iPads for Special Education

1. iPads for Special Education Joni Hiller M.Ed Wooster City Schools

2. Agenda • 9:00-9:15 – Introductions/Index Card • 9:15-9:45 - Introducing the iPad in your classroom • 9:45 – 10:30 – Apps to support the Special Education Classroom • 10:30-10:45 – Break • 10:45-11:15 – How you want to use the iPad • 11:15-12:00 – App Sharing

3. Introductions • What grade/subjects do you teach? • What district do you work for? • What kind of technology do you have access to? • Do you already use an iPad or iPads in your classroom?

4. Index Card Please answer the following question on your index card (this can be anonymous or you can include your name.) • What do you wish you could do with an iPad in your classroom or during your students’ day?

5. Planning for the iPad • What will the students have access to on the iPad? • If you don’t have enough iPads for each student, what time of the day will you use the iPad? • How can you incorporate the iPad into a daily routine? • Who needs the iPad during whole group instruction (picture support, voice output, etc.) • How can you use the iPad 1-1 with each student? • How do your students use technology now?

6. Introducing the iPad • First and foremost, use the iPad as a tool for learning from the beginning…not a toy! • Limited access to certain applications • Accessibility functions on the iPad (Guided Access is your friend!!) • Teach the students how to do simple functions (swiping, selecting etc.) • How can you use applications included on the iPad (camera, photos, video, notes, calendar, maps, mail) • Teach them common terms you will use, “Make the screen black”, “push the home button.”

7. Apps that Support Daily Living • Start small and pick apps that you can use routinely and then build more apps into the students day as needed or if needed. • iCheckbookPro (Free/$1.99) – I use this app daily! Students count money they earn during the day and then enter the total as a “deposit” in their checkbook. If a student loses money or uses money, it is added as a withdraw. • Video Scheduler ($12.99) – Each student as a daily schedule on their iPad organized by day of the week and then by periods. I used pictures, you can also add videos of a specific task if needed.

8. Apps that Support Daily Living • Weather + - (Free/$0.99) Gives animation of the daily weather as well as a chart that shows the weather for the week. • Grocery (I Get it Apps) – ($2.99) – Create your own “social stories” or picture based grocery lists for the grocery store. • Drawing Pad - ($1.99) – Students can draw how they feel and post to a classroom twitter account or facebook page (introduction to social media as well)…I also use this to support literacy.

9. Apps to Support Content Instruction • Proloquo2go – ($189.00) – This app can be used in many ways to support literacy, writing, communication and vocabulary acquisition across the content areas. (Free webinars are available in the iTunes store) • Book Writer – ($3.99) – The students used this app to create iBooks that had pictures, sentences and audio about a content topic (Biomes, region in Ohio etc.). I also used this to add auditory and visual flashcards of sight words for students.

10. Apps to Support Content Instruction • Stories About Me – ($5.99) – Creates audio books as well but does not download to iBooks. You can share the books via Dropbox. This app is more “kid friendly”. I also used this to make flashcards for sight words. • QR Scan App – (Free) – Create QR codes for projects and then students use the app to locate the information. • Doodlecast Pro – I used this app on the iPad that I used. I took pictures and then made picture directions with auditory support for an independent center. Students completed content work, cutting, following directions etc. This could also be used to make a social story.

11. Apps to Support Content Instruction • Next Dollar Up - I used this app to reinforce the “dollar up” strategy used with some of my students. • Abilipad – I will be purchasing it this year, so I have not integrated it into my classroom yet, but it is an app that allows you to customize keyboards and assists with writing. • Reflection application for your computer. Allows you to display one or multiple iPads on your SmartBoard. Students can also share projects and give presentations.

12. Reinforcing Apps • Make them age appropriate…even if they like “Bob the Builder”… if they are in High School, probably not the best choice. • For my 5th, 6th and 7th graders I use… • Memory King • Bugs and Buttons or Bugs and Buttons • Drawing Apps (Drawing pad, Glow drawing) • Many students enjoy the Google Earth app • Any app that records their voice and lets them listen back to it! • Keep “fun games” to a minimum…they will automatically choose other apps during free time such as Proloquo2go or the “Dollar Up” app.

13. Finding the latest apps • TCCSA – Posts the “app of the week” on their website • A4cwsn.com – Looks like an odd website…but they post a lot of good apps! • Special education section in the App Store • SNApps4kids • Appolicious Special Education section • AppyDaze Blog

14. Index Card Answers Please answer the following question on your index card (this can be anonymous or you can include your name.) • What do you wish you could do with an iPad in your classroom or during your students’ day?

15. App Sharing Are there apps that you currently use or would like to use?

16. Contact Information • Joni Hiller • Edgewood Middle School – Wooster City Schools • Wstr_jhiller@woostercityschools.org • 330-345-6475 Extension 7105