Suggested Activities

Suggested Activities

1. Explore Virtual Manipulatives- I visited the National Library of Virtual Manipulatives' website and was very impressed. It's great that you can choose a grade range, a math category, and even specific topics. When you're planning a lesson, you want to try to reach as many learners as possible. This is one way to try to reach visual learners, as well as learners who may have good mouse control but have difficulty using physical manipulatives.

2. Add to your portfolio- After conducting a search, "websites for teaching math" I found many great resources:
- http://tutoring.sylvanlearning.com/newsletter/0704/math.cfm 
Offers a list of the "Top 10 Math Websites." It also provides links and descriptions to the websites.

- http://www.educatorstechnology.com/2012/08/a-list-of-great-free-math-websites-for.html
Offers the same thing as the link above, but it offers more resources and a clip art image of each.

Chapter 5 Focus Questions

Chapter 5 Focus Questions

3 Key Questions to be Considered When Selecting Educational Applications to Meet Students' Goals and Objectives
- According to Assistive Technology In the Classroom by Dell, Newton, and Petroff, when selecting educational applications to meet students' goals and objectives, there are several questions that must be considered. The first question is, "What is the intended outcome of the use of the educational application?" The second question is, "Is the educational application likely to fulfill its stated purpose?" The third question is, "Can the educational applications be used as an alternative to traditional classroom activities to enhance students' participation?"   

Educational Applications That Address Automaticity/Math Fact Fluency
- FASTT Math (Basic math facts)
- Timez Attack (Focuses on multiplication facts)
- ArithmAttack (Played online or downloaded)

Technology Tools to Address Visual-Spatial or Motor Control Difficulties
-  MathPad (Talking math worksheet program)
- MathPad Plus (Extends to fractions and decimals)
- Virtual Pencil Arithmetic (For students who are "pencil impaired")
- Virtual Pencil Algebra (Extends to algebraic equations)
- Number Navigator (Simple "math processor" with customizable colors, fonts, and font sizes)
- Microsoft Word's Equation Editor (For students with good mouse control but difficulty with handwriting)
- Math Type (For students in advanced math classes)
- Scientific Notebook (For solving equations)
- Meander's Annotator (For handwriting problems in geometry) 

Educational Applications to Teach Math Concepts, Math Skills, and Problem Solving
- National Library of Virtual Manipulatives (VP)
- Illuminations (Online activities)
- Computing Technology for Math Excellence (More VPs)
- Internet 4 Classrooms (High-quality resources)
- Virtual Laboratories in Probability and Statistics
- Math Playground (Free, online math activities)
- Conceptua Math (Fractions)
- Destination Math (Math reasoning and conceptual understanding)  

Low-Tech and Mid-Tech Adaptations to Assist Students with Disabilities With Math Assignments
- Manipulatives
- Rubber fraction stamps
- Manipulative number line
- Laminated addition and multiplication tables
- Ruler with transparency overlays
- Large calculators
- Talking calculators
- See 'n' Solve Calculators
- "Coin Abacus"
- "Coin-u-lator"

Math Resources Coming Your Way!

Assistive Technology to Support Math

In my recent blogs, there has been an abundance of focus on writing.  However, assistive technology is for all content areas and is important in math as well.  In the next few posts I’ll be completing various questions and activities to highlight this…

AT for Reading

So many amazing AT devices available, and many are available for reading.  I was able to watch a webinar recently...

 

http://www.gatfl.gatech.edu/tflwiki/index.php?title=Webinar_Archives

 

 

The webinar is available in a PDF, doc, or audio which is very helpful.  I enjoyed learning about all the different types of AT specific to reading.  Sometimes you can get lost just searching for devices on your own.  One thing I thought was really neat was BookShare.org.  This is a great way for students to share books online to advance in reading.  The books can be available in audio format which is of course helpful for students who have difficulties reading.  This is great for them to listen, follow along, and start matching words and sounds.  The fees are also waived for users who are participating in an educational setting.  There are so many schools with budgets that don't support these extra devices that can be incredibly helpful, so it's nice to see a company waive fees to allow users to access their software. 

 

 

It's an entire online library available for people with print disabilities.  There are free memberships available as I said above, and also there is an online community.  This allows users to chat with others about books, services, and review products.  I think being able to talk to others about products is one of the most helpful things about this software. 

Interesting Websites...

It's always fun to find new resources to improve instruction.  Here are two websites I found especially interesting...

 

http://www.nuance.com/index.htm

The first website I thought was interesting is listed above.  They provide speech to text software called Dragon.  I think learners with poor fine motor skills, reading/writing skills, or typing skills would greatly benefit from this software.  Students would be able to speak naturally and the computer/software would write or perform commands being said aloud by the user.  The software could be used during the writing process for students with writing disabilities to create portfolio pieces or any writing assignments.  The software requires a bit of set up to recognize the users voice, but it doesn't take terribly long and once adjusted is incredibly user friendly.  Students can also speak various commands and the computer can surf the web as well.  The software is not too expensive, and can be found on the nuance website as well as ebay for bargain hunters with low budget districts!  I've used Dragon before, and was not impressed.  However, colleagues have used it with great success and I was using it while recording myself talking through a yoga class.  I was moving, and wasn't speaking clearly, so it could have been user error. 

 

Another terrific website/software...

 

http://www.gingersoftware.com/

Another website/software for writing.  This software allows users to write easily with any reading/writing disability.  I would love to have this in my classroom as it offers grammar/spelling checkers.  It's a virtual English assistant.  Ready to help you perfect the English language, grammar, and spelling.  It has many neat features that would be very easy for students and adults to use! It would absolutely help students to become more aware of their mistakes in writing.  It does require the students to be able to type however, so may not work for everyone. I was parusing the site to find prices, and I kept seeing free download buttons!  Free!? Who doesn't love that?  I would love to add this to school Ipads to allow students to check their work during the editing process.

 

Both of these websites/software pieces would be excellent in the classroom, especially for the writing process.  The writing process is challenging for many people/students and any AT device to help would be terrific. 

Taking a closer look at IEP goals

In my last post, I spoke about the importance of consideration of AT devices in the IEP process.  Below are 5 examples of IEPs with AT devices to help students reach the goals on the IEP.  These examples come from the Wisconsin Assistive Technology Initiative.

 

Example 1:

Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance: Eric participates in regular education programs for his academic subjects. His hand strength is limited and he fatigues quickly when doing any handwriting task. Civics and English homework are a particular problem because of lengthy assignments and reports that need to be completed.

Annual Goal: Eric will use a computer or portable word processor to complete 100% of his assignments in 10th grade English and Civics classes.

 

 

Example 2:

Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance: Becky is learning to read and is anxious to complete writing assignments with her peers. She is not able to produce handwritten material due to severe spastic quadriplegia. Becky is interested in using the computer and has been introduced to it. The staff has helped Becky experiment with several switches in a variety of locations. She seems to be most accurate using a switch mounted next to her head.

Annual Goal: Becky will use a single switch mounted on a switch-mounting arm positioned to the right side of her head and scanning software to access the computer 9 out of 10 times for a variety of educational assignments.

 

Example 3:

Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance: Brandon communicates by using unintelligible vocalizations. He will physically obtain desired items independently and indicates refusal by pushing objects/people away. Brandon currently understands cause/effect relationships and will activate a switch with voice output to obtain a desired activity. It is questionable whether he understands the specific meaning of the utterance he has produced or if he simply knows that pressing the switch earns him an activity.

Annual Goal: Brandon will select activities and interact with peers/adults within those activities four out of five times when provided with voice output devices.

 

 

Example 4:

Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance: Kelly is in the third grade classroom for most of his day. He has a full time paraprofessional who assists him. He is unable to use a standard keyboard because of his physical limitations. Additionally, his speech is frequently unintelligible. He currently uses single message and multiple message voice output devices, eye gaze, and limited direct selection to complete his academic work. Kelly is functioning at about the second grade level in most curricular areas.

Annual Goal: Kelly will use an adapted keyboard with custom overlays and a computer with talking word processing to complete all academic work.

 

 

Example 5:

Present Level of Academic Achievement and Functional Performance: Steven is a four-year-old boy diagnosed with pervasive developmental disorder. His placement is in an Early Childhood classroom. He is able to understand and comprehend when spoken to, but does not communicate his needs consistently. When choices are simplified and broken into steps, Steven will try to communicate wants and needs. Peer interactions are limited.

Annual goal: Steven will use a picture board or voice output device to express wants and needs to adults and peers in both home and school at least four times each day.

 

 

IEP Considerations and AT

As I continue my journey with assistive technology and helping to aid the diverse learners we'll teach, I'm finding that the AT we choose has a large impact during the IEP process.  There are so many things to consider when creating an IEP for a student.  I decided to read further, as I've only been a part of annual review meetings and have never had the opportunity to create an IEP myself.

http://nichcy.org/schoolage/iep/meetings/special-factors/considering-at

A terrific website! ^




Although it is important, sadly, some may not agree.

"Why is it important?
Assistive technology increases a student’s opportunities for education, social interactions, and potential for meaningful employment. It also supports a student’s participation in learning experiences in the least restrictive environment. Assistive technology is a tool to help the student benefit from the general education curriculum, and access extracurricular activities in home, school, and work environments.
In addition:

__ A child’s need for assistive technology must be determined on a case-by-case basis and could be special education, related services or supplementary aids and services for children with disabilities who are educated in the least restrictive environment.

__ A district must provide a device for use at home if necessary for FAPE. Decisions regarding the use of the assistive technology device or service in other settings outside school must be made on an individual basis.

__ A school may access alternative funding sources to defray costs of assistive technology devices and services. Schools may not compel parents to file an insurance claim and may not condition provision of equipment or services on filing or approval of a claim."

 

This is a small piece of the very detailed webpage that I think sums it up quite nicely.  AT isn't just for academic purposes.  It's for social purposes, future employment, use at school, home, and extracurricular activities.  I think for anyone unsure of the true power/importance of AT for students during the IEP process would be swayed with this website alone!