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Enter to win the perfect iPad package for a child with special needs! We're giving away a NEW iPad (iPad 3), a sturdy case, switches and three apps. Find out more and how to enter! Contest ends May 15, 2012.
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Giveaways, iPad Apps | 122 Comments Add new comment
Eric Jerman reviews the "generative music" iPad app, Bloom. Bloom allows children to create gentle, soft music patterns and bubbles of color with just the tap of a finger. The app also allows you to choose which color palette and contrast is most attractive to your child.
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Inclusive Technology, a company that creates software for children with special needs, has also created a set of fun and accessible iPad apps. We review the two that are best for children with visual impairments: Smarty Pants and Five Sharks Swimming.
Shared by Amber Bobnar in iPad Apps | Add new comment
We review our favorite iPad case: the GumDrop. The GumDrop is perfect for kids with disabilities because it is nearly indestructible. Now you can feel comfortable handing your iPad to your child!
Shared by Amber Bobnar in iPad Apps | Add new comment
Learn how to make an activity center for children with visual impairments. Using general hardware materials (like cardboard or peg-board) and other household items (like toys or kitchen utensils) you can create a sensory space for your child. We have ideas for big spaces and little spaces!
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Make Your Own, Motor Play, Sensory Play, Special Education | Add new comment
Jennie, from the Micro/Anophthalmia Parent Support group, writes about how she taught her son, Max, to sign. Max is totally blind and does have a few verbal words, but using signs to augment his early communication has really improved his language skills.
Shared by Jennie S. in Child Development, Micro/Anophthalmia | 2 Comments Add new comment
Read Eric Jerman's review of Talking Carl for iPhone and iPad. Talking Carl repeats any word, phrase or sound he hears in a funny high pitch voice. Carl can get your kids laughing and learning how to have a "conversation" when they speak, pause, then listen to the response.
Shared by Eric Jerman in iPad Apps | Add new comment
Eric Jerman reviews a favorite app: Sound Shaker! This app has very high contrast with colorful spheres floating on a white background and produces lovely sounds with each tap, from animal sounds to instruments. Sound Shaker can be a simple cause-and-effect game or, as Eric explains, you can use it for sound and sight discriminating lessons.
Shared by Eric Jerman in iPad Apps | Add new comment
This app is a winner in our house! Ivan loves iLoveFireworks because it makes BIG sounds with just the tap of his finger on the iPad screen. It's a great app for blind children.
Shared by Amber Bobnar in iPad Apps | 1 Comment Add new comment
Megan and her family devised a creative plan for their daughter Ava: begin her education in a private placement at a preschool for the blind, but group her with other kids planning to transition to a mainstream kindergarten classroom. Megan explains how the plan worked.
Shared by Megan E. in Special Education | 1 Comment Add new comment
Heidi interviews her son's mainstream preschool teacher and asks her how she prepared to introduce a blind student to her classroom.
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Michelle interviews her son's mainstream kindergarten teacher and asks her how she prepared her classroom for a blind student. She also asks her if she has any advice for other teachers preparing for blind students.
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Eric Jerman reviews the hilariously addictive Baby Look Tickle app for kids. The app is a simple cause-and-effect game in which a baby laughs every time you tickle her, and Eric explains why blind children would find this app especially appealing.
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Daria shows you how to make your own Sistrum, an ancient Egyptian instrument, out of a wire coat hanger, electrical tape and buttons!
Shared by Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou in Make Your Own, Music, Sensory Play | Add new comment
Does your child need a special bed in order to be safe at night? Do you need help requesting a bed through your insurance? Here's some advice on how to get your insurance to cover a safety bed for your child.
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Child Development, Parenting | 4 Comments Add new comment
Learn how to make your own Chinese gong using simple objects you probably have in your kitchen. Decorate your gong with tactile crafts and make lots of noise!
Shared by Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou in Make Your Own, Music, Tactile Art | Add new comment
Enter to win our top five favorite paid apps for Apple's iPad! From creating music to helping with communication, these apps are perfect for young children with visual impairments.
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Giveaways, iPad Apps | 19 Comments Add new comment
Have you heard of "the first app for iPad and iPhone created specifically for children with cortical visual impairment"? It's pretty cool! Check out the Tap-n-See Zoo app for kids with CVI.
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Jennie writes about how her son, Max, responds to music. Other therapies failed Max and often stressed him out, but Music Therapy has been very successful for him!
Shared by Jennie S. in Music, Special Education | Add new comment
Megan writes about her daughter, Ava, transitioning from Early Intervention to preschool. Ava attended the Western Pennsylvania School for Blind Children and has isolated bilateral anophthalmia.
Shared by Megan E. in Special Education | Add new comment
Bubbles is intended for babies and toddlers as a simple and fun app, but it also works beautifully as a way to help visually impaired children learn to use their functional vision. This high-contrast app could be especially appealing to children with CVI.
Shared by marymcd in iPad Apps | 1 Comment Add new comment
The iPad is the perfect platform to create interactive and accessible picture books for kids. Oceanhouse Media is doing just this with a large collection of Dr. Seuss books. Here's our review of our favorite, Dr. Seuss's ABC.
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Books, iPad Apps | Add new comment
ThumbJam is a simple music app that allows your child to make beautiful, clear sounds with their iPad. It features all sorts of advanced options for changing the sounds or mixing tracks, but at it's foundation it's really just a touch-and-play game.
Shared by Amber Bobnar in iPad Apps, Music | Add new comment
Apple's iPad and other iOS5 devices (like the iPhone and iPod Touch) are supposed to be very accessible for kids with special needs, but you might need help setting them up so your child can use them properly. We'll show you how to adjust your settings and tell you about all the cool accessible features!
Shared by Amber Bobnar in iPad Apps | 6 Comments Add new comment
Eric Jerman reviews a super-cute story book app called Tickle Finger. In this highly interactive story, the reader has to help Tiny Tinga the monkey get home by "tickling" various predators along the way.
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Eric Jerman reviews a simple iPad & iPhone app for young children. In Peek-a-Bouncer your child holds their finger on the touch screen to see and hear a silly and colorful animal. As soon as they release their finger, the animal disappears behind a bright green curtain.
Shared by Eric Jerman in iPad Apps | Add new comment
David wrote this essay as part of a college scholarship application. He writes about his experience as a football player in high school and compares that to his experiences volunteering as a "soccer buddy" with a little boy who is blind.
Shared by David Anfield in My Story | 1 Comment Add new comment
Eric Jerman reviews this simple yet extremely versatile app that turns your iPad into a communication switch. It's a communication application that allows for an array of customizations and it only costs $3.99!
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Eric Jerman reviews the musical iPad app TappyTunes, explaining how it works and why it's a good app for blind children.
Shared by Eric Jerman in iPad Apps, Music | 2 Comments Add new comment
What happens when a child with a disability is in a mainstream classroom? How can teachers accommodate their students with special needs? Lesley Potgieter describes her own experiences as both a disabled student and a teacher.
Shared by Lesley Potgieter in My Story, Special Education, Words of Advice | 3 Comments Add new comment
Learning to listen carefully and distinguish between different sounds is an important skill for any child, but espeically for children with visual impairments. Lesley Potgieter explains how to assess your child's listening ability and how to help them improve this skill.
Shared by Lesley Potgieter in Child Development | Add new comment
Read Mary's review of the Big Trace iPad app that teaches children how to print capital letters, cursives and numbers. The app is great for children with low vision who are learning print because of the high contrast and large size of the letters.
Shared by Mary McDonach in iPad Apps | Add new comment
Eric Jerman, COMS, reviews the popular iPad app Peekaboo Barn. He explains how the app works and why it's ideal for young children learning simple fine motor skills. He also talks about why this app works wonderfully for kids with low vision, especially children with CVI.
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Here's a quick and easy craft that is perfect for the holidays - learn how to make your own jingle bells with bells and pipe cleaners. You can wear them like a bracelet or anklet or even make a jingle stick!
Shared by Daria Marmaluk-Hajioannou in Holidays, Make Your Own, Music, Sensory Play | 1 Comment Add new comment
This is a great craft idea for the holidays! Trace your child's foot on brown paper and their hands on red paper and glue together - you've got yourself a reindeer ornament ready to decorate and hang on the tree!
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Holidays, Make Your Own, Sensory Play, Tactile Art | Add new comment
Getting your blind child in the kitchen is a wonderful way to teach them life skills. They can learn so much from simply baking a batch of cookies - plus they get to eat the end results!
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Child Development, Sensory Play | Add new comment
Learn more about iPad apps for blind children! Mary reviews one of her favorites - a coloring book app with an amazing zoom feature for children with low vision.
Shared by Mary McDonach in Favorites, Holidays, iPad Apps | Add new comment
What are you getting your child for Christmas this year? We've put together our "wish list" of toys and games we'd like to get Ivan for Christmas... and all of them are perfect for young blind children!
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Holidays, Toys & Recreation | 1 Comment Add new comment
Walter Tillman is an ocularist in Ocularist Pittsburgh. He talks about how he assesses children with anophthalmia/microphthalmia, how to choose conformers or prosthetics, and possible surgical options.
Shared by Megan E. in Micro/Anophthalmia | Add new comment
Learn how to make a sensory art project with feathers and squash to create a Thanksgiving turkey! This is a great tactile art craft project.
Shared by Amber Bobnar in Holidays, Make Your Own, Sensory Play, Tactile Art | Add new comment