Team of Advocates for Special Kids
Technology E-Newsletter

March 2015

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Upcoming Assistive Technology Workshops

 

APPtastic Adventures: Fun and Educational Apps for Special Education
March 17, 9:00 am - 12:00 pm

TASK Anaheim  

Call (714) 533-8275 to register. 

  

APPsolute Fun: Apps for Early Learning

March 26, 9:00 am - 12:00 pm

TASK Anaheim

Call (714) 533-8275 to register.  

 

Apps for Students with Autism 

April 8, 9:00 am - 12:00 pm 

TASK Anaheim

Call (714) 533-8275 to register.   

 

AAC Apps: The Pros and Cons

April 10, 9:00 am - 12:00 pm

TASK Anaheim

Call (714) 533-8275 to register.

 

Fabulous Freebies: Assistive Technology at No Cost and Adaptation Ideas for Very Low Cost

April 17, 9:30 am - 12:30 pm

North Los Angeles County Regional Center, Van Nuys

Call Theresa Quary at (818) 677-6854 to register.

 

For more workshops, including our workshops on special education and parental rights and responsibilities under the law, please visit the full workshop schedule on the TASK website.

   

 

TASK Membership  


Please consider joining TASK as a member! Members receive the following benefits: 

  • Free TECH Labs and access to our lending libraries
  • Bimonthly 28-page TASK newsletters 
  • Membership is tax-deductible

Membership is as low as $35.00 per year, per family. We need your support to continue to provide a central resource center for legal rights and responsibilities information and to continue providing TECH Center services. You can join online; visit the Membership page on our website for more information. 

 

 

 TASK Needs Board Members 

  

Are you the parent of a child with special needs? Has TASK helped you in the past? Perhaps you are a professional that has worked with TASK advocates or attended one of our many workshops? TASK is currently recruiting members for our Board of Directors. Make a difference by helping to guide our organization into the future.  Please note that board positions are on a volunteer basis. Board members must be willing to participate in our monthly board meetings via toll-free conference call. Call Brenda Smith, our Acting Executive Director, at (714) 533-8275 for more information about this exciting opportunity or to request a board packet. 

 

 

Hello all, and happy March!

 

This month, I have some GREAT resources for you. Feel free to share this newsletter with anyone who might benefit or encourage them to sign up for their own copy by sending an e-mail to [email protected] and putting "E-Newsletter Add" in the subject line. First off, we have some great new workshops!

 

Free AAC Workshops! The First in Our Project: Communicate! Workshop Series

 

AAC Competencies...What Are They Really? Presented by Bernadette Kennard, SLP, Trivinity Consulting

 

If you live or work with someone that uses augmentative and alternative communication, you may have heard the term "AAC competencies" without really understanding the impact on growth each area has in the life of the AAC user. This workshop will provide instruction in understanding, monitoring and promoting all five competencies - operational, linguistic, social, strategic and emotional - for AAC users with various levels of function and ability. Join us for this fun, FREE, informative workshop and see what AAC competencies are all about!

 

Three dates/locations to choose from:

 

Thursday, March 12, 9:00 am - 11:00 am

TASK Anaheim, 100 W. Cerritos Ave., Anaheim, CA 92805

Call (714) 533-8275 to register.

 

Friday, May 8, 10:30 am - 12:00 pm

Emmanuel Baptist Church (please note location change)

911 E. Elder St., Fallbrook, CA 92028

Call Lenila Batali at (949) 233-6515 to register.

 

Thursday, May 14, 10:30 am - 12:00 pm

Inland Regional Center

1425 S. Waterman Ave., San Bernardino, CA 92408

Call Alejandra at TASK, (909) 890-9630 to register.

Upcoming Webinar:

 

Apps for Students with Autism

 

Join us Wednesday, March 25 from 10:00-11:30 am as we introduce applications with the following areas: video modeling, social skills, vocabulary building, language development, communication, fine motor skills and more. Join us for a fun, fast-paced online session. You must register online in advance to participate in the webinar. Registration is limited to the first 50 seats.

New, interesting and FREE apps:

 

YouTube Kids, by Google (FREE)

YouTube Kids is a fantastic tool for parents who want to control what their younger kids see on YouTube! In settings, which are secured, parents can set a timer so kids are not using the app for long than they want, plus they can turn the search function on or off so kids are restricted to just videos on the home screen, plus app sounds and background music can be turned off. In the app, there are icons at the top for shows, music, learning and exploring, as well as search (if not blocked by a parent). There are a lot of really neat videos, channels, full shows and songs appropriate for kids that you can access in the app. Plus, the search engine has a great filter. It will allow you to find an image of a brand of car, for example, yet filter out any inappropriate car commercials. This is a great answer to the YouTube dilemma that many of us face. YouTube Kids is available through iTunes and for Android.

 

Andy's World, by Learning Funetics (FREE)

Andy's World makes learning English pronunciation fun! The team at Funetics are passionate artists and engineers dedicated to creating the best English pronunciation apps for children. Set the stage for English pronunciation success with this delightfully interactive education and entertainment app. Children will have a fun experience learning the proper pronunciation of English words with Andy. Andy's World is a phonetic storybook for children aged between five and eight. Children are taken on a fun and interactive journey with Andy as he travels the world. As Andy learns more about the world, so too do child users. The app introduces children to some commonly used words in the English language. Through touch, objects within the app come alive, enabling the children to see, hear and practice the sounds of each named object.

 

EyeNote, by Bureau of Printing and Engraving (FREE)

EyeNote is a mobile device application to denominate Federal Reserve Notes (U.S. paper currency) as an aid for the blind or visually impaired to increase accessibility. Users can have the denomination of a note scanned and communicated back to the user. Version 2.0 of EyeNote now includes continuous scanning. Unlike the previous EyeNote version, which needed a tap on the screen to capture an image of the bank note and then denominate, version 2.0 utilizes continuous scanning recognition with no need to hold the iPhone still or capture a photo. The scanning commences once the application has loaded. EyeNote Version 2.0 works on the iPhone 3GS, the iPhone 4 and 4S, the iPhone 5 and 5S, the fourth generation iPod Touch and newer, and the iPad 2 or greater. This application does not authenticate a note as either real or counterfeit. Please refer to the license agreement on the iTunes App store.

 

Picture Math, by BrainingCamp (FREE)

An incredibly fun and effective way to learn math operations (addiction, subtraction, multiplication, division). Students solve picture puzzles by watching lessons, answering questions to earn clues, and guessing pictures. Suitable for ages five through 12 plus. Download Picture Math from the iTunes App Store and be sure to look at BrainingCamp's other apps.

Assistive technology vendors online catalogs 2015:

 

Many vendors have released online versions of their catalogs in order to "go green." Here are a couple that we find helpful:

 

AbleNet is an international company and industry leader in providing educational and technical solutions to help children and adults with disabilities lead productive and fulfilled lives. This includes a complete line of communication aids for nonverbal individuals; access aids for all ages and situations; and special education classroom curriculum that both enhances and help ensure learning progress. Their products are used in hundreds of thousands of homes, clinics, and classrooms in the United States and across the globe.

 

Enabling Devices is a company dedicated to developing affordable learning and assistive devices to help people of all ages with disabling conditions. This company has created innovative communicators, toys and switches for the physically challenged for more than 35 years.  Through their expertise in designing electro-mechanical assistive and adaptive devices for people of all ages, we believe that our products enable people with physical challenges to communicate, learn, work, play, and function more easily, effectively, and enjoyably in the world.

Last but certainly not least, if you have any questions regarding assistive technology, please feel free to contact us by phone at (866) 828-8275 or e-mail [email protected]. You can also contact me directly at [email protected].

 

Happy APPing and happy spring!

 

Laura Simmons-Martinez

Technology Project Director

Team of Advocates for Special Kids

TASK is a nonprofit Parent Training and Information Center that serves all ages and all disabilities. TASK is funded in part by grants from the U.S. Department of Education and the California Department of Education. The views expressed in this e-mail newsletter do not necessarily represent those of TASK, the U.S. Department of Education, the State of California or any other funding source, nor are they an attempt to aid or hinder the passage of any bill before congress. Advertisements or refernces to trade names, commercial products or organizations do not constitute endorsement by any of the above.