She has a smile that would light up a room. She beams with
confidence when she accomplishes a task. She loves to do the superman move
during gym class. Please meet one of the students I am working with in my
current field placement. For privacy reasons, I am going to refer to her as Abby.
Abby has Down syndrome. Children diagnosed with Down syndrome are not
specifically covered under the IDEA act. However, children with Down
syndrome can have either physical, cognitive, communication, social or emotional impairments. For these reasons, they are typically eligible for early intervention from birth-age three. Once they reach age three, they typically qualify through local school
districts for special education related services through IDEA.
What is Down syndrome? Children with Down syndrome have
inherited an extra chromosome, which can lead to a variety of physical
challenges, speech and cognitive impairments. Some of these developmental delays can be
mild to severe. Down syndrome children can be easily recognized by characteristic
features. They usually have slanted eyes, poor muscle tone, shorter than normal
fingers, short necks, speech delays, hearing impairments and can be smaller in
stature than typical developing kids.
Abby is shorter in stature than a typical child her age. She
does not speak, but grins and makes noises to communicate. She struggles
with fine motor skills, because her fingers are tinier than a typical child’s.
I am going to focus on two types of assistive technology devices, which help
Abby with her physical and communication impairments. First, let’s look at this
alternative keyboard.
This alternative keyboard has keys that are four times as
large as a traditional keyboard. It also lets the teacher customize the letter
layout. This is perfect for Abby’s small fingers. She is able to participate in technology centers
with less supervision. The letters are also color coded on some layouts. The bright colored keys are larger than normal,
easy to read and easy to find.
Down syndrome children are also benefiting from the Ipad. A specific application called Photo Touch enables
children with moderate to severe disabilities, who are non-readers and are
non-verbal to learn their site words. The students listen to oral prompts and
connect it to the picture with the beginning sound. This is a free app,
downloadable through the app store. Since Abby is non-verbal, this application
is perfect for her to use and keep pace with the children who are working on
the ODE standard of identifying the beginning sound of an object.
Most people think assistive technology is only electronic in nature. But assistive technology is actually defined as any
item or material that enhances learning for the student. Since Abby struggles
with her fine motor skills, we start each day off with some putty on the desk
with little animals adhered to it. Each morning she practices her fine motor
skills by grasping each little animal and tugging it away from the putty. She
is improving her pincer grasp and improving her dexterity in the process. These
are just a few things we are currently using in the classroom to assist Abby.
What technologies are on the horizon for children with fine
motor skill impairments and speech delays?
Since sometimes wrist bones are not formed completely in children with
Down syndrome, using writing utensils can be difficult. They usually try to prop the pencil up against
their thumb rather than using the tip of their thumb to hold the pencil. The
shortened pencils below are great for Down syndrome children, because it helps
them achieve this much needed skill.
Another new item on the horizon that can benefit children
with speech impairments has been created by the company called Dynavox. It’s
the first dedicated speech generating tablet. Essentially the student taps the
picture and it generates the words. This will help students with speech
impairments to communicate better.
Most people agree technology continues to improve. The
popularity of the Ipad as a communication and teaching tool continues to give
educators more assistive technology options. They have also added a Voiceover
feature, which also adjusts the speaking rates for kids with physical
impairments. These and many more technologies continue to improve the learning
for students with disabilities, allowing them to keep pace with their peers. Assistive
Technology, both electronic and non-electronic continue to open doors for students
with disabilities by allowing teachers to meet their individual learning styles
and needs.
References:
No comments:
Post a Comment