(As scooped on  Scoop.it – OT mTool Kit )

See on yourtherapysource.blogspot.com

Here are a two apps gone free for young learners that if you don’t have in your Teacher, OT or family iPad – you might want to consider:

4 KidCal – A visual calendar for elementary aged students.

123 Color HD Premium; Talking – An electronic coloring book.

More for you OT mTool Kit.

Carol

(As scooped from  Scoop.it – OT mTool Kit )

Stylize Contacts & Names on the iPhone By Adding Emoji Characters

See on osxdaily.com

AudioNote Notepad-Voice Recorder app

AudioNote – Notepad and Voice Recorder app for iPhone/ iPad and AudioNote Notepad Android (4.99) , provides an amazing combination of audio recording and note taking that is synchronized in one app. Currently on sale for iOS (as of 5/18/2013) for 2.99 (from 4.99). This iOS app which works very similar to the desktop version of Livescribe Desktop note files created with the Echo Pen . Trial of the Android app was not performed.

Here is a view of the features of the AudioNote Notepad app for the iPhone:

Note taking while recording is easy to do using the keyboard or pencil tool to draw or write. Highlighting and drawing tool bar is available. You can easily listen and edit within the app. A send/email icon is easily available within the note to forward the email as a PDF file (without audio) or as an AudioNote with voice recording.

   The app on the iPad provides the same options with additional features to organize separate recorded notes. The notes are easy to name upon creating or after completed for organization an.d later review by title

A desktop component, AudioNote for Windows or MAC computers  is available for free online.  The desktop version below allows you to review of the notes and the audio recording on PC or MAC computers. Importing pictures or camera shots is also an option within the mobile device software, making it possible to take notes, record audio and also take a screen shot of diagrams or illustrations presented on the board or from a website within your notes. An option of importing PDF files is also available.

The desktop versions and instructions for use are available at Luminant Software.com and was easy to use after emailing, downloading to my computer. This software is easy to use and can provide Universal Design for Learning opportunities for students or anyone needing multi-modal method of learning or access.

AudioNote Notepad – Voice Recorder app provides easy access or production of notes for individuals with writing or reading challenges using voice recording, pictures, drawing or word processing.

This is in my AT and OT mTool Kit as a great option students and adults with learning challenges.

More for your teaching, AT, OT mobile Tool Kit!

Carol

AppWriter Cloud for Google Docs has been out for a few months within the Chrome Store for educational institutions. LingApps, developer of AppWriter Cloud currently has a private edition for Google Chrome available through their LingApps website at a cost of USD 19.99. A visit to their website offers a month trial for free!

What features does AppWriter Cloud provide?

• Word prediction, providing context based word suggestions
• Text to speech with highlighting
• Voice and rate choices

AppWriter Cloud is one of the only Google word prediction apps that I am aware of for Google Docs. Trial of AppWriter Cloud provided support for students needing word prediction to support their writing tasks.

Interested in more information? Visit the LingApps website for costs and more details on their Appwriter Cloud apps for Google Chrome for schools and the Private Edition.  Also check out their iPad app AppWriter with OCR scanning capabilities, word prediction and text to speech. Updates to their current version of AppWriter provides a great method of scanning in text with accurate OCR conversion from within their app along with text to speech, change of background and highlighted text color options and high quality voices. Many improvements have been made to their app.

Having worked with all of the apps, including Google Chrome AppWriter, all apps work solidly and provide tools that are easy to use for students of all ages. I love the fact that the Google AppWriter Cloud, when installed at school is available to students through their school account at home when Chrome is on their home computer! Now if AppWriter Cloud could be integrated into Gmail, on the Google Browser or Presentation wouldn’t we be excited?

Regarding the folks at Ling Apps – I can also attest that the folks at LingApps are highly responsive, patient and helpful with all kinds of questions! After riddling them with questions about installation into Google at school, they still answered by questions and responded promptly to me! I really appreciated their support with getting the app going in our schools with our tech department.

Using these apps at school has provided additional tools for students at home, at school within Google Chrome and on demand on mobile devices such as the iPad.

Carol

Let’s Trace app is a visual motor integration app for the iPad (.99) that presents simple strokes and shape drawing in a developmental progression.

Let’s Tracing app provides visual motor practice for 2-5 year olds learning to trace within lines and draw shapes. Each shape or stimulus provides provides at least 6 practices of drawing the shape in different sizes and orientation. After the user draws, a cat, dog or other creature follows the line from beginning to end providing visual attention to the line of the shape. Applauding is provided as a reward for accurate completion. If accuracy when drawing the lines is not achieved another trial is provided. Tolerance for going off of the tracing line is somewhat limited, however the lines are approximately  3/8″ width to draw on providing a fairly large path to stay within.

The app provides the 8 different shapes as shown above with each shape having several trials to practice the task. A back button on the screens allow the user to go back to end the app or try another shape at any time.

No settings or options are provided in this app. Music plays during the app, however if unwanted. Turning the sound off is an option.

As a basic drawing app, I liked the numerous trials with slight variations provided in each shape drawing practice. A draw back of the app is some of the feedback in the app is provided in writing (Good!! Try again! which is not typically able not fully close. A gap for the circle, square, triangle remains once drawn which provides a poor model of the shape for some of our concrete and visual learners.

At .99, this app provides visual motor practice and some feedback for accuracy with staying on the line. Although this is featured for 2-5 year olds, this could be appropriate for students in kindergarten or first grade who are working on pre-writing skills.

Let’s Tracing is also reviewed by Angelia Woods, OTR at Advance for Occupational Therapy Practitioners. Check out Angelia Wood’s review her review for more information.

More for your OT mTool Kit!

Carol

Reblogged from On Sarah's iPad:

Belkin Tablet Stand with Storage

Belkin has this sweet new tablet stand with a storage box that seems to be a perfect little stand for your iPad. The storage container has space for your charging equipment, stylus or even a microfiber cleaning cloth, a great piece of equipment for elementary students who use an iPad, iPad Mini or other tablet computers.

Since I had to try this out, I purchased a gray Belkin Tablet Stand with Storage
which was originally a little less expensive ($31.99) than the cute green Belkin Tablet Stand with Storage which now is selling for 26.99 at Amazon (available at the OT’s with Apps Amazon Store at the menu above).
Here’s a screen shot of my new Belkin Tablet Stand with Storage with my iPad:

The Belkin Tablet Stand with Storage  will work well with the Gumdrop and Trident cases on the iPads at school but did not work the best with the iPad cases with covers such as my Targus Versavu or iLuv case.  Non-skid material is on the bottom of the stand to keep it from sliding around which was effective as trialed.  This offers a good ergonomic solution to positioning the iPad for  reading or when using a bluetooth keyboard to write.

The storage compartment provides a great place for the assessories (stylus, cleaning cloth, cables, charging unit) used with the iPad and a little more cool that the pencil case pouches from the Dollar Tree we use at school. I could definitely see this used with some of our students with iPads at school!

Carol

Join OT’s with App’s for “Apps and Application for Your School Based OT mTool Kit” August 7th & 8th !

Registration Information

For more information visit ATR’s registration information or call: 800-770-8474 .

Carol

Among the myrid of apps for note taking rise a few that are well worth mentioning for personal or professional note taking as well as creating worksheets with text boxes for students with dysgraphia or dyslexia to complete. iAnnotate app is one of those 4.5 out of 5 star apps that has a history of being well supported as well as well liked. For Teacher Appreciation Week (May 6-10), iAnnotate is reduced to 4.99 (from 9.99), a good deal for this app.

iAnnotate app for iPad provides many features which appears somewhat overwhelming initially, however customization of its tools can help reduce the visual overload with for the user. Along with annotation of PDF files, highlighting and numerous other writing/typing tools, iAnnotate provides file management within the app and ability to sync with many services (Dropbox, Google, Box, Windows SkyDrive).

iAnnotate provides many tools for teachers and students including the ability to create text boxes to complete classroom worksheets scanned or emailed to be completed on the iPad. Here is an examples of iAnnotate used with a classroom worksheets scanned to a PDF and imported or emailed for a students with significant handwriting illegibility:

iAnnotate provides several documents to be open and available to toggle through using tabls noted at the top of the app screen. The tool bar on the right side of the screen can be customized with the users desired tools for ease of and simplified view .

Although, iAnnotate is a bit more expensive than some of the note taking apps and can look somewhat overwhelming, it provides a method of organizing files and allows customization of its tools which is not typically provided in other free apps I have used. At a reduce price, this app may be worth the cost for you or as a method of compensation for the student with handwriting challenges!

More information on iAnnotate can be found on the developers Branchfire website. An introductory iAnnotate app for Android is also available. is also available for Android.

Do you have iAnnotate in your teaching or OT mTool kit? Share how you use it if you do!

Carol