Monthly Archives: January 2017

{App Reviews} The Zones of Regulation & The Zones of Regulation : Exploring Emotions apps

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{App Reviews} The Zones of Regulation & The Zones of Regulation : Exploring Emotions apps

Most of the patients that I see have Autism or other special needs that make emotional self regulation challenging for them. It’s the main reason that I sought out training in kids yoga several years ago and why I am always looking for additional tools in this area. When kids are experiencing either extreme of the zones, it is very unlikely that they will learn or gain much benefit from anything I may have planned for that session. Here are two new tools that I’ve recently added:

The Zones of Regulation by Selosoft, Inc.
https://appsto.re/us/GzayK.i, $5.99

This older app is a nice overview of the types of emotions, situations, triggers & tools associated with each of the four zones of regulation. I love the inclusion of self regulation breathing techniques (lazy 8 breathing & six sides of breathing) and that you can go directly to each of them. I also like picture studio and the game-like feel to the app. The match the face activity was helpful but also a little frustrating at times since it seemed a bit too rigid on emotions that could really fit in more than one zone. I was excited to see wording about expected vs. unexpected responses and info about “size of the problem” but then was disappointed that there was no way to directly to the “size of the problem” illustration and explanation later. It would be very helpful for this to be added either to this app or to their more recent app since that is a very frequent issue that I have to address with patients. It should also be noted that this original app doesn’t have any voiceovers so a child either needs to be able to read or have an adult read the content to them.

More info about the app: http://www.thezonesofregulation.com/the-zones-of-regulation.html

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The Zones of Regulation : Exploring Emotions by Selosoft, Inc.
https://appsto.re/us/l0CN9.i, $9.99

I really liked this second app as an extension of the concepts introduced in the original app. This newer app has bright graphics, high quality voiceovers, explanations of all aspects of the app, a less rigid interpretation of where certain situations might fit within the zones and often gives examples of how they would fit in multiple zones, the ability to set up multiple users, the option to add or delete tools to fit individual needs, a fun basketball game that can be easily unlocked by playing through other areas of the app, and is full of common situations that kids may encounter and several convey the importance of helping others and feeling empathy. I also liked that you can tap a star in the corner of many scenarios for a reference of where to look for additional information and the ability to graph zones across the day. I especially liked the repeated message that all zones are a natural part of life. A wish for a future app update would be the ability to toggle off the food fight scenario, skip past it or to have it replaced with something else. I also hope they add content regarding “size of the problem” since it was briefly mentioned in the original app and this is a very common issue that I deal with in sessions.

More about the app: http://www.thezonesofregulation.com/the-zones-of-regulation-exploring-emotions—available-now.html
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Since the majority of the patients on my caseload have Autism, the combination of these two apps will be very useful tools in my SLP toolbox. I will be watching closely for future app updates to continue to make these tools even better.

FYI… at the time of this post you can get both apps in a bundle for $12.99: The Zones of Regulation : Complete Bundle by Selosoft, Inc., https://appsto.re/us/YVxaab.i

Learn more about The Zones of Regulation: http://www.thezonesofregulation.com/index.html

Follow them on social media: https://www.facebook.com/pg/zonesofregulation

Teaching tools: http://www.thezonesofregulation.com/teaching-tools.html

I love this post “All the Zones are OK! Tips for Managing the Zones You’re In”: https://www.socialthinking.com/Articles?name=all-the-zones-are-ok

And this one: https://www.crisisprevention.com/Blog/October-2016/emotional-self-regulation
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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
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Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.

{App Reviews} Whose Tail, Whose Eyes & Whose Feet – three fun apps for inferencing & part-to-whole

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{App Reviews} Whose Tail, Whose Eyes & Whose Feet – three fun apps for inferencing & part-to-whole

* Whose Tail by Kenneth Walter King, https://appsto.re/us/HDureb.i
* Whose Eyes by Kenneth Walter King, https://appsto.re/us/6UY-eb.i
* Whose Feet by Kenneth Walter King, https://appsto.re/us/PTzSeb.i

Each app includes 18 animals, is $1.99 and is a universal iOS app.

Get the best deal by getting all 3 apps in a bundle: Peekaboo Suite by Kenneth Walter King, https://appsto.re/us/hmakfb.i, $4.99

I love the catchy intro song in each app, the bright colors and cute large illustrations, that it provides a visual cue on the first animal screen, the ability to reveal the animal a little at a time, that you have to tap an arrow to go on to the next hidden animal (this allow time to talk about the parts of that animal or other things related to it), that it randomizes the order each time you open the app and has an intuitive interface. These are three apps that will be fun to use as tools to target goals on inferencing, part-to-whole & vocabulary.

My only wishes for future updates for all three apps would be to add an option to toggle off the background music after the intro song has played but still allow the voiceovers. Many of my patients become overstimulated by constant background music no matter how subtle it may seem. It would also be fun to have all 18 animals appear together on a closing screen at the end of each app. I noticed that the app developer has free printables on their website so it would be super cool if they created some free printables to go along with each of these apps!

Here are the animals included in each app:

Tail: 18 animals (my patients found this app to be the easiest of the three)
Squirrel
Owl
Snake
Deer
Kangaroo
Rabbit
Mouse
Duck
Fox
Horse
Pig
Cow
Hippo
Fish
Elephant
Lobster
Monkey
Goat

Eyes: 18 animals
Penguin
Chameleon
Zebra
Raccoon
Giraffe
Alligator
Praying Mantis
Fly
Orca
Panda
Gorilla
Tiger
Crab
Lion
Koala
Snail
Cat
Frog

Feet: 18 animals
Pelican
Flamingo
Caterpillar
Starfish
Seal
Mosquito
Sheep
Ostrich
Rooster
Spider
Octopus
Ladybug
Jellyfish
Beetle
Rhino
Turtle
Bear
Cockroach

See more about the apps: http://mapleleaflearning.com/apps/

https://www.facebook.com/maplemarty
https://twitter.com/maplemarty
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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omazingkids
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/amoorad1
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/OMazingKids/
YappGuru: http://yappguru.com/user/omazing-kids/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.

{Wordless & Minimally Worded Books} Fabulous for SLPs targeting multiple goals! (updated 8/14/22)

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{Wordless & Minimally Worded Books} Fabulous for SLPs targeting multiple goals!

I love wordless & minimally worded books! Most have amazing illustrations and are fabulous for targeting goals on inferencing, storytelling, descriptive language, social skills & more.

Here are a few of my faves:

– Carl’s Summer Vacation (there are numerous books in this series)
– Chalk
– Draw!
– Flotsam
– Fossil
– Fox’s Garden
– Good Night, Gorilla
– Journey
– Little Mouse
– Moo!
– Mr. Wuffles
– Pancakes for Breakfast
– Quest
– Red Hat
– Red Sled
– Return
– Snowman’s Story
– Stick
– Stick!
– The Three Pigs
– The Tortoise & The Hare
– The Treasure Bath
– The Typewriter
– Tuesday
– Wave

And a few wordless book apps:
– David Wiesner’s Spot by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, https://appsto.re/us/BRzC5.i (8/14/22: no longer available)
– Imagistory: Schools Edition – A Storytelling App by Imagistory Publishing Ltd., https://appsto.re/us/r3Z_2.i (8/14/22: no longer available)
– Lil’ Red – An Interactive Story by Brian Main, https://appsto.re/us/swTDH.i (8/14/22: no longer available)

– Pango Comics, https://apps.apple.com/us/app/pango-comics/id1099753733
– Radio Jones And His Robot Dad by Nexus Productions, https://appsto.re/us/IiDW5.i (fabulous FREE wordless book app with a few interactive elements)

– The Surprise, https://apps.apple.com/us/app/the-surprise-home/id527223436

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Updated 10/28/20:

Book Dash has lots of FREE online books + you can filter the results by language. Very cool that “wordless” is an option: https://bookdash.org/books?s=&languages%5B%5D=wordless

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I’ve added a few more wordless & minimally worded books to my collection on Epic for Kids: https://www.getepic.com/collection/19641601/minimally-worded-and-wordless-omazing-kids

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Not sure how to use wordless or minimally worded books? See these resources:

– http://www.whatdowedoallday.com/tips-for-reading-wordless-picture-books/
– http://brainpowerboy.com/books-boys-benefits-wordless-picture-books/
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https://www.familieslearning.org/uploads/blog/2010/08/talking-about-wordless-picture-books.pdf (123 page PDF)

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Research Shows that Books without Text Can Increase Literacy, Vocabulary Skills in Children with Developmental Disabilities: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110607005242/en/Research-Shows-Books-Text-Increase-Literacy-Vocabulary, http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.849.9826&rep=rep1&type=pdf

Updated 12/17/22: Great article “Wordless Books:
A UDL Approach to Supporting Language and Literacy Development” in Close the Gap: https://online.fliphtml5.com/yciqt/ioxx/#p=1

8/14/22 Updated contact info:

Have a question? The best way to reach me is via Facebook messaging over on my OMazing Kids page: https://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsAAC/

Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP, Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC, OMazing Kids AAC Consulting

• Teachers Pay Teachers Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Omazing-Kids-Aac-Consulting

• YouTube: https://youtube.com/user/amoorad1

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• GoTalk Now AAC & GoVisual Visual Scene Apps – Ideas and Sharing Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/GoTalkNowAACappGroup

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• Blog: https://omazingkidsllc.com

{App Reviews} Twinnery & Sound Salad apps by Funny Yummy Studio

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{App Reviews} Twinnery & Sound Salad apps by Funny Yummy Studio

Both of these apps are fun and unique new tools to add to my SLP toolbox! 😊

Twinnery – Spot the Twins, https://appsto.re/us/DToPfb.i, $1.99 {but currently FREE for a couple of days so get it quickly)

I love the cute illustrations and owl avatars, that the matching is “face up”, options for single or two player mode, options for easy level (fields of 12 in single player mode or fields of 6 on each side in 2 player mode) and difficult level (fields of 18 in single player mode or fields of 9 on each side in 2 player mode), options to win at finding 10 matches or for whoever finds the most matches in a specified timeframe (3 minutes for single player, 5 minutes for 2 player). This game is more challenging than it first appears since the “twin” pictures often vary slightly in size and in orientation.

Wishes for a future update:
– to be able to toggle off the background music but leave the sound effects on. Many of my patients become overstimulated by constant background music no matter how nice it may seem to the adult. The ability to toggle this music off is a key feature in making an app special needs friendly.
– add an even easier “super simple” level (field of 8 in single player mode and field of 4 on each side in 2 player mode and for the pictures to be presented in identical orientation). The current “easy” level was a bit too hard for many of my patients.

http://www.funnyyummystudio.com/presstwinnery.html
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Sound Salad – Help Mr. Ear by sorting sounds, https://appsto.re/us/KjFcab.i, $2.99

I love the introduction and the concept of needing to help Mr. Ear unmix the sound salad, the handcrafted look of the illustrations, the options for fields of 2, 3 or 4, the option for a timed mode, easy mode (tap each note and then drag to the item that makes that sound) and advanced mode (all of the sounds are presented and the you have to remember the sound each note made and drag it to the correct picture) and the way that Mr. Ear goes up the contraptions as you complete each level. I will likely be using the easier options in this app with my patients but it’s cool to have the more challenging options when needed.

Wishes for a future update:
– to be able to tap a note again to hear the sound replayed on the easy level. Many of my patients have attention and processing problems so having the option to replay a sound would make this app more accessible to them.
– option to toggle off the back arrow (I used Guided Access to prevent kids from tapping there. It takes you back to the beginning and you have to start all over again)
– option to save where you are and resume the game later.

http://www.funnyyummystudio.com/presssoundsalad.html
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Website: http://www.funnyyummystudio.com

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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omazingkids
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/amoorad1
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/OMazingKids/
YappGuru: http://yappguru.com/user/omazing-kids/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.

{App Review + Giveaway} LetterSchool app (full version, worth $4.99)

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{App Review & Giveaway} I have 1 iOS promo code to giveaway for the full version of the LetterSchool – learn to write letters and numbers app by Letterschool Enabling Learning B.V., https://appsto.re/us/oBn9z.i, $4.99, iOS Universal

The full version of this app had been on my wish list for quite awhile so I was thrilled to finally have the opportunity to try it out. A couple of you had recommended that it be added to my blog post about apps for SLPs. I love the large size of the letters, the voiceovers for the letter name and sound, sound word association, the progression in tracing the letters, cool animations, options for setting up three users, choices of upper and lowercase & choices of three common fonts. This app would be fun to work on early literacy skills. It could also be used in articulation therapy as a fun way to introduce a sound.

My only suggestions for improvements in a future app update are to have the words associated with each letter be a single sound rather than a blend. Also the lowercase letter g is currently associated with “giraffe”… would be better as a /g/ sound (ex: game, go, goat) and the lowercase w is currently associated with “whale”…. would be better associated with a true /w/ sound (ex: water, win).

I tested the app on an iPad Air running iOS 10.1.1 and did not have any problems with glitches or crashing but I saw a few reviews on the App Store mentioning crashes. Although the last update is shown as October 2014 there is a comment in the app description from September 2016 indicating the bug causing the crashes had been fixed.

They also have a free lite version of the app: LetterSchool Free – Learn to Write the ABC Alphabet, Letters & Numbers by Letterschool Enabling Learning B.V.
https://appsto.re/us/CkiRC.i (but be aware that it has an IAP. If you like the app it would be better and cheaper to purchase the full version rather than upgrading via the IAP in the lite app).

Enter on the OMazing Kids Facebook page by 1-2-3:
1) “liking” the original post on the OMazing Kids Facebook page:

2) “commenting” on that Facebook post about how you would use this app.
3) sending a private message to the OMazing Kids Facebook page mentioning “LetterSchool”

Entry Deadline: Today, Saturday, 1/21/17 at 7:00pm CST. Depending on the number of entries received, it may take a day or so to verify them and to announce the winner/distribute the code to the winner.

#AppGiveaway

Tips:

* First tap this picture to go to the post directly on OMazing Kids and then like/comment there. I often share posts in groups to spread the word about giveaways but comments posted in a group or likes on those posts do not show up on the original pic and do not count for the giveaway.

* Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids: http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
* Note: If you encounter any difficulty in sending a private FB message, please try another means of getting on Facebook (FB app, getting on FB via Safari on an iPad or getting on Facebook via a computer.)

App Trailer Video:

More info about the app: http://www.letterschool.com.
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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omazingkids
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/amoorad1
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/OMazingKids/
YappGuru: http://yappguru.com/user/omazing-kids/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.

{App Review} Busy Water by EDOKI ACADEMY

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{App Review} Busy Water by EDOKI ACADEMY

I’m loving the progression from very simple to very challenging problem solving, the realistic graphics and sound effects, the ability to easily go directly to any level & especially the option to build your own levels. This app will be a fun way to target goals for problem solving and the social skills of working together.

App Store: https://appsto.re/us/uQXxab.i, $3.99
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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omazingkids
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/amoorad1
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/OMazingKids/
YappGuru: http://yappguru.com/user/omazing-kids/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.

{One Book: Target Several Goals} The First Day of Winter by Denise Fleming

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{One Book + Interactive iPad Activity: Target Several Goals} I’m loving the newest book in my Winter collection… The First Day of Winter by Denise Fleming! It’s a fun twist on the familiar tune The 12 Days of Christmas. I made an interactive activity to use on my iPad (iESLp app for the win…. zero printing, cutting or laminating). I used the book & activity in several sessions this week to target goals for plurals, possessive ‘s endings, colors, following directions, sequencing, quantity concepts, /s/- blends & more. Too hilarious that one of my patients figured out why the snowgirl was getting all dressed up….. to go on a date with her boyfriend Frosty. Ummm I hadn’t even noticed the tiny detail in the background on the last page… lol!

Free printable activity sheets: http://www.denisefleming.com/pages/book-activities/first-day-of-winter/activities.html#gsc.tab=0

Freebie on TPT: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-First-Day-of-Winter-A-Literature-Unit-2950985

Poster:

Ideas to go with the book:

I used an app to create .png images of the red cap with a gold snap and the orange berries mouth by erasing the background from some orange beads. Glad I grabbed the app when it was free awhile back: Aftercut : Background Eraser & Easy Photo Editor, https://appsto.re/us/FeIt4.i.

iESLp by Irmgard Raubenheimer, https://appsto.re/us/NiPA2.i
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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omazingkids
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/amoorad1
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/OMazingKids/
YappGuru: http://yappguru.com/user/omazing-kids/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.

{App Review} English Idioms Trainer Professional by Education Terra

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{App Review} English Idioms Trainer Professional by Education Terra

As I was writing my post about apps for SLPs I noticed that there were only a few for idioms. So I was excited to receive a copy of the full version of this app to try out. I like that it has lots of idioms (284 in the version reviewed for this post), that they are sorted alphabetically, that there is a quiz and that you can choose which letter category of idioms to include in the quiz. I also like that the background music can be toggled off. This app will be helpful for those patients who have mastered the simple / more common idioms included in most card decks but who still struggle with this type of figurative language. The app doesn’t include any pictures so it would likely be a bit too challenging when first introducing idioms.

The only suggestion I have for the app developer is the price. Based on the pricing history on AppShopper, the app was initially priced at $2.99 and has been on sale as low as $1.99. The $1.99-$2.99 price range seems more in line with the features of this app than the current price of $9.99.

English Idioms Trainer Prof by Education Terra
https://appsto.re/us/ckEY9.i, $9.99

They also have a free lite version to try out before buying the full version. Be aware that it likely contains ads: English Idioms Trainer by Education Terra, https://appsto.re/us/7jP_9.i.
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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omazingkids
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/amoorad1
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/OMazingKids/
YappGuru: http://yappguru.com/user/omazing-kids/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.

{App Review} Two more Smarty Ears faves: Social Quest & Reading Comprehension Camp

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{App Review} Two more Smarty Ears faves: Social Quest & Reading Comprehension Camp

I’m always excited to add more Smarty Ears apps to my SLP toolbox so I was thrilled to be able to try out these two:

* Social Quest by Smarty Ears, https://appsto.re/us/U6tjH.i, $21.99

I liked the wide variety of social situations included, the situations are sorted by common location a child may encounter, both the situation and potential answers can be read aloud with high quality voiceovers (but each can be toggled off if you want the child to read them on their own), the settings options for errorless teaching and sensory-friendly set up (with options for a simple interface & to toggle off the audio guide and buzzing sound), the app is built around the concept of “flexible thinking” (that there is not just one right answer in a situation), that you have tap and hold to exit the scenario (great in preventing “tap happy” kids from exiting), in-app video tutorial and the cool adventure quest theme of the app. Since most of the patients on my caseload have Autism, this app is going to be a very helpful tool in my therapy toolbox!

Wishes for a future app update:
– It would be nice to be able to e-mail a report for a specific session rather than a cumulative list of all of the data.
– It would be nice to have more specific information included in the data regarding the questions the child missed.
– It would be nice to be able to delete data for a specific student without having to delete the whole user.

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– More than 800 questions across receptive and expressive activities
– A wide selection of specific locations and corresponding social contexts to work on
– Multiplayer capabilities: each game can support from 1 to 4 players
– Each player can select multiple social contexts.
– Receptive Activity in which students identify correct answers to a social question
(presented with text, audio, and accompanying image).
– Ability to customize the receptive activity to require student to provide one or two
correct answers to modify level of difficulty. Having to find both correct answers is a great beginning step for promoting flexible thinking. Only finding one correct answer is a good scaffolding tool for a student who is not yet at that higher level.
– Expressive Activity in which students respond to open-ended questions corresponding to those asked in Receptive Activity. Expressive questions are worded more broadly to promote generalization of skills. The adult working with the student marks “correct”, “almost”, or “incorrect” each time the student responds. The app allows the student to respond multiple times to the same question before proceeding with the “next” button. This is a great tool for working on flexible thinking and encouraging a student to think of multiple possibilities on how to deal with a particular social situation.
– Data and report card kept on each student, report can be printed or emailed to parent or self for record-keeping
– Ability to add student photo or avatar to represent each player in the game

See more about the app: http://smartyearsapps.com/service/social-quest/

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* Reading Comprehension Camp by Smarty Ears, https://appsto.re/us/Hz3vJ.i, $19.99

This app is very well designed. I love the illustrations and interesting short story content, the settings options for errorless teaching and special need-friendly set up (with options to toggle off the buzzing sound, to toggle off the score awards on the stories, options to adjust the size of the image & the size of the text), the option to select the types of questions to include in the quiz, the option to hide the picture and/or story text in quiz (but I love that the default is that both are visible), the option to tap on a speaker button to have the quiz question read aloud and the option to have a “hint” by highlighting the part of the story that contains the answer when taking the quiz (and if a hint is used that is noted in the data collection). The ability to create your own stories makes this a great app to target lots of language goals.

Wishes for a future app update:
– It would be nice to be able to select the quiz questions before reading the story and allow the student to preview the questions selected since this is a common strategy used to help kids who struggled with reading or listening comprehension. If this option is added and they have “previewed” the quiz ahead of the story, it would be good for this to be indicated in the data.
– It would be nice to have the option to have the quiz answer options highlighted and read aloud.
– It would be nice to be able to e-mail a report for a specific session rather than a cumulative list of all of the data.
– It would be nice to be able to delete data for a specific student without having to delete the whole user.

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– The app contains 50 engaging and entertaining stories divided into 5 levels with 10 stories per level. Level 1 is designed for early readers (2nd-3rd grade); while level 5, with a readability level of 6th-7th grade, is designed for older students.

– Each story has an associated quiz to check for comprehension. Within the quiz, there are 11 types of questions available. The adult can determine if all questions will be asked, or select a certain type of question. The question types available include: who, what, where, when, why, how, inferences, cause & effect, compare & contrast, sequencing, and vocabulary & context.

See more about the app: http://smartyearsapps.com/service/reading-comprehension-camp/
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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omazingkids
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/amoorad1
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/OMazingKids/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.

{App Review} Drillaby Pro Speech Therapy Game – SLP Edition & Drillaby Remote

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{App Review} Drillaby Pro Speech Therapy Game – SLP Edition & Drillaby Remote

Drillaby Pro is a speech therapy game designed for speech-language pathologists to use for articulation drills.  The app is designed to give kids lots of practice opportunities while playing a motivating game. The object of the game is to get Drillaby through four different areas on an island and then home.

Key features:

  • Explore an island with 4 areas (ocean, desert, jungle & arctic) to help Drillaby find 5 hidden words in each area. Pronounce those words correctly to earn stickers to fill her passport sticker book and get safely home.
  • Designed by certified speech-language pathologists.
  • Articulation game includes a choice of six sound groups: /k/-/g/, /t/-/p/, /v/-/f/, /sh/-/ch/, /l/, /s/ and /s/blends.
  • Three levels of difficulty including words in carrier phrases.
  • All sound groups can be presented in US, UK or AUS accents.
  • Session data records can be viewed for each student within the app or emailed as a .CSV attachment.

I love the game format of Drillaby Pro! I have several patients who can be difficult to motivate and they all loved this app. It has large colorful illustrations, high quality voiceovers, ability to set up multiple users, data collection with the option to e-mail results & an intuitive interface once you enter the game play area. The passport sticker book was helpful to keep a patient engaged to earn all the stickers to get Drillaby home. The app currently includes 10 sounds + s-blends. I like that each s-blend can be selected separately and that there multiple repetitions for each target. The “easy” level has 3 repetitions for each target word, the “medium” level has 5 repetitions for each target word & the “hard” level has 3 repetitions for each target word in a carrier phrases that also contains that another word with that sound (except the s-blends which use the carrier phrase “I see ______”.). This is a great app to add to any speechie toolbox!

I just have a few wishes for a future app update to make it even better:

  • It would be helpful to be able to select multiple sounds for each user in the set up menu and then tap on the one(s) you want to work on when entering the play area. It’s currently a bit cumbersome to have to edit the user every time you want to work on a sound in a different sound set.
  • add the final position for /l/
  • add the medial & final positions for /t/ & /p/
  • add more sounds to the app. I would LOVE to be able to use this app with more of my patients but it currently does not contain the following sounds: b, m, h, w, y, d, n, j, z, th (voiceless), th (voiced), l-blends, r, vocalic r, r-blends. Any sounds added should include all positions.
  • add the option to toggle back and forth between users for use in speech therapy groups. I am currently only seeing patients 1-on-1 but SLPs who work in school settings would find this feature very helpful.
  • some of the carrier phrases don’t make sense (ex: I pat ______ – pool). It would be nice to have the option to select the option to use a standard carrier phrase such as “I see ____” or “I found _______” that would make sense regardless of the target word.

* Drillaby Pro Speech Therapy Game – SLP Edition by SLP TechTools, https://appsto.re/us/tcVkL.i, $24.99

Work with “tap happy” kids in speech therapy who try to score every production as correct? Drillaby Remote is a cool companion app that allows the SLP to control scoring remotely from a second iOS device via Bluetooth.

* Drillaby Remote by SLP TechTools, https://appsto.re/us/DdOgR.i, .99
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Website: http://www.slptechtools.com
Social Media:
https://www.facebook.com/SLP-TechTools-170540459637128
https://www.twitter.com/SLPTechTools
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Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP
Speech-Language Pathologist
Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness & educational activities for kids of all abilities
Facebook Messaging for OMazing Kids:
http://m.me/OMazingKidsYoga
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga
AppPeeps Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OMazingKidsAppPeeps/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omazingkids
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/amoorad1
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/OMazingKids/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/110305433538768736741
Boardmaker Share: http://www.boardmakershare.com/Community/FriendsProfile/10916/Angela-Moorad
Blog: http://omazingkidsllc.com
.
Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.