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There are so many great technology resources out there for children with special needs.
Some of the resources that I have used in the past and found to be very good are:
Talking tiles- I use these for children that are non verbal. I have pre recorded greetings, songs, sentences from a story, simple requests on these and used visuals and specific colours to engage the children and encourage them to use them.
I have also used the big mac switch, which is something similar but is much more sensitive to touch so a child with poor motor skills can use. Talking tiles can be hard for some students to press down on.
Immersive reader is excellent for children that are struggling with reading. It allows them to read large amounts of texts.
Widget is a create programme that I have used to generate visuals for children.https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jQucblLykAyYppyLLar_PNLJgioEdhD7Y_2RcEgl_k4/edit?usp=sharing
This is the link for my SETT model. It is based on a 5 year old boy with Autism who is just starting school. He struggles to sit for long periods and has excessive chewing. He loves music and has good motor skills. I looked at the specific period of morning circle time to begin with as this is his most alert and happiest time of the day. I looked at some ways in which we could help him to engage more meaningfully with his classmates and teachers during circle time.
The SETT model is user friendly for everyone including parents, class teachers, sna’s, set team and other professionals. It is focused on the child and their specific needs. Its main focuses are on the student, the environment they are in, the essential tasks that we want the child to be able to do and the tools that can help to do this. I would be using this model and incorporating into the students support file, referring and adding to it during meetings with relevant professionals and involved. Assessment approaches could include these meetings and conversations, recorded observations of the student, video footage, record keeping, checklists, photos. Suitable assessments should be chosen based on the individual case.PART 1
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dxF45ERizgbjPSN9fujWu6nJSgVFzvnL006MBVovMcw/edit?usp=sharing
I used this story of the three little pigs and turned on immersive reader in word, I was also able to get it on my ipad and taking a screenshot of the story and using Microsoft lens had the same result. This is something that I would use with a specific student that struggles with reading. It would be used in a small group reading session. This student also has a visual impairment, so I changed the background to black and the writing to white, this is what was recommended to use by a specialist. I also changed it so that only one line would show up at a time as this will help to stay focused on the text. It is great that it can be used on laptop, computer or ipad/phone.
PART 2
Cpd is very important for teachers, they are most definitely life long learners. It is essential for teachers to keep up to date on new studies, theories, resources etc as things change so quickly. Also when teaching you will never have two that are the same. Each child is so different and has different needs that it is vital for teachers to enhance their own knowledge and learning to be able to cater for the needs of their students each year.I have learnt so much from this module. I was not aware of all the accessibility features that Microsoft have to offer. All the resources here can really enhance and aid literacy learning in the classroom.
Immersive reader is a very accessible feature that can be easily used by children that struggle with reading. It can help build confidence. A child that struggles with dyslexia could use this to help understand the text they are reading. What is great about this is that it can be used at home on their own devices as well as in school.
Office lens is also a great tool. It will allow children with literacy difficulties to access so many texts that they would not be able to comprehend otherwise.
Dictate in word would be excellent for a child that struggles with writing and spelling. They could speak out what they want to write and have it translated into text.
Cogi looks like a great app that I could see myself using for project work in older classes.Assistive technologies are playing a major role in classrooms across the country. There are lots of options out there to help children engage more meaningfully with the curriculum.
Schools have been incorporating digital technologies into classrooms, with the digital learning framework which can help all children but especially those with SEN.
AT helps children become more confident and motivated learners. I have used a variety of AT from low/no tech such as visuals, cushions, pen grips etc to higher tech such as tablets/ ipad.
It is important to consider each individual child’s needs and I found the SETT model very interesting and very good place to start when considering AT for a child.
There is such a range of resources out there and it can sometimes be daunting when looking into new AT especially more high tec ones, I have found it important to discuss options with all involved with the child eg SLT, OT, physio, parents etc. Sometimes it is good to get extra training to maximise the use of the resource. For example every classroom should have an IWB but not all teachers are fully aware of all its uses and potential, the same for tablets/ipads.
