#ATIA2010 - Orlando, Saturday

Saturday was a short day, but I was able to find some good sessions.  It seemed to be a day for Twitter as I was able to attend sessions by @briandowd & @assistivetek.

Brian Dowd, @briandowd, shared his experiences as Assistive Technologist for Alton School district (in Southern Illinois), as well as Region I & III in the same area.  One difficulty of his position is how large an area he has to service in a given week!  His solution, a Wiki, it allows teachers to get resources and ask questions.

Brian Friedlander, AssistiveTek, shared some technology supports for writing.  Now, I was unable to stay for the entire session (due to having to get ready for my presentation), but I did hear some very interesting points!  He spent some time talking about some of the new features of Inspiration - Drag & Drop editing, mind mapping, presentation mode, and more.  He also showed some of the ways that other programs, like Solo Suite 6, could integrate in to provide word prediction and such.

The last presentation I attended, well that would be my own!  I was very excited to again present at ATIA.  For those of you new to the blog it's about my idea to help my students with SCD research and present on a topic (for example desert animals).  You can see the presentation here - My Crazy Idea....

I'd like to take a moment to thank several folks for coming to the presentation (and not heckling) - Jeanette, Chris, Brian & especially Lisa, along with all the others who stayed around to the very end for my session.  It was a blast to present, and I can't wait to do it again.


Patrick


Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

#ATIA2010 - Orlando, Friday

I had intended to write each evening before going to sleep about the day I had had....as you can see that clearly did not happen!  As I got back to my room last evening, I need to get a few things finished with my own presentation - My Crazy Idea..., pack, and get a good night rest.  So I never got around to talking about Friday's presentations.  So here's what I thought.

I attended a great session Friday morning by Penny Reed & Gayl Bowser (both very active QIAT Leadership type people!).  They presented a great session about ways to work smarter, not harder by using web tools like - Blogs, Nings, & Wikis (hmmm...seem familiar!).  Some of the blogs they mention were Teaching Every Student, No Limits to Learning, & TLWMSN.  They also talked about the AT Help Desk they created to help teams diagnose the best way to fix problems - AT Help Desk.

I went to a great session by Libby Rush on how to teach writing!  While she had way to much material for a 1 hour session, she was thoroughly engaging and fun to watch!  There was a lot discussed and most of it is in my notes (but she talks really fast, and I can't type that fast!).  I'll do my best to try and put up a post soon about her ideas.

My favorite sessions were by last two.  First I saw Marie Duggan, a Mom-NOS (not otherwise specifed), of 6 kids, one with Autism!  She had filled her sons life with symbols, schedules, and communication.  I'm amazed at all the solutions she came up with.  When a problem arose they found a way to to help him.  I think what I was most impressed by was that she didn't just work on the problem, she worked on the WHY!  Then she worked on a way to help him understand!  An utterly amazing woman.  I wish she had had more time because we never got to hear about the new software she is working on.

Last, but certainly not least, was SMART Inclusion in the 21st Century:  Integrating SMARTBoards with AT.  A long title, but worth every second!  A SLP, Alexandra Dunn at a small school board in Ottawa, Canada decided that the best way to integrate their students with SCD in the general ed classrooms was through SMARTBoards!  The results were profound and AMAZING!  All students increased participation and showed skills they never had before.  Each SMARTBoard was used with BM, Classroom Suite, Notebook Software and they used it with all the students (not just the ones with IEP's!).  They had Airliners (think portable mouse), Intellikeys, and switches so that there was a lot of alternative access, just depending on what the student needed.  They even let some kids use their Bluetooth enabled devices to interact directly with the SMARTBoard!!!!!!  They have some research, and as soon as it is posted I will let you know.  This was some exciting stuff!


As you can see, I'm quite excited by my experience at ATIA.  It's always amazing to me how much it helps to go to conferences and meet with other professionals, it's just an electric atmosphere.  I have some information about today's sessions to post, and it will have to wait (I should be boarding momentarily).  Again, if you are interested in reading my notes from the sessions please feel free to check them out here - ATIA Notes.


Patrick


Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

AT Blog Carnival - January

I am so excited to kick of the AT Blog Carnival for 2010! There's been quite a response so let's get to it!

To kick off our AT Blog Carnival for January we have some posts from Brian Friedlander (@assistivetek)of Assistive Technology

Solo 6 - Literacy Tool with the Right Balance of Power & Features
Just Released - Assistive Technology: What every Educator Needs to Know

Gillian703 of Special Classroom shares how her class cooks!
Climb for Water Recipe

Lon Thornburg (@lontee) of No Limits to Learning shares some fun ways to integrate AAC and school curriculum:
Use Fun to Integrate AAC and School Curriculum

Eric Sailers (@egolfer6) of Speech-Language Pathology Sharing shared some great posts about iPod Touch apps & accessories he likes!
3 New Toys for my iPhone & iPod Touch
iPhone & iPod Touch apps for (Special) Education

Chris Bugaj (@attipscast) of the A.T.TipsCast shares his tips on how to change the speed of reading for digital media:
ATTipsCast - Episode #47

Barbara Boucher of TherExtras has some great posts about movement & handwriting:
To Move is to Function
The handwriting is on the wall

Ricky Buchanan (@rickybuchanan) of ATMac shares some of her favorite posts:
Dictation For Your iPhone/iPod Touch
Give Yourself Backups For Christmas
Create Accessible Podcast And iTunes U Content & lastly
Accessibility and the iPad - First Impressions

Thom Lohman of the DCMP was recently a guest blogger here on Teaching All Students. Read here about the 5th Annual Read Captions Across America event:
Read Across America - a new twist

Tara Jeffs shared a great resource that all teachers should look at for ideas for adapting instruction:
LCPS AT Site

Cathy Hoesterey(@ATtips) of AT tips shared her thoughts on Twitter and Posterus:
Twitter + Posterous= How to Tweet & Blog at the Same Time

Barrie Ellis (@oneswitch) of OneSwitch.org talks about his recent DIY project:
Switch Adapted Camera D.I.Y. Guide

Christine Southard (@csouthard) of Christine Southard's Blog shares a great idea about ideas for AT!
180 Days of AT/UDL

As for me (@teachntech00), I have just been so excited about all the rumors of a possible impending release...

The Year of the Tablet
Products for a Tablet?

Thanks to all our contributors!

Patrick

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons: Kiwikeith

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

#ATIA2010 - Orlando, Thursday

ATIA 2010 Orlando got started today for me!  I've been to CTG, several years ago, and the first ATIA in Chicago in 2009, so I had a little idea what to expect!  And other than a less than stellar lunch (bad box lunch with 3 hours between sessions), today was great!  I got to see a lot of great presenters, and learned a lot.  Again if you are interested in see my notes from each session please head here - ATIA 2010 Notes

I first saw the Equals Math program at ATIA in Chicago.  I was impressed with it then, and I had very little information about it.  Now that I've seen it in action, it's better than I thought.  The basic concept is a math curriculum that is designed for all learners, no matter their disability, pre-k to adult.  The materials are age neutral, and are included in the kit.  85% of the materials you need to teach a lesson are included - the things you need to provide are pencils, paper, etc... that you probably have in your classroom already!  The program provides 3 levels of differentiation in all areas of the NCTM standards - geometry, algebra, patterns & units, pre-math & exploring & attending (I think I missed one, but you get the idea!). The program is expensive - $1700, but comes chock full of manipulatives, posters, vocabulary cards (over 700), workmats, & a CD full of stuff too!  Check out more information here - Ablenet Equals Math.

I also had a chance to check out a great new program call MeMoves!  Developed by a mom with a daughter with Autism, it is a set of DVD's that use movement to get them ready to learn.  All the movements are done with the upper body, and are set to 40-60 beats per minute.  It was lots of fun to do, and I can see that kids would have a lot of fun working.  They are short clips of many different children & adults doing the moves - some well, and some not so well.  It's a great lesson saying that you don't have to do it perfectly, which seemed to be a theme today (but I'll get to that later).  They also have an iPhone/iPod Touch app coming out soon.  It takes the concept and lets kids use their fingers to help them concentrate and get rewards!  I'm going to checking this out much more - at $60 it's well worth the price!

In the afternoon I had the opportunity to hear more about Proloquo2go from Samuel Sennott.  The more I see of this program, the more impressed I get.  It is a full features communication device, that is appropriate for many users and has many options.  I think I'm most impressed by how easy it is to add and edit categories, icons, and such.  There are some new features coming out very soon (which we were unable to get too, but I'm sure they will be great).  You can find out much more at Proloquo2Go.com!

Chris Bugaj (@attipscast) of the A.T.Tipscast podcast presented a great session on Alternative Professional Development.  Really did a great job of interacting and getting everyone involved.  Some great ideas on how to change up Professional Development - PD on CD, AT tips on DVD, and Tip of the day Calendars!

My last session might have been my favorite!  I had not planned on attending it, but changed my mind after a chance encounter last night.  I got into the van from the airport, and met a "brave" woman.  Krista introduced herself as she sat down with me and I immediately knew she was different, it was kind of obvious with a Vantage Lite hanging from her neck!  She immediately struck up a conversation.  She informed me she was studying to be a speech therapist and that she was presenting.  After that encounter I decided to check out the session.  She, Caroline Musselwhite, and Deanna Wagner talked about the Out and About program developed to help AAC users get social interactions with other AAC users, their families and other peers!  It has been a great success and Krista is just one example!  I'm very interested in checking out more information and checking out the Out and About group in the Chicago area!

Well, that's it for today.  It's way past my bedtime!  Looking forward to more tomorrow!

Patrick

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

ATIA 2010 - Orlando #ATIA2010

Today, I'll be heading to ATIA 2010! I'm very excited to be attending and would like you to have a chance to participate too. You are welcome to follow my tweets at @teachntech00. I'll also be sharing my notes from the sessions I attend at Google Docs - ATIA 2010 Notes. Please feel free to send me question or comments!

Patrick

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

Googling for Communicating with Parents

So last year I started sharing daily communication with the parents in my room via a Google Docs spreadsheet. It was a huge success! The reason I bring this us is I've been asked by my district to teach a workshop on some of the ways I communicate with parents, i.e. - Googling for Communicating with Parents! So while I'm spending some time with colleagues, please enjoy a repost (slightly edited) of the thought that started this all off!

Patrick

Collaboration (slightly edited) - Originally posted 4/16/2009

One area that is something that I find myself struggling with from time to time is collaboration. Between IEP meetings, lesson planning, actual teaching, and whatever else teachers are required to do, collaboration can take a backseat. Since the team approach is the best way to help students with disabilities how do we make sure that we share as much information as possible? One possible solution is Google Docs.

Google Docs is a online word processor, spreadsheet and presentation creator. Using this tool I've created a spreadsheet that allows me to share with parents specific information about what activities their child does during the day, as well as the ability to share what related service providers are doing at the same time. You can actually check out the template here. Since access is global (as long as you can get to Google), and it is private (you choose who you want to share with), it is a great forum for sharing information. Not only does it allow you to share with parents, related services can see what the classroom teacher or other service providers are working on in the classroom. Collaboration on a massive scale.

Is anyone else using Google Docs in a unique way to connect with parents or professionals? Share your stories here!

You can find the original post here - Collaboration

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

AT Blog Carnival - Last Call!

I'm putting out a last call for submissions to the January AT Blog Carnival! Please get your posts to me by tomorrow. You can reach me the comments section of this post, the reTaggr link on my blog, or via Twitter - @teachntech00. Please feel free to pass this along to any blogger you feel can add to the AT discussion! This Blog Carnival is a chance to highlight all the different areas of AT for children and adults!

Patrick

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons: Kiwikeith

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

Apple Event

If you are eagerly awaiting Apple's next announcement (Jan 27, 10:00 PST) like I am, you may want to watch the action live! If you head over to the Technologizer blog you can watch the event as it happens - Apple Tablet Event. The blogs are abuzz that a Tablet device will be announced as well as new iPhone software, but we won't know until Jan. 27, so check it out!

Patrick

Share this
Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

Read Across America - a new twist!

Today I'm bringing you a post from Thom Lohman. Thom Lohman is the Communication Services Specialist for the Described and Captioned Media Program and strongly believes in the educational benefits of captioning and description for all students. He is also an ardent supporter and practitioner of accessible, semantic, standards-based web design/development.


Patrick



The fifth-annual Read Captions Across America campaign (RCAA)—a partnership between the Described and Captioned Media Program (DCMP) and the NEA’s Read Across America—will be officially observed by thousands of students on Tuesday, March 2, 2010, the birthday of Dr. Seuss. Before you don your Cat in the Hat stovepipe hat, however, it helps reflect on why one of the most common forms of accessible technology is so beneficial to literacy.

Let’s start with a straw poll of sorts: How many of you have casually picked up a DVD case, intending to pop in a video for your class (after carefully vetting and previewing the content, of course), noticed the little “CC” or “SDH” notification on the back, and thought nothing of it? If you’re now reading this post with a virtual hand in the air, you’re likely one of many who are one step away from transforming a common educational tool (classroom video) into a multi-sensory literacy-building extravaganza.

Forgiving the bravado reflected in the last sentence for a moment, it’s imperative that everyone understand what the “CC” (closed captions) and “SDH” (subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing) represent. Both terms are common industry jargon for what we at the DCMP simply refer to as “captions.”


What Are Captions?
Almost everyone, at one point or another, has seen closed captions on television, but there is a great deal of information packed into those streams of white letters on black backgrounds that is easy to miss at first glance. Captions consist of the textual equivalent of a program’s spoken dialogue or narration and also include speaker identification, sound effects, and music description. Whether they are open or closed, Line 21 (or the newer digital 708 specification), SDH, or one of the many web formats, captions are available on a growing number of educational media products.

Obviously, the primary function of captioning is as a means of accessibility for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. The concept of captioning as accessibility is one of the pillars (along with description for people who are blind or visually impaired) of our Equal Access in the Classroom video, which I recommend everyone watch and share with a colleague or friend in the field of education.


Captioning: A Useful Literacy Tool
To quickly dispel a common misconception, captioning is not “just for people who are deaf.” Students of all ages and learning abilities, people learning English as a second language, and just about everyone else can benefit from the use of quality captioned media whenever it is available, including those areas outside of formal educational environments. Is it such an audacious idea that viewers of video-based media (especially kids, who spend much more time with their eyes focused on some sort of electronic display than they do with their noses buried in books) might benefit from some textual reinforcement?

Think about it: a common thread throughout seemingly all of the video-based literacy tutoring programs (and, to wit, programs intended to teach ESL) available on the market is the concept that emergent and developing readers—especially young children—benefit from simultaneous presentation of language in text and auditory form. Captioning takes this concept and seemingly one-ups it by including transcribed sound cues—including onomatopoeia—within the stream of text, allowing learners to develop phonetic awareness and reinforce the relationship between what is heard and what is represented in text.

If you’re interested in reading more about captioning use and its contribution to literacy, the DCMP provides a collection of compelling research summaries, case studies, and journal articles about many facets of accessible media. Visit the DCMP Clearinghouse and select “Research and Studies” under the “Captioning: General” heading for a complete listing of applicable resources.


(More Than) A Few Words About Accessing Captions Without an “Easy Button”
Now for the inevitable hitch in the system—certain classroom media setups make accessing closed captions an exercise akin to jumping through hoops. This is why the DCMP offers open captions on virtually every title in our collection. When captions are “opened up” (or, as some say, “burned in”), they become an integral part of the video signal that is transmitted from a source component (DVD player, computer, etc.) to a display component (TV, monitor, etc.)—these captions are “always on” and cannot be turned off.

Subtitles (including SDH) on DVDs/Blu-ray discs can generally be turned on via a menu option (likely headed “Captions/Subtitles,” “Languages,” “Set Up,” or something similar) or,on many discs,by pressing the “subtitles” button on the player’s remote control or software interface. Note that pressing a “CC” or “captions” button on the TV’s remote control will not activate disc-based subtitles, something that adds to many a teacher’s confusion when trying to access captioned content.

Other types of closed captions are, by definition, off by default, closed into some closet of external data until you, the user, open the proverbial door to allow them to be displayed. Theoretically, all televisions built since 1993 are required to provide for the display of closed captions. However, if your content is coming from anything other than a TV tuner (i.e., if you’re receiving your programming through a set-top box, DVD/VHS/Blu-ray player, DVR, or other component), or if you are watching the content on anything other than a TV (i.e. if you are using an LCD projector to project on a screen or interactive whiteboard), you might hit a few snags.

For starters, many displays enable closed-caption decoding only on inputs that connect to the TV’s tuner (usually a coaxial connection labeled “cable,” “TV,” “RF,” or “antenna”). That means if you’re connecting your player via a component cable (typically labeled Y, Pb, and Pr, and using a cable with green, blue, and red ends) or S-Video (a round connector with a square black pin and four small, round pins), you’ll need to be sure that your television supports closed caption decoding for these inputs.

Digital captions are another matter completely. Unlike Line-21 captions, which were included in the picture signal, digital captions must be opened up by the player. If you plan to show high-definition (or even enhanced standard-definition transmitted digitally) programming in your classroom, you’ll need to make sure the player you’re using enables the closed captions on your media to be decoded and burned into the picture before it makes its way to your display. If the combination of players and displays you are using does not decode closed captions, you can purchase an external closed-caption decoder (but many of these don’t support high-definition video output).

A quick word about web video: Although a great deal (certainly more than just a year or two ago) of web content is finally being captioned, there is no one universal standard (in the sense that television has a standard) format or player interface for displaying closed captions. It’s best to fully research a content distributor’s accessibility options to ensure captions are available (and of sufficient quality) before committing to use of that material.


Now It’s Time for That Hat
By launching RCAA in 2006 as a partnership effort with the NEA’s Read Across America, the DCMP hoped to expand peoples’—primarily educators’ and parents’—perceptions of “reading” to include the viewing of captioned media.

Now in its fifth year, RCAA has spread beyond the schools for the deaf and into public libraries, public schools, homes, churches, and other venues where conscientious educators (whether by profession or on a de facto basis) understand the need to utilize every available tool to ensure that literacy remains a top priority.

We invite you to participate by planning an RCAA event for your school or organization, especially if you’re planning to celebrate Read Across America already. We’ve put together a convenient, free all-in-one RCAA Event Kit containing posters, bookmarks, certificates, and—for registered DCMP members (see below for membership requirements)—a DVD containing six popular Dr. Seuss titles (with open captions, of course).


About the DCMP
Among its many accessible media-focused services, the DCMP provides free-loan access to thousands of quality captioned and described educational media titles to teachers, parents, and others involved in some educational capacity with K-12 students who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, visually impaired, or deaf-blind. If our services would benefit the students you serve, please register today for a free account.

Even if you don’t qualify for a lending account, you may access our informational resources or subscribe to our newsletter for up-to-date DCMP news. Don’t forget to become a fan of the DCMP on Facebook, follow the DCMP on Twitter, and subscribe to the DCMP YouTube channel. The DCMP is funded by the U.S. Department of Education and administered by the National Association of the Deaf.




Share this
Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

AT Blog Carnival - Act Now, get in on the fun!

There is still time to get your posts in for the AT Blog Carnival! I will be taking post submissions for a few more days - Sun, Jan 25! We have quite a few submissions, but can always use more! So I encourage all teachers, parents, bloggers, AT specialists, tech integrators, programmers, or anyone out there who is involved in assistive technology to submit!

Patrick

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons: Kiwikeith

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

Products for a Tablet?

Last week I published that this year might be the year of "The Tablet", and with the Consumer Electronics Show just ending there are no end to the number of Tablets that have been introduced. While none of them have all the features that the Mythical Apple Tablet might have, they are fully featured devices. One software piece that is needed is an e-reader. There are e-book readers, Stanza, Kindle for iPhone, Barnes & Noble e-reader, etc... they all lack certain features - text-to-speech, highlighting to name a couple.

Well, that all changes with Blio. Developed by Ray Kurzweil, creator of Kurzweil 3000 and pioneer in Optical Character Recognition, synthesizers, and lots of other things, Blio is a full color, full featured e-book reader (to be released in February)! Here are some posts on Blio:

First Look
Blio e-book reader

Interview with Ray Kurzweil


Some of the features include:
*multiple platform support - iPhone/iPod Touch, PC (sorry no Mac at this time), mobile devices, netbooks, etc...
*Full Color - it looks like a book, not just text like the Kindle
*embedded graphics, hyperlinks & video!!
*Text-to-Speech, with word highlighting
*adjustable font size & reading speed
*insert notes, drawing, images, video, or recording into your text
*over 1,000,000 free books available
*synchronization between platforms - so where you left off on your iPhone is updated to your laptop!

This software alone could make "The Tablet" a success. I can only imagine a world where every student has a tablet that they can customize, and use on a regular basis to read and help them! Blio could completely change the way we read books. I can imagine so many possibilities for this software and devices like "The Tablet"! I can't wait to see what happens!

Patrick

Share this
Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

AT Blog Carnival - Still time to get in your favorite post!

There is still time to get your favorite post into the AT Blog Carnival for January! I will be taking submissions until January 25, so get them in while you can. You can reach me at @teachntech00, by leaving a comment below, or via ReTaggr in the top right corner of this blog. And don't forget to stop by and check out the AT Blog Carnival on Friday, Jan. 29!

Patrick

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons: Kiwikeith

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

#180ATUDL2010

Christine Southard was inspired by several different posts to start a new project - #180ATUDL2010. Basically it's a twist on the 365 Project that many people have been trying. She modeled it to follow 180 days of a typical school year (yes, she's aware she's a little late!), and I'm hoping to keep up. I'll be posting my own pix to my Flickr account - teachntech and tweeting them using the #180ATUDL2010 hash tag. So I hope that we can inspire some great ideas!


- Patrick

Share this
Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

iPod Touch/iPhone Apps for Special Education

Eric Sailers of Speech-Language Pathology Sharing has a created a great list of iPod Touch & iPhone apps for Special Education. The best way to see it is at Scribd: iPhone & iPod Touch Apps for Special Education.

Patrick

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons: Steve Rhodes'

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

AT Blog Carnival Submissions due Jan.25

Don't forget to submit a post for the January AT Blog Carnival. Get your submissions in by Jan. 25 to be included. Please feel free to send any post you like, new or old! Let's Share!

Patrick

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons: Kiwikeith


Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

The Year of the Tablet

Around the geek community it's been much discussed that Apple will soon be releasing a new product. Dubbed "The Tablet" there are many rumors, and thoughts about what this device may be. The basics are this - the device would be either 7 or 10 inches, full color screen, 3G & Wi-Fi connectivity, a forward facing camera, and tons of other possible components. One of the best thoughts about the device is from the Daring Fireball. And check out This Week in Tech episode 228 (around 3 min they talk about the Tablet)

So these are all rumors, but some seem more plausible than others. Most of the rumors center around a 10 inch device, so about the size of a piece of paper. That's a great size to view books, magazines and textbooks. They also focus on the fact that publishers have been contacted by Apple execs to see if they would be interested in publishing on a device like this. The implications for AT are large. Imagine a device that could read text, re-size text, and include graphics, videos, and interactive content. A textbook would be something interactive, and could include content from all over the internet. Textbooks are usually out of date before come out and have no way to make them more accessible (see Joe's Non-Netbook) this device would create something that could be changed at any time.

Connectivity is what everyone is looking for in devices these days (just look at the rise of the iPhone, Droid, etc...) and more than likely a Tablet would include 3G cellular service. Personally I'd love to see 4G or WiMax (broadband speed access spread over an entire city), but not sure that's a possibility due to limited coverage (only available in about 20 cities around the country). Now imagine an always on internet connection combined with Alexicomtech. Now you have a portable communication device, that can be changed as a child grows. Combine that with the ability to access the internet, and you have an amazing AAC device for any student.

Another rumor that seems to be prevalent is a forward facing camera. This would allow a person to hold the device and look into a camera, making video conferencing very easy. Programs like Skype are great, but they are tied to laptops and desktop computers. The iPhone has a Skype app, but you are limited to voice calling. I can imagine using "The Tablet" device for students to sit at their desk and contact other students, professionals, or friends.

I am really excited by the possibilities that 2010 seems to be bringing. I'll be looking forward to seeing what Apple might do (apparently they have reserved a space at the end of Jan. for a product announcement) and will post once something is announced! It's going to be an interesting year!

Patrick

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

AT Blog Carnival

It's a new year and time for an AT Blog Carnival and I've been given the opportunity to help host this showcase of great AT blogs and ideas. I am encouraging all bloggers to submit a post for this showcase. There is no specific theme and I hope to make this a regular feature on Teaching All Students.

So if you have any ideas of great ideas for using Assistive Technology, please submit a post. The AT Blog Carnival will be Friday, Jan 29, 2010. Please use the retaggr widget to submit your post or feel free to contact me on Twitter - @teachntech00. So get your submissions in quickly (by Jan 25)!

Patrick

Photo courtesy of Flickr Creative Commons: Kiwikeith

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

ATIA - Orlando

I'm excited to announce that I will be presenting at the upcoming ATIA conference in Orlando. In Chicago I was excited to meet Chris Bugaj (@ATTipscast), Karen Janowski (@KarenJan) and several others. I hope that I have the opportunity to meet more of my PLN in Orlando, and I invite all of you to view my presentation on Saturday, Jan 30 at 11:45 in Boca II - My Crazy Idea...Web2.0 and Student Centered Learning for Students with SCD.

Patrick

Share this

Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers

341 Catering

Based on the classroom where they work from, 341 Catering offer's students with disabilities at Mt. Lebanon High School the opportunity to practice real world skills. I read about this classroom on the CEC SmartBrief. You can read about the classroom here: 341 Catering

This article caught my eye, because of it's simplicity. Teaching work skills, real world, life skills are an important part of any curriculum for kids with SCD. This idea of providing baked goods and coffee on a daily basis for meetings and staff is a wonderful to get kids involved. By using technology you can even include students with more significant disabilities - switches for mixing, taking orders, transcribing orders, the list goes on.

In the past I've had students take orders for the Ellison Machine and cut out the letters. I also have students complete jobs around the classroom like putting away books, cleaning desks, and taking notes to the office. What other novel ideas do you have for teaching work skills to students?


Patrick


Share this
Do you know somebody else who would find this post interesting or useful? Please forward it to them. Did somebody forward this post to you? Visit Teaching All Students and subscribe to receive posts for free. If you need a tutorial please visit this post: RSS Readers