Ellie's Wings App Review

Ellie's Wings by Danial Sonnenfeld is an awesome app! With six different winged animals to choose from and a varied selection of colors to choose from it makes a great painting app.

With the ability to pick different characters and colors and interactive accents there are tons of possibilities with this app. With each touch of the screen a sound is played and if you drop the paint bucket the character hands you a towel to mop it up with!

Swipe across the wing on the left and it shows up the same on the right wing, never a chance to mess up. The characters interact with you as well as you pick and choose what to put on their wings and then place them on there. With oohs and ahhs and lots of giggles your children are bound to have lots of fun with this app!

As soon as I put this app on my iPad my kids were off and running with it. They all loved it and priced at only 99 cents its a great app with a great price!

Check out their Facebook page here!

Buy the app here!

Also here is a video for the app here on YouTube!

Tense Builder By Mobile Education Store ~ Review

Tense Builder, another in a great line up of apps brought to you by Mobile Education Store. In Tense builder you are given animated videos that teach your child or student how to use the past, present and future tense. Currently the video library has 48 different videos, so it takes quite a while to cycle through them. The ages for this app are from 3-6 and 6-10. 

For this review I used both my 7yr old son with Autism and my NT 10yr old. Both thoroughly enjoyed the app, while it has learning aspects it comes across fun! 

There are two different levels in this app. In the first level you are given pictures to choose from after the video is played to choose the correct answer. In the second level you are given parts to the sentence to choose from and the words are said aloud as they are chosen 

A few of the key things I really liked about this app was when you get wrong answers. Most apps give a buzz or ding when a wrong answer is chosen allowing the child to keep pressing till they get the right one. With Tense Builder when a wrong answer is chosen they are given examples of why the answer was wrong and the variations of the tense and what each one would be. Even with a second wrong answer chosen and second video is given but this time with pauses and a extra scene to further explain the use of future, past and present tense. Another thing I liked about this app was the ability to set up the lessons for specific learning and either chose short or long lessons.  In the main menu you can chose what tense to work on and whether or not you want it to be the short lesson or long lesson.

This is a great app for a teachable skill, my kids struggle with the difference between past, present and future tense. The app doesn't feel bogged down, but fun and enjoyable.

While the price leaves much to be desired if you have the money for it, it is well worth the price. 

Here is also the preview video for the app!

LACHIE- Feature Member

Lachie is a five year old boy diagnosed at aged two years as having a global developmental delay with sensory processing disorder up until 9 months ago he was non verbal.
He is the youngest of 6 siblings His older brother has a dx of autism and attends a special school.
Lachie recently started having epileptic episodes. He had a grand mal seizure late last year. Lauchie's most recent seizure ended up putting him in hospital and he could not be aroused for several hours. His father has end stage renal failure so both his parents have been unable to work.

Please help us help Lachie and his family by donating as little as a 1.00
will help this little man to Communicate , Learn and Grow .

you can donate here at youcaring.com all proceeds go directly to Lachie and his family 
Lachies donation link click me!


As an added incentive iHelp and hamper Magic are giving away a Pantry Hamper valued at $286.00
for all those who donate , This is Australian  Residents only . But if you live overseas you can still enter and Nominate a friend who you know that could really use it .

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Hamper Magic

Hamper Magic is 100% Australian owned and committed to providing a service that works even harder for you and will take all of the hassle out of your Christmas shopping. They will provide a trustworthy and reliable service that delivers the highest quality foods and all of the best brands direct to your door. Not only are Hamper Magic dedicated to their Customers , They are also dedicated to helping the Special Needs Community.

Thanks to two of our very dedicated community members Colin and Judi McDonald
Hamper Magic have donated 2 of their Pantry Filler hampers valued at $286.00  for our iHelp Community . we will be doing 2 giveaways one hamper per Feature Member starting with dear Logan . 

Not only this they are also matching donations dollar for dollar to the the sum of 250.00 for the next TWO feature members.

Hamper Magic will in total be donating a whopping $1060.00 to iHelp SN Kids 

This is an Australian & Donators Only competition , But if you are outside Australia you can still enter and if you win you can nominate the family you know who lives in Oz to get that hamper. 

Check it out ! , Below is the entire list of goodies you get in the hamper :-)

Giveaway

The First 3 options are mandatory you must complete this to be considered a valid entry . All entries will be checked on completion of this competition . Once you have completed the mandatory options you will open this up to optional entries to gain more points for a better chance to win . Good Luck iHelpers!

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VASTtx - Key Words - SpeakInMotion

We are very pleased to introduce Amy Taylor as our guest reviewer.  Amy is a SLPA from the US.

VASTtx -Key Words by SpeakInMotion

($12.99 at time of review for iPad/iPhone/iPod touch version)

VASTtx - Key Words, by SpeakInMotion., is a speech and language therapy app that can be used to work on a sample of speech sounds at the syllable, word and phrase level. It is one of a handful of speech and language therapy apps offered by SpeakInMotion. (VAST Autism 1- Core, VAST Songs 1- Intro, VAST Autism 1 -Core (Spanish), and VASTtx - Therapy Samples). VASTtx - Key Words was created with aphasic or apraxic adults in mind, but I believe it is useful for my younger speech and language therapy students in an educational setting as well.

Features

Videos of 21 sounds and a sample word and phrase for each:

(m, b, p, w, l, n, d, t, th, h, f, v, r, y, sh, ch, s, z, j, k, g)

Playlists grouped by placement (sound families), contrasts, randomized

Customized Playlists-select videos to target for a particular user

Custom Recording Service- send in your own word list to be set to video* (additional fee*)

Mirror mode- watch yourself making the sounds through your built-in camera (devices with no camera: utilize different colored background screens to simulate a mirror)

Having used VAST Autism 1 - Core successfully with my young students, I was eager to try this out and see how VASTtx - Key Words would compare. (It should be noted that with the VAST Autism 1 -Core app I made printouts for my children with coordinating images for the words, using familar SymbolStix icons (in this case I made boards with an app called iCommunicate but certainly there are a variety of picture symbol programs you could use to create similar visual supports; I will at least be creating a set of flashcards for this set of words as well. Of course you could choose to use real pictures instead- it really depends on the user- for a student using a communication device with a particular symbol set, I would try to use what the child is comfortable with already.)

Using VAST Key Words

VASTtx - Key Words is set up in a similar format to VAST Autism 1 - Core. The splash screen displays the main choices to choose from in the middle of the screen and includes buttons for the following features: Keyword Videos, Playlists, Build Playlists, More Tools, and User Guide (in the top upper right hand corner). If you click on the Information icon in the lower right corner, you can learn more about VAST as well.

There is a Mirror feature accessible through the More Tools button. This is a significant difference, as the mirror feature is accessible via each individual video in the VAST Autism series. Also under the More Tools button is a link to a User Tutorial video and Custom Recording Service. The Custom Recording Service is fairly new and is currently offering promotional pricing. See here for more pricing details- hopefully the pricing won't stray drastically from what is posted now, as it is currently fairly affordable to send in your own words; standard pricing will be $4.99 for a base fee of the first 10 words, plus $1.99 for each additional 10 words.

I really like the option to add Custom Recordings for a fee, and despite the fees currently listed being reasonable, I do worry about the price being beyond many educators who pay out of pocket themselves. However as a parent of a special needs child who will bend over backwards for my child, I could see myself finding a way to fund more sets of words that were relevant to my child's world. I am sure both educators and parents will be glad to at least have this option available to them!

I really like the new mouth model in this version. I know it's a silly thing- a mouth is a mouth right? But I find this mouth much more visually pleasing to stare at and imitate, so I am assuming it is the same for my students. Who knows?

As this was not geared specifically towards children, it's not unreasonable that some of the examples are not the first words I would target i.e. "back off" for /b/ or "vote for me" for /v/. However there is nothing inappropriate, and you could certainly use the videos for the sound, then piggyback on them with your own sample words to practice. I really like how the phrases chosen are commonly joined phrases that we use in everyday speech. Examples of sample phrases include "mom and dad" for /m/, "pen and pencil" for /p/, " go away" for /g/ "read a book" for /r/... these are highly functional phrases.

Wish List

(I always have one!)

More words! I think these video demos of words are so important for my kiddos and I want more, more, more! As it stands, there is a video model of one word and associated phrase per sound, and there are 21 sounds included in this app. At this price point, I would like to add quite a few sample words/phrases added for each sound, and perhaps there could be additional in-app purchases for extra sets of words for each sound. (Or perhaps some initial credit to add your own personalized content through the Custom Recording Service could be given). I also would love to see subtitles for not just the words, but the phrases following each word. For example, for /m/, first the sound /m/ is made, then "Mom" is spoken, with the label "Mom" displayed across the bottom of the screen. Then the model progresses to "Mom and Dad", but there is no accompanying label at the phrase level.

Price & Availability:
VASTtx - Key Words is available at the iTunes Store for iPhone , iPod touch and iPad for $12.99

VAST- Autism Core 1 (Spanish) Review - SpeakInMotion

We are very pleased to introduce Amy Taylor as our guest reviewer.  Amy is a SLPA from the US.

VAST Autism 1 - Core (Spanish)

($7.99 at time of review for iPad/iPhone/iPod touch version)

FYI: According to the app description, this is completely in Spanish ONLY- The screen shots in the App Store confirm this. However, the version I have has a splash screen in English, and a User Guide and Information button in English as well. Only the app content itself is in Spanish.

VAST Autism 1 - Core (Spanish), by SpeakInMotion, is a speech and language therapy app with content in Spanish to teach functional vocabulary through video. It is one of a handful of speech and language therapy apps offered by SpeakInMotion. ( VAST Autism 1- Core,VAST Songs 1- Intro, VASTtx - Key Words and VASTtx - Therapy Samples). VAST Autism 1 - Core (Spanish) was created with autistic users in mind, but I believe it is also useful for Spanish-speaking speech and language therapy students with a severe phonological disorder or apraxia. VAST Autism 1 - Core (Spanish) is set up in an identical format to VAST Autism 1 - Core, although the actual content differs. The splash screen displays the main choices to choose from in the middle of the screen and includes buttons for the following features: Full-Length Videos, Separated Playlists, Mirror, More Tools, and User Guide (in the top upper right hand corner). If you click on the Information icon in the lower right corner, you can learn more about VAST as well.

Using VAST Autism 1 - Core (Spanish)

Full-Length Videos

Separated Playlists

The content of the playlists in this spanish version differ from the English version. For those familiar with the English version, there is no Multi-Syllabic Words list. Included Playlists are: Lista de Silabas, Lista de Sustantivos, Lista de Arti'culos, Lista de Verbos, Lista de Frases, Lista de Oraciones. A feature I appreciate is the included information for each playlist. If you tap on the information icon to the right of each playlist, there is a description of why the playlist was created (en español)- for example, the syllables list contains sounds that were selected based on developmental norms; the nouns list was created with the intention of building a functional vocabulary for the user, and so on. The syllables list is a favorite of mine : ma, me, mi, mo, mu, ba, be, bi, bo, bu, ta, te, ti, to, tu, la, le, li, lo, lu, ga, ge, gi, go, gu. If you have made any customized playlists, they will show up among these lists. I created a bilabials playlist containing words, phrases and sentences with m, p, and b sounds. Just like with VAST Autism Core 1 and VASTtx- Key Words, I love the inclusion of functional words, phrases and sentences, for example: mas jugo, el papa', no mama', tengo mucha hambre, quiero usar el ban~o, Papa' dame un beso.

I can easily add a playlist for each student that I work with as well, through the Customize Playlists option under More Tools. (See More Toolsfor more information.)

Mirror

The mirror can be accessed through the main screen, but in both this Spanish version and the English version, the mirror is also accessible upon opening a playlist as well- an icon is displayed in the bottom left hand corner- tap on the icon to begin the mirror feature. The mirror feature of course excels on devices with cameras, although shades of black, grey, and white are used to mimic a mirror on an iPad 1 or an earlier version of iPod touch such as the 3g.) This feature is especially important, as some of my students seem to have no idea what their mouth is doing, where their tongue is placed etc. The mirror is effective in showing the child what she/he is doing to make specific sounds.

More Tools

Under the More Tools button is a Customize Playlists button and a Custom Recording Service button. The Customize Playlists button allows you to take elements from any playlist to create a new customized list of videos- you can even drag and drop the videos to put them in a specific order, or turn on the Random Order button for the opposite effect. The Custom Recording Service takes any words, sounds or phrases you want, and turns them into video segments for you to view in the app! (This button is entirely in English) The Custom Recording Service is fairly new and is currently offering promotional pricing. See here for more pricing details- hopefully the pricing won't stray drastically from what is posted now, as it is currently fairly affordable to send in your own words; standard pricing will be $4.99 for a base fee of the first 10 words, plus $1.99 for each additional 10 words.

Therapy Ideas for VAST Autism 1 Core (Spanish)

(It should be noted that with the VAST Autism 1 -Core app I made printouts for my children with coordinating images for the words, using familiar SymbolStix icons (in this case I made boards with an app called iCommunicate but certainly there are a variety of picture symbol programs you could use to create similar visual supports; I will at least be creating a similar visual for this set of words as well. Of course you could choose to use real pictures instead- it really depends on the user- for a student using a communication device with a particular symbol set, I would try to use what the child is comfortable with already.)

Bingo

Using a picture symbol app as mentioned previously, create custom "Bingo" boards using each child's unique playlist, or print out a grid with coordinating words/ phrases in each box. I generally don't follow the typical Bingo rules. I would play a video from the child's playlist, ask the child to identify the matching icon/syllable sound or word(s) on his "Bingo" board, and then have him/her practice it before placing a token. You can choose three in a row, or blackout to "win", depending on the child's attention span.

Penny Toss

Again, create a word or icon board from a child's playlist, then have the child toss a penny into the square they want to practice. I just saw another great variation of this idea using a wind-up toy!

Home Practice

Send a word/picture board home for any of the above, as well as a set of flashcards for home practice, too.

Wish List

More words! I would especially love to see a separate playlist of multi-syllabic words. There are many multi-syllabic words that have come up in sessions with my students that could be included, such as mariposa, bicicleta, biblioteca, hamburgesa and so on, and I am disappointed my favorite feature in the English version is not included in the Spanish version. I realize my examples may not all be "functional" vocabulary, but perhaps a list of functional vocabulary that contains multi-syllabics could be put together. I know a customer can order them through the Custom Recording Service, but given that the Spanish version of Autism Core is priced higher than the English version, I would like to see this included, along with more explanations in Spanish or Spanish/English (instead of currently English only) for those who are not native speakers of English.

Price & Availability:
VAST- Autism Core 1 (Spanish) is available at the iTunes Store for iPhone , iPod Touch and iPad for $7.99

WIN BACK YOUR DONATION $$$

Donations to our Feature Member Logan are trickling in - so to speed it up, we are giving you the chance to

WIN BACK YOUR DONATION!!!

You can read all about Logan and his multiple diagnoses and how an iPad will help him and give him a voice HERE  

You can donate to Logan by clicking HERE then enter the Rafflecopter competition below to WIN YOUR DONATION $ BACK!! 

If you donate an amount that is not listed below, please choose the closest lower amount.  ie: if you donate $7, choose the $5 option.  You will still win back $7 when you verify that you donated that amount.

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