It seems like endless resources are available for special needs students for mobile devices! I never cease to be amazed at what is available!

The Friendship Circle Blog is a website dedicated to the Friendship Circle organization of Bloomfield Michigan that supports special needs individuals with local teen volunteers.

One of their blogs is a series of posts featuring The Special Needs iPad and App Series which presents 9 articles or posts reviewing apps for iOS and Android mobile devices focused on specific needs for individuals special needs. Here is a listing of the articles posted on their 9 article series:

1. The Special Needs iPad & App Series: Welcome
2. 7 Assistive communication (AAC) apps for the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch
3. 7 Scheduling and Behavioral Apps to help with transitions and more
4. 11 Social Skills & Life Skills Apps in iPad App Store
5. 10 Websites to Find Special Needs Apps for the iPad & iPhone
6. 7 Special Needs Apps in the Google Android Market
7. On a tight budget? 7 ways to get an ipad for your child with special needs
8. 6 steps to get the iPad into your child’s special education classroom
9. 4 Special Needs iPad/iPhone Apps for the Future

I found some familiar apps and some new apps or review sites I had not stumbled upon before. The review of social and life skills app reviews were helpful to me as new area of need as we deploy additional iPad and iPods in some of our multi-categorical classroom where functional life skills are an area of focus for students with varying needs. Here are examples of the social and life skills apps they review in their  Part 4 Post :

I also found a couple more app review websites unfamiliar to me. As the Android app market grows, availability of apps for other platforms are needed and are also included in the reviews.

If you work with students with developmental delays, cognitive impairment, autism or other significant special needs, I believe you’ll find worthwhile apps and resources in this series!

More iTools or mobile apps for your OT toolkit!

Carol