upcoming presentations.

Click HERE to see the document that we used during the NJAET session.

Enjoy!

APP ATTACK! So Much 2 Say

I will start this blog post off by saying upfront I am not a speech therapist and I don’t pretend to be. I will also say that I like to make sure that I am well rounded and try to keep my eye open for new apps and that includes AAC apps.

A new app on the market is So Much 2 Say. It is developed by a company Close 2 Home Apps, LLC. A little background of why this product was designed. It was designed for the owners two children who are on the spectrum. She was told “Your child doesn’t have the prerequisites for a communication device.” It was a devastating blow to hear those words. So this mom was on a mission to figure something out. With her boyfriend by her side the concept was conceived and shortly after their marriage, they gave birth to So Much 2 Say.

The app is for emergent language communicators. These are the individuals that are learning that these pictures actually mean something. They need smaller fields, they often need real photos vs drawings (not all some do better with the reverse) and are not ready for categories.

So Much 2 Say offers early beginning AAC users a platform. There are other apps in iTunes that do this but So Much 2 Say, makes it simple on the fly communication or even being used for language based activities. For example, I was working in a classroom observing a student on the spectrum and the teacher was doing music with her class. She had songs that they sang everyday and students had to pick the song that they would sing. My student was sitting in the circle and not really engaging. The student wouldn’t even make a choice of the song to sing. I asked the teacher if I could take a picture of the cards she had made for each song. I quickly made a song board with 4 choices and I included like button and a dislike button. So when the teacher was ready to ask the student for her choice, the student touched B-I-N-G-O and the teacher started to sing. But then the student kept touching Dislike. So I signaled to the teacher to stop singing. The student again touched B-I-N-G-O but this time the aide sang the song and the student touched like. We repeated this activity a few times to see if it was the teacher singing the student didn't like.

With the app you have two choices of setting up the boards categories or cards. Depending on your students' abilities or your plan of use, you select which way to set it up. I typically set mine up with categories. I like to model for the students how to get to something even if they are not expected to do it at first. My categories are: Games – Songs – Stories – Sharing. Now if a student cannot manage the field I have created the app allows me to change from a field of 1 – 2- 4-6 depending on the individual student's needs. I love the fact that I can on the fly and cards or folders can be hidden and returned to screen.

The app uses real voice not digital voice. So for each thing you add if you want a voice added to it, you need to record the sound. There are pros and cons to this. Using recorded voice, a person's voice is the voice of another. A child often has an adult voice. Sometimes a male has a female voice. These are just things we need to be conscientious about that we make sure our students with AAC needs do not all sound alike.

Company Website: https://close2homeapps.com/?q=our_apps

Itunes store: http://itunes.apple.com/pk/app/so-much-2-say-picture-communication/id452389274?mt=8

Cost: $24.99

Likes:

User friendly

Can customize with own photos or symbols.

Layouts are simple to modify.

The screen layout is clean and simple – great for students' visual impairments.

• My wish list:
• Some way to hide the edit button. I have a love hate with the edit button. It makes things super easy for me to edit but it also makes it super easy for little fingers to take there.
• A better library. Pictures or icons that to get the person started.
• A way to change the background color. Unless I am missing something I have only been able to see the purple. A more neutral color would be black.
• Digital voice
• Ability to change the background color
• Switch access
• Data (selection, speed)

If there is a something you would like to see added to an APP, take the time to talk to the developer of the APP. They are very often open to suggestions and feedback. If your suggestion works into their vision for their app, you very well may see it added. And you might suggest something that wasn’t in their plan but it would be a great addition. Talk to the app developers.

Do you want to learn more about APPS?

Do you want to learn how to implement iPads in your school?

Contact us - we can help! We will work collaboratively with your team to determine an effective course of action for your specific situation.

Email Mike Marotta, Assistant Director, ATS Dept. at mmarotta@advopps.org

TLC Spotlight -Logitech NuLOOQ Navigator

NuLooQ Navigator



The NuLOOQ navigator™ from Logitech® is designed to ease the time-intensive elements of design such as navigating images, adjusting option values, and accessing menus and to help creative users work smarter. 

It allows you to adjust brush size in Photoshop, or text attributes in InDesign, timeline in video/audio applications or just control your system volume; make fine adjustments with a feather touch using the touch sensitive circular disk. With two Finger Navigation you can gently nudge the gray ring forward, backwards, up, down, twist clockwise or counter clockwise to navigate around your digital picture, illustration, documents, spreadsheets or anything you can program. Control, what, where and how fast to navigate with just two fingers!
 
A simple click or tap and quickly execute your shortcut command. The integrated sensor with 1000 levels of resolution detects even the minutest motion in multiple directions simultaneously. Move the ring a small amount to move slowly or move it all the way to get to where you want quickly.

Highlights

• Adjust brush size in one pixel increments in Adobe® Photoshop® CS2 without ever moving a slider or clicking on a shortcut key
• Fine-tune font attributes such as leading, tracking and more in Adobe InDesign® CS2 without using the option bar
• Scroll and zoom your documents, spreadsheets, digital pictures or more with the smallest movement of the gray ring
• Scrub timelines in Final Cut Pro® or iMovie quickly or slowly
• Change volume or music tracks in iTunes™ quickly while it runs in the background
• NuLOOQ navigator is user configurable for virtually any application

What do you think? Do you want to TRY IT before you BUY IT? Then join our Technology Lending Center. Click here to join today! 

Web 2.0 Wednesday! Voki

As part of our Web 2.0 Wednesday series, today we will highlight another webinar presented by our friends at Region 4 ESC in Texas.

Today's episode of 1001 Super Tools for Teachers focuses on VOKI.

Listen to the recorded webinar by clicking HERE.

Download the handout by clicking HERE.


Don't forget to sign up for the next live webinar on Kerpoof.
October 25th @ 11:45 AM

Here is the link: http://www.esc4.net/udl

The Webinar is FREE so sign up today!

Livescribe Pulse Pen - The story of a user - Thinking outside the Box

As an assistive technology consultant I work with individuals with all ability levels related to their disabilities or technology knowledge. I have the pleasure of helping individuals figure out how technology fits into their lives. Often I am like the seamstress helping the individual select the tool that meets their needs almost perfectly. As the seamstress, my job is also to nip, tuck and add special details to make it just exactly what the person needs. There are times that I am handed a piece of technology that I need to retrofit. Sometimes as the seamstress, I must say that I am sorry but this piece will not work the way you expect because there is far too much nipping, tucking and it doesn’t allow me the special details you wish to have. But there are times, that as a the seamstress, I get to look and evaluate the structure of how an item is meant to work and say “Yes, I think we might be able to nip, tuck and add that little extra for you”.

Recently, I had the experience of retrofitting a piece of technology to an adult who has poor vision and traumatic brain injury. Her family found at the store and they a Livescribe pulse pen. They thought this would be a perfect device for their mom because she always forgets things and cannot see what she is writing. When I was presented with the pen, I was confused. As the seamstress, it would be similar to be handed a bridesmaid gown and asked “Can you change this so I can wear it for daily wear?” I put all the typical responses aside because I knew my client was excited about this new tool. She didn’t know what it could do but her family told her it would be perfect.

The first thing I needed to figure out was, how did Elsie see herself using the pen. It is nice that everyone has a vision of how it can be used but Elsie is the end user. The best meaning vision is her vision. Her vision was to be able to able to take a person phone number down and use it later, when she goes to the doctor remember her medications and how often she takes them, and to follow any changes in care. The biggest one was to document when she made calls who she spoke with, when she called, when they said they would call her back and so on. Her vision was very different than the families.

The second thing I needed to contend with is Elsie’s vision and the complications from her brain injury. Elsie’s vision I am told is 20/100. She has difficulty seeing shades of color. If you have ever opened a Livescribe notebook, the pages have a shade of blue because of the millions of little dots per line that help the pen do its magic. For Elsie this is not a great thing because she cannot see the line she is supposed to be working on. This is a bone of contention with Elsie because she can see her words are slopping all over the page although she cannot read the words she can write. The brain injury has left her with the inability to decipher the letters. When she explains it to me, she says they are just lines that move in different directions sometimes looking like pictures. After listening to Elsie talk about how her vision and brain injury affects her ability to read what she wrote, I asked her Elsie can you still draw? With that she lifted the pen and drew this amazing picture of cat with fine detail. So the idea was born, that Elsie would not write words on the paper she would draw a picture of the conversation.

We sat and brainstormed different symbols that would have meaning for Elsie. The first symbol was easy, a phone and the symbol for number. Elsie is always losing my phone number so we practiced her new way of taking notes. As Elsie was drawing a picture of the phone I gave my name, agency name, and what services I provided for her. When she started to draw the number sign, I gave her my cell phone number. Now she has a way to call me when she needs help. She taps on the symbol on the phone and she gets my name. When she clicks on the number sign she gets my number. Elsie loves that she can tap backwards and pause so she can dial.

The second symbol was her medication. We brainstormed different things and this is what we came up with. Elsie thought the shape of the pill would be great except all her pills are round. We finally decided on a medication bottle and a clock. The medication bottle she would draw and as she was drawing she or a family member would name the medication. Next to the medication bottle she would draw a clock so she could say Morning, Noon, Dinner or Bed. If she needed to take the medication more than once a day, she would make two clocks.

Now the biggest hurdle I think we needed to figure out was Elsie had a dream. She wants to write a book about her life and experiences. Elsie is someone that has amazing stories to share but because she struggles with the computer, she finds doing this task extremely difficult. Since she has the Livescribe pen we decided to use the pen to record her stories. Now because of her head injury sometimes her thoughts get confused. The pen allows her to describe the event, experience or thought and one of her friends or family members transcribes it onto the computer. When the thoughts don’t go together, then they write the thought in a different color and highlight it so Elsie can decide what to do with it.

Although the Livescribe pen is a retrofitted technology we found ways to think outside of the box for their use. We have created a specialized notebooks for doctors, address book and her thought journal. They are small enough to fit into her bag so she can carry them anywhere she goes. We have made some tweaks along the way to help others. We asked the pharmacist to print extra labels for her medication on the back of her page, she sticks the labels. For professionals working with Elsie she attacks a business card to the back of the page. This allows for individuals with sight to help Elis when needed. We also made special paper for Elsie. We printed pages out and then sent them through a photo copier so we could copy nice dark lines on the paper from a plastic writing grid. This allows Elis to continue to practice her penmanship. Her penmanship is beautiful and legible and laborious but it is meaningful to Elis.

How are you using the Livescribe pen?

APP Attack! Apps for Handwritten Notes

Today's post will highlight Apps that let you take handwritten notes directly on your iPad.

This list of Apps is from Gregory Swanson's blog "Apps in Education" - which is a great resource for Apps. For more resources, follow Gregory on Twitter - @inov8ed

The apps in this post allow you to write directly on the screen, organize notebooks for different subjects, draw diagrams within notes, manage / organize notes, and much more!

Check it out!

Apps for Handwritten Notes

Do you want to learn more about APPS?

Do you want to learn how to implement iPads in your school?

Contact us - we can help! We will work collaboratively with your team to determine an effective course of action for your specific situation.

Email Mike Marotta, Assistant Director, ATS Dept. at mmarotta@advopps.org