Ryan Osweiler EDTECH 541 Adaptive/Assistive Technology Assignment Cognitive Difficulties iStation is a literacy program that is geared towards

students of all reading levels but is designed to target students with reading difficulties. Students with comprehension difficulties can use this program to increase the amount of information they retain when reading. The program is designed to not allow students to move onto higher reading levels without mastering what they are on first. Teachers can get reports that show mastery/non-mastery of various reading strategies. IStation is a subscription based software program that can be downloaded onto a workstation Fast ForWord is a powerful program that targets information processing skills with regards to reading. Students listen for sounds and pitches to help with phonics and vocabulary skills. Students using this program are usually at a tier 3 intervention level and require being on the program at least 30 minutes a day. The program aims to re-train the brain and increase processing speed and accuracy. Fast ForWord is also a subscription based program and is completely webbased. Physical Difficulties Talking Calculators are an increasingly popular product for students with physical difficulties. Students who have motor or vision issues can use these devices and speak commands into the calculator. The calculators then say the answer to the problems they input. For students with mild motor issues, they can use the calculators as normal because they are very large so the margin for error when entering information is great.

Dragon Software is a popular text-to-speech program. Students who have a hard time using their hands can speak a sentence or story into the software and a typed version will appear on the screen. This technology has been around for a while but the technology has evolved over the past 5-10 years and the accuracy is much greater than it was a decade ago.

Sensory Difficulties The SMART Audio Classroom was designed by the creators of the SMART Interactive Whiteboard. The idea came when students using the SMARTBoard were not reaching their full potential. Studies showed that the result was not the board, but the inability to hear the teacher. These systems can be setup in a ceiling for DVD/video purposes and/or used with a microphone for instruction. The design allows sound to be projected to the entire room and volume controls can help with acoustics and other sound barriers. Bookshare is a web service that aims to provide digital text and Braille content to its users. The site relies on partnerships, volunteers, and sponsors to help donate time, energy, and money to adding to their content library. Material exists in nearly all content areas, age levels, and in many languages. At-Risk Students Google Earth is a popular program that can be downloaded for free. For at-risk students and schools where money is tight, Google Earth can be used across the content areas with many available features and add-ons that can be downloaded for specific subjects. Students can take virtual field trips and see pictures from every corner of the globe. Larger cities and famous landmarks are often in 3D to add to the experience.

Google/Trimble Sketchup is a supplemental program to Google Earth. Students can use Google Sketchup to learn Geometry and build 2D and 3D models while incorporating math concepts and objectives. This program encompasses all areas of Blooms Taxonomy and allows students to be creative, artistic, and investigative all in the process. Google Sketchup is a free download.

Gifted and Talented Students Animoto is a video creation program that gifted students love to use. Students can take pictures (or videos when using the iPad/iPhone app), insert text slides, and design themes with music. This can be used across all content areas and is perfect for any enrichment activity. Students can publish a web link or choose an embed code to place directly on a website. Animoto can be used individually or in a collaborative environment. Robotics is a revolutionary program that allows students to explore S.T.E.M. concepts. Students are immersed in real world, critical thinking, and problem solving steps to build, program, and accomplish certain tasks. Students become independent learners and construct meaning behind the concepts and lessons learned through a typical course. Robotics programs exist for almost every age level and can be incorporated into a pull out, extension, enrichment, or after school type setting. US FIRST Vex Robotics