Great Notetaking Software

Sonocent Audio Notetaker Software looks wonderful.  I have a couple of students, one in college and the other starting college in the fall, that just can’t take notes and listen.  Besides recording the lecture, which is not practical in terms of the time required to replay the entire lecture, I haven’t found a good solution.  This program records the lecture, but in a completely different way.  The words recorded don’t show up as text, but rather as rectangles that break when there is a pause in the speech.  The student can give their full attention to the lecture and just color codes the speech bars according to “what is important”, or “I don’t understand”, or “examples”, etc…with a click.  Then when the student is ready to review the notes, they select which color to play.  There is also a parallel space for the student to write notes as they listen.   There are other features as well, but the part I described here is fantastic.  Certainly worth exploring. They offer a free trial.  http://www.sonocent.com/en/the_software/audio_notetaker

Free Apps That Are Fun and Useful

Popplet is a free app, https://popplet.com/, that is extremely simple to use.  I’ve used it with students, but also for my own work as a way to collect ideas.  It is not unusual for a student to be uncertain what topic to write about, so we put down all the possibilities in Popplet, and underneath each they put their ideas on each topic.  It becomes very clear to them which one is the best or most interesting one to pursue.

Bookcreator, http://www.redjumper.net/bookcreator/, is another free app, and equally easy to use.  I’ve used this with reluctant writers, but could be used with any level.  When part of an instructor’s challenge is to keep students curious and engaged we have to vary the format, and Bookcreator is yet another tool to use.

Sock Puppets, https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/sock-puppets/id394504903?mt=8, a free app that I’ve used with students who are reluctant to talk.  Again, simple to use, and had us laughing outloud.

Vocabulary Development

I can remember years ago going to Johnson O’Connor, an apptitude testing center, at that time in New York City,  http://www.jocrf.org/.  My father had done it as a young man, and so my sisters and I did it too, a family tradition sort of thing.   Johnson O'Connor research has found that regardless of the profession, from ditch digger to rocket scientist, the single common factor of successful people is that they all have extensive vocabularies.  Since many of the individuals I work with don’t have this, I work very hard at direct vocabulary instruction and getting them interested in words, and language in general.  After doing this work for over 20 years I’ve picked up a number of tools that have worked well.

One of my favorite parts of the work I do is teaching the history of English, which consists of three invasions and two cultural revolutions (I only go up to the Renaissance period.)   This lays the framework for word origin explorations, which I always include when looking at an unfamiliar word. (It also lays the groundwork for the study of Latin and Greek roots and prefixes.)  I do grammar study with them too (using Framing Your Thoughts http://www.projectread.com/Products/framing-your-thoughts-sentence-structure-guide-amp-companion-dvd--204.cfm ), so we pick up the part of speech as well.  We look up the word and review the definitions, and typically simplify it as much as possible without losing the meaning. (Dictionary definitions are often awkward.)  We record all this information on a large index card, along with synonyms that they are familiar with.  We then discuss the situations when the new word might be applied, and by whom.  When our investigation is done, we think up a phrase that picks up the sound of the targeted word.  For example for the word span we might say “span it or land in it”, and illustrate that with a person or creature leaping over a puddle.

Since we absorb words that we have heard more quickly those are the ones I target.  I have used vocabulary lists, but generally I select words from their reading that I think the most useful.  I have a student now who is very visual and have her select a word on the Knowji app, http://www.knowji.com/ which has pictures and sounds and is fun to use.

Having the words on index cards makes it easy to review and do various activities.  One of my favorites is putting some or all of the cards face up and taking turns telling a story.  In each turn we have to use one of our words.  This allows me to demonstrate a range of ways the word can be used, and I can observe the student’s use of the words.  

We absorb vocabulary through multiple exposures in text we are reading.  Though what I do is direct vocabulary instruction, this is not a matter of memorizing words and meanings.  During review I will say a word and give them as much information as they want or need.  We might start with the phrase, the picture, or I might just show them the card.  After a while they often tell me they saw the word, or used it in their writing.  From their writing it will gradually move into their speech.  Then they own it!

Reading Comprehension Booster

In an earlier posts titled “How Students Respond To Text Matters” and “How Students Respond To Text Matters” talk about the importance of interaction with text.  There is a wonderful app that I have used with many of my students - Reading Comprehension Booster - that is a fantastic tool for this, and my students enjoy it.  It has many features, but the one I use on a daily basis with students is the story sequence.  I have them read one or more paragraphs and ask the question “Why did the author write that?  What is he telling us?”  The students then summarize the important information.  I also use the prediction feature where the students make predictions as to what is going to happen.  The app is easy to use, dynamic, and visually appealing.  A good investment for $3.99.  Here is the link for iTunes.  https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/reading-comprehension-booster/id670101196?mt=8

The Importance of Cursive and Keyboarding Skills

Studies have found that students’ quality of writing is linked to the individual’s skill in cursive and / or keyboarding skill.  If a student has to give too much attention to the mechanics of writing or keyboarding, they won’t have as much for organizing their ideas and composition.

In addition, many of the tools available to assist a student while working on the computer, require keyboarding skills to make them a viable tool.

Schools and parents would be wise to oversee the practice of these skills and support students’ proficiency in one or the other.  I would suggest that by upper middle school students focus on keyboarding, as that is what is expected at the high school level and beyond.

It's the Law

It’s the Law

Every child on an Individualized Educational Plan (IEP) MUST have Assistive Technology Devices and Services made available to them.  It’s the law.

The law states that when developing a child’s IEP, the team (usually the SPED teacher, parents, specialists, class teachers, and sometimes the students) must consider the following:

• The students strengths
• Parents’ concerns
• Results of evaluations of the child.
• The child’s academic, developmental and functional needs.

To find out more about IDEA go to: http://www.parentcenterhub.org/repository/idea/

About Me

ABOUT ME

I have four grown and now independent children of whom I continue to learn from and take delight in.  One of them was identified as mildly dyslexic when he was in middle school, and at that time there was no one in our area that was available to work with him.  This was the impetus for my pursuing the training and certification as a language therapist through a program called Alphabetic Phonics, now called Literacy Must http://www.literacymust.org/

I have been working with a wide range of students for the past twenty years and find it immensely rewarding to empower these young people with the skills they need in an area of great difficulty, and to see their self-confidence blossom and their interest in reading and writing grow.  

Even though I have had great success in my work with even the most severely dyslexic students, this work takes time.  All the while these young people are trying to keep pace with their peers, often resulting in stress and frustration.  This is where technology comes in, offering tools that can enable them to access the curriculum while improving their skills.  

For example: One of the great losses for the delayed and struggling reader is the rapid vocabulary acquisition that their peers are making as independent readers, typically by the end of third grade.  However, poor readers can keep the same pace in terms of absorbing vocabulary if they listen to audio books.  Public libraries are a great source, and there is Bookshare for those that qualify.  //www.bookshare.org/cms  

Technology has many tools to offer us.  And it is this realization of how I can further help my students that has me now half way through a masters in assistive technology.