Emily's iPad

Emily has had her iPad for six months now. We have seen tremendous improvements in all areas of growth and development since then. We use the iPad to lessen anxiety, teach academic skills and encourage her fine motor progress.

Before the iPad we used traditional social stories to help with behaviors related to anxiety. Like many kids with an Autism Spectrum Disorder she does well when social stories are presented prior to the event. Emily also relies on Social Stories during anxious times. There was a period of time when transitions in the car were difficult. It was hard for me to comfort her while driving. She is unable to read so the social stories were ineffective at those times. One of the first apps we got for her was Speech Journal. It is an inexpensive app($3.99) and gives you the option to add personal pictures as well as record your own voice. This has been one of the most effective apps for decreasing Emily's anxiety. She is able to access it by herself  while traveling in the car or when I am not around. We have social stories about the Dentist, Riding in the Car, Hitting, etc. Another app that has been helpful is Sosh. While it is for older teens with Aspergers to help with social situations, Emily likes the relaxation techniques(Deep breathing exercises). This is an expensive app($39.99) that I was fortunate enough to win, but would not buy for Emily.

We also have several apps that are helping with fine motor skills. One of Emily's favorite apps is Dexteria . This is an inexpensive app($4.99) that is very beneficial. Interestingly enough it is also the app with the least amount of bells and whistles, but it is engaging for Emily as well as Luke(5). One of the most lucrative kid apps out there is Injini. This is an amazing app well worth the $49.99 cost. I won this app through the A4cwsn facebook page. There are many skills this app works on; fine motor and language skills, understanding of cause and effect, spatial awareness, memory and visual processing.


Some other apps of interest from Emily's perspective are Toca Hair Salon (All Toca Boca apps are fabulous and inexpensive @ $1.99), DTT Words  (ABA based approach to sight words $2.99), and  My PlayHome ($2.99). I have two app developers that I will be doing blog reviews for next.  Ellie's Games and Software Smoothie's not yet released app, Felt Board.  I am very excited about this opportunity and hope to spotlight some of the fabulous attributes of these apps and their developers.

Thanks for reading,
Jessica