My Top 10 FREE apps for ASD kids | Small But Kinda Mighty. Gingerheaddad recently asked me to come up with a list of the Top 10 free apps that I would recommend for autistic kids. I said sure, but I also decided to give myself a real challenge with respect to this, so the following criteria apply to ALL of these apps: They are free on an ongoing basis. Only an app’s developer can control the pricing of apps so I could wake up tomorrow and find you now have to pay for them but, they were all listed as free in the Canadian iTunes store at the time this blog post was published and for some time prior.No in-app purchases.No ads.No ‘Lite’ versions of paid apps.All approved by me and used by at least one of my children. When most people think of apps for autistic children they usually think of AAC or apps that help with transitions and scheduling and that’s with good reason; these apps are important and useful tools.
So, without further ado, here’s my list: DialSafe Pro. Little Writer. Stewie the Duck Learns to Swim. Using I and Me. Rocket Speller. Best content in ATIA Apps. All About Apps for (Special) Education. I keep finding more and more excellent resources around using iPads, iPods and Apps in (Special) education and wanted to share some of my favourite links with you.
The first comes from the great Victorian Government site called Ipads for Education . There are a number of resources in the support section, including the handout ‘iPads in Special Education’ . Apps are grouped into topic areas, such as Organisational Apps, Writing Apps and Maths Apps and are rated at different levels. This handout is a great resource for considering a range of apps and the website also provides excellent information, case studies and ideas about using iPads as an education tool. Another good resource is a handout from Bridget Gilormini at the Simon Technology Center. . ‘ covers resources for finding App reviews, accessories and blogs which provide information about Apps. Another resource, which I was very excited to find, is a series of excellent handouts by the people at inov8 Educational Consulting. . “ . “. SpedApps2 - home.
Therapy materials. Bridging Apps | Bridging the gap between technology and people with disabilities. Apps for Children With Special Needs - iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad Apps for Special Needs. The Special Needs iPad & App Series. Click on the image to view full graphic (source: Mashable.com) In only one year the Apple iPad has revolutionized the tech industry. 15 Million iPads have been sold and estimates are that within the next 3 years over 115 million tablets will be shipped. When the iPad was launched there was a lot of talk of what exactly it would be used for. Movies, games, school work and social networking where all mentioned as possibilities. What no one foresaw including Steve Jobs himself was the use of the iPad for special education.
One year later dozens if not hundreds of applications have been created that enhance the quality of life for individuals with all types of disabilities. The market for such applications has become so big that Apple has created a Special Education section of their App Store to cater to the special needs community. Stories in media, among them the New York Times and the San Francisco Weekly are extolling the virtues of using an iPad for assistive communication.