November 21, 2012 - Class Assignment Attempt

November 21, 2012 - Classroom Assignment Attempt

My partner and I presented our assignment this past week in class. We demonstrated how a Grade 2 classroom teacher could take her lesson plan of poetry and incorporate technology to aid all the students to reach success with the assignment.  Today, in class, I attempted to provide a similar assignment in class to a grade 2/3 classroom. It was similar in that we (classroom teacher and I) presented a poem in the same way we did for our assignment. An example poem was shown on the hover cam. It was read by the teacher. There was no Youtube video to add to the display of assignment but the students were engaged. The students were asked to write a similar poem with connection to things they like. Some of the students, used the Ipads to create their poem using Pic Collage. They performed really well.  There is a pic below from a student who worked on their poem in the classroom.  This was a huge success for him, he has been transitioning from the Learning Centre back to the classroom over the past few years. The classroom teacher and I both felt the use of the Ipads aided, not only him, but the other students in completing the assignment.  Even though, it was not the complete assignment done from our class it is a step in the right direction to be using AT in the classroom regularly.  :)  I feel good about the outcome today. 

November 14, 2012 - Reflection

November 14, 2012

This weeks entry will not be a long one. Our last class gave us the opportunity to finish our assignment for next week. Since this class I have been a little under the weather with flu like symptoms. Good news is I feel better and believe I will be in school again tomorrow and be able to come to class to present with my partner.  During the past few days that I have been laid up I have found some interesting articles and videos in connection to technology in general. The below video I found to be quite interesting, it was on the CNN website.  Please watch and feel free to comment.

What else could technology and the people who really know how to use it be doing for our world?
:)

November 7, 2012 - Universal Design for Learning

November 7, 2012

It is hard to believe that this blog will discuss our seventh class. It has been a great experience  :)  The class discussion centered around Universal Design for Learning (UDL). It is important for educators to use this approach to teaching to make it possible to reach ALL students in their classroom.  The class learned the importance of knowing your students and their needs. This seems to be an obvious point but can be overlooked at times. In our school we have transition meetings to discuss the students going from one grade to the next. It includes their strengths and challenges. How they learn best. It not only discusses academic needs but also social.  As a resource teacher, I am involved in these meetings and do a file review of each student to provide information on each of the students. The UDL principles 1) provide multiple means of representation 2) provide multiple means of action and expression 3) provide multiple means of engagement. It is important to understand the UDL principles and how they can be implemented into teaching. Below is a video with a overview of Universal Design for Learning.

We had the rest of class to work on our next assignment. Next week I will discuss the creation and presentation of our project.

October 31, 2012 - Activity in Lieu of Class

October 31, 2012

Proloquo2go follow up activity:

The assignment is to view one of the videos B.Welsford sent me, which were on Proloquo2Go utilization. The videos show children, with various disabilities, using the App.  I am to reflect on the videos based on my knowledge of the App and post my thoughts. I have posted the video below I am reflecting on:

It states on the AssistiveWare website that, "Max is nine years old and was born with Cerebral Palsy. The language area in his brain has been affected and he therefore has difficulty using his speech to communicate. He started using Proloque2Go on an iPad about a year ago. He now uses it on a daily basis, at school and at home. His speech has made good progress and his frustration level has decreased. Max is more able to communicate, he spells and he can create sentences that he was not able to create before. He even helps with customizing the app's vocabulary. According to his speech therapist, Proloquo2Go has become his voice and has completely changed his life."

I found the video to be very powerful and moving. From reading from the website the App has had a major impact on his life.  The beginning of the video shows Max using the Ipad with the Speech Language Pathologist. I found it interesting how she used the device to have Max tell her what he wanted to do with the paints. The SLP's strategy provided the basis for Max to communicate his needs through the Ipad and the Proloque2Go App. He was able to manipulate the device and tell her he wanted to do the craft/painting. He has many skills developed, including some spelling skills. He demonstrated this when he spelled the word 'Purple'. Very impressive. I know these skills and others he displayed can not be all contributed to the Ipad but it seems it has been a platform for acceleration in Language and Speech skills for Max.  The SLP states the language area in Max's brain has been effected since using the Ipad over the past year. This is amazing!!!  When thinking of 'Presuming Competence', I feel Max's experience on the Ipad demonstrates that all students have a certain level of understanding but need a voice to communicate their understanding. With this voice students' level of frustration decreases, like Max and their behaviour would improve. My experiences over the past 3 years with a student who is blind, non verbal and possibly ASD have been educational to say the least. It has been extremely difficult to find a means for him to communicate his needs and wants. We are currently using a GoTalk with 6 cells, 2 of which he uses (at times). It has been extremely important for our team to have an understanding of his level of competence when it comes to working with him. I feel we have made some major strides in his communication skills and I can only hope he is able to be as successful of a story as Max in the future. One aspect of the video I wanted to mention that I found interesting was the lack of interactions with peers in the mainstream classroom. It seemed, although a short video, that Max has many skills and now a communicative device, that he would be able to be in the regular classroom - more than the video showed. If it has not happened already I would love to see Max in with his peers. This may be the next step for this amazing student. Loved the video :)  

The second part of our assignment is to choose 2 Webinars that tweek my interest.  After choosing the Webinars I am to discuss how I would support the classroom teacher with the integration of  the technology into the classroom with a student with Autism. The first Webinar I viewed dealt with the aspect of Visual Scheduling. One of the Apps mentioned was called

FIRST THEN

The Webinar discussed the importance of using a visual schedule and how the App can support a student with Autism. I have used this App at my school this year. A student in grade 2, who has Autism, has been using this App since the beginning of the school year. In the past he used a visual schedule comprised of PICS from Boardmaker, laminated with Velcro and attached to a board with the words First Then. This year we decided to have him use the App on a Ipad. I first discussed this with the classroom teacher, since this student is fully integrated into the classroom. She was fully on board and felt comfortable with the technology. It is a somewhat straightforward App to use. We sit up a view basic schedules for the student to use the first day of school. I introduced the new Visual Schedule through a Social Story over the summer, which included his teachers name/pic, his Teacher Assistant, myself etc and the Ipad and the App. He was excellent from the start using the device and the Visual Schedule. The convergence of using the Ipad for academics, social stories and his visual schedule has been awesome!!  It really is great to see him using the device with this App. The school team has been fully supportive of the student using technology to aid him and his parents have been supportive as well. I am very lucky to have school teams support ideas for students with open arms. I commend the classroom teacher, vice principal, teacher assistant and parents for the success of the App working for this student. My job as Resource Teacher is very easy when we are all on the same page as in this case. It makes it easy for me to support the student and teacher in all areas of learning in the school setting. 

The other Webinar that I viewed centered around the use teaching of Social Skills. I particularly enjoyed the discussion around the App - Social Skills Sampler 

 

I have not had any experience with this App particularly.  As a Resource Teacher I would love to introduce this App with many of my students I work with in regards to Social Skills. I would first introduce this mode of teaching various skills in connection to previous lessons with Social Skill development. As the student was more familiar with the App I would expand the use into the classroom. The student I mentioned above would benefit from using this App, in and out of the classroom on his Ipad. He could watch the videos (video modeling - Love it!!) and learn many skills through this App. The classroom teacher could reinforce certain skills by connecting those skills in with the PATHS lesson of the week. This way the student would have the benefit of learning on the Ipad and the App and with the other students in the classroom setting. I would also include these lessons from Social Skills Sampler in my weekly Social Skills groups. 

Overall, I really enjoyed the assignment this week. The videos and Webinars were very informative. I look forward to our discussion in this weeks class.  

October 24, 2012 - Fifth Class Reflections

October 24, 2012

Well, to blog this week about class will be a little different than other weeks.  I was unable to attend most of the class due to my school having Parent Teacher interviews (PT).  I did come to the first part of the class and I was able to come to last part of the class. It was a busy night, trying my best to be at the PT interviews and at class.  Luckily, my school and the class are on the same campus.  At the beginning of class, my partner and I presented our project on Proloque2Go.  I think we did a great job with our presentation, B.Welsford and classmates had some great comments and suggestions on how to improve our project.  It was a great experience to present in front of colleagues and I think my partner and I did well.  Thank you!!  :)
When I returned from PT interviews I had the opportunity to listen to one last group to present their project.  I thought they did a great job and one reason it was enjoyable to listen to their work was because one of the presenters was presenting through the Ipad and Skype or Facetime.  It was really neat to have them present and have the technology of the Ipad provide the opportunity for them to show their work.  Awesome work ladies!!!

One aspect I wanted to touch on today in my blog was the PT interviews. I wanted to mention the continuous movement of parents to be aware of the technology that is available for their children.  It has been something I found myself being more conscientiously aware of since taking this course.  Parents are becoming technologically advanced, knowledgeable and excited about the use of technology with their children.  There were many conversations with parents, that involved Individual Program Plans (IPP's), describing the use of technology to aid the students in achieving success with their goals.  Many of the parents were aware of the various Assistive Technology devices and programs we mentioned to them.  Especially the ones that were connected to the Ipad or Ipod.  In some cases, the parents mentioned APPS that they have been using with their children over the summer.  It was something I wanted to mention in my blog today because it really is a step forward for parents.  As we move forward with the advancements in technology, it seems like we will be moving forward together, more than ever before. This makes me very excited as a Resource Teacher. 

Moving Forward together :)

Next weeks class will be via an Webinar!!!  Looking forward to this experience!! 

October 17, 2012 - Fourth Class Reflections

October 17, 2012

Our fourth class we had the opportunity to work on the App, Proloque2Go.  My partner and I were able to design various communication folders to aid a Case Study student.  We focused on various settings the student would be in with various folders to aid the student in communicating her needs and wants.  This is the second time I have worked with the App but it felt like a new learning experience.  I know this is the best App available and most effective way for non-verbal students to communicate with others. Below are some videos that show the App Proloque2Go in action: 

Next week we present our assignment of working with the App Proloque2Go. I look forward to presenting our work and also to learning from the other groups.  Until next week :) 

October 10, 2012 - Third Class Reflections

October 10, 2012

Our third class centered around the "Convergence of Technology", "Presuming Competence" and "Communication".  Through class discussion we were able to understand that the new technologies of devices, such as the Ipad, Ipod and some other tablets have brought many technologies to be available on one device. For example, the new Ipad is a camera, scan device, can do text to speech, video recorder etc. It has become a device to replace many other devices or programs that might have been used in the past in our everyday lives and in our schools.  The link below to the Apple Canada website discusses their products, including the Ipad and the new Ipod.
http://www.apple.com/ca/
The diagram below displays the "Convergence of Technology" - which Wikipedia describes as " is the tendency for different technological systems to evolve toward performing similar tasks. Convergence can refer to previously separate technologies such as voice (and telephony features), data (and productivity applications), and video that now share resources and interact with each other synergistically."

The other part of our class discussed "Presuming Competence". We watched a powerful video of Carly. (short video below) It really demonstrated that, despite communication barriers we need to continue to work at developing a parallel means of communication with our students.  Carly's story is truly inspiring. As discussed in class, effective Communication has to have three parts : 1)Engaged Communication Partner 2)Joined Attention and 3)Common Language.  Communication can be Verbal, such as face to face, on the phone etc. It can be Non-Verbal, such as with body language or gestures (sign language). It also can be written, such as texting. No matter the means of communication the general desired outcome or goal of any communication is for the sender and receiver to have understanding.  Our class began our first major assignment with working with an App called Proloquo2Go with the Ipad. It provides students that may be non-verbal with a means to communicate that can be understood by many. Excellent App, one in which I have had some experience introducing to a student a few years ago. Although we were at the beginning stages of the Ipod being used with this App, years later he is now effectively communicating to others we great success.  Having the means to communicate to others is a critical part of life for all of us.

Next weeks class we will continue to work with the App Proloquo2Go for the Ipad. We have a case study and are to use the program to develop an effective means of communication. Below is an older video describing the App.  It is not the best quality but gives an overview of the program.
Looking forward to working with the App next week.

I end this weeks blog with one of many quotes about effective communication,
"The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn't being said. "
Peter Drucker