The following video is really nice and shows that the iPad is a revolution for the education, especially for kids with special needs. (The application used is Proloquo2Go)
Update: an other video made by AssistiveWare: “Vanessa is three years old and was born with Pervasive Developmental Disorder (PDD), a form of autism. Her parents noticed that she was very to herself and knew right away that something was off. About three months ago, Vanessa started using Proloquo2Go on an iPad. Even though her parents were concerned that using a communication solution might further delay her speech development, they trialed Proloquo2Go through the Young Autism Program of DDI. Everyone has been amazed by Vanessa’s approximations and increased attempts to communicate. The app has given her a voice. Now she can finally say what she wants, making more verbalizations and babbling more than before. Vanessa’s speech is growing, and most importantly, she is blossoming as a child. Vanessa lives in New York, United States of America.”
Available on AppStore for $149.00, KType is an assistive communication app for individuals who cannot verbally communicate with ease or speed.
KType can be easily configured to assist individuals with muscle spasms, motor tics, and partial paralysis, as well as those who have trouble reading, writing, and spelling.
The following video will show you how KType is powerful in predicting words and could support unsteady hands, thanks also for the Speech Synthesis of Acapela Group.
A rewarding and fun application to slip into Santa’s sack!
Word Wizard is the first application of its kind to really make smart use of speech synthesis. Word Wizard enables kids to compose words and listen to the audio result, and indicates if their spelling is correct.
An educational & recreational application
Through a colorful, simple and intuitive graphic interface, kids drag letters to compose
words and play with the sounds, either as they like or according to their level of writing and reading. Word Wizard allows kids to listen to the pronunciation of letters, words or sentences they compose themselves, tapped by their own fingers, thanks to a movable alphabet.
Acapela, the voice that catches kids’ attention
Acapela speech synthesis handles the talking part of the application by vocalizing any written
text, with a female or male voice. Kids control the game, entering the words they like,
listening to the audio result, checking if the spelling is correct. Seeing, hearing and touching: the multi-sensory approach engages kids completely. And a help button enables them to progress at any time.
This application has been developed by l’Escapadou, a design studio dedicated to the creation of fun, creative and educational applications for iPhone & iPad.
‘L’Escapadou was created right after the launch of the iPad, because we believe we have in our hands an amazing tool to help kids learn and increase their autonomy and creativity, in a fun and rewarding way. Combining Acapela text to speech with the iPad allowed us to create an interactive and talkative interface that captivates the interest of young users. The success of the English and the French versions has proved us right and we are about to launch the German and the Spanish ones.’ adds Pierre Abel, L’Escapadou’s founder.
L’Escapadou is a family-run design studio where the parents develop the applications and the graphic environments, inspired by their 4 and 7 year old kids – the very first beta-testers!
‘Praised by the New York Times as a ‘Speak ‘N Spell for the iPad Generation’ and promoted by Apple, Word Wizard, more than any other educational and recreational application, has made great use of speech synthesis, to favor learning in a very effective and pleasant way. And the enthusiasm of young Word Wizard users has unequivocally proved that!’ adds Lars-Erik Larsson, Acapela group CEO.
Talking movable alphabet or spelling quiz
The application offers 2 modes and a full set of parameters so that it can be adapted to a kid’s age and level of learning
Highlights of Talking Movable Alphabet
- Spell checker draws attention to unrecognized words
- 2 American voices and 1 British voice
- Optional magnetic grid to ease letters’ placement
- Reads all the words as a sentence
- Uppercase or lowercase letters Phonics or letter name when a letter is touched in the alphabet
- voice Transformer (speed, tone) for added fun, 2 backgrounds
Highlights of Spelling Quiz
- 189 word lists of 10 words: Dolch Words, 1000 most frequently used words, body parts, family members, etc.
- Create custom word lists by entering own words and sentences, and even share lists
- Hints are available if kids do not know how to spell a word
- A variety of colorful animations are displayed when a word is completed
- Once a quiz is completed, a report is displayed and fun, interactive animations are available as a reward
