Day 7-Dollar Store Presentations

EDUC 5173
Day #7-Dollar Store Presentation
July 13, 2016

Joy and Nike-Very creative approach for AT. Some very creative ideas were presented. The idea of the straw being attached with clothespins to the cups. Also, the suspense video about the soap and the idea of when you are limited in range of motions and have difficulties tearing toilet paper.

Joanne and Holly-great ideas of inside and outside the box.the tape dispenser with suction cup great for students with fine motor difficulties. The travel dispenser with the suction cup. The blind cleaner with the dual prongs for a grabber where the student has double the chance of getting items.  Love the idea of the pool noodle on the bungee chair things. Loved the foam things for toothbrush holders

Nick-pool noodle as an extension to students who are wheelchair bound so they can tag their classmates. EZ cracker-handheld egg cracker for students with limited fine motor skills in life skills class. Spray bottle in Agri class for a student with weak gross skills to do the plant watering.

Sue and Terry-elastic so that they can make it easier to open zippers. Braille for visually impaired.. Using sand paper, felt and Velcro-students can create pictures and practice making words.

Sharon-tennis balls-cut a hole in the ball to act as a bigger grip for a student with cp or physical motor issues. Aslo, classroom noise reducers on chairs to help with distractions. Thanks for the idea of the decorating duct tape.

Dave-love the butterfly nets as gatherers off the floor. Great points about making the classroom environment fun and engaging.

John and Laurieann-loved your explanation of the process of AT and your battle with the intended usage vs. Not intended battle. I tend to think outside the box.Great ideas for the nesting and patterning for the fine motor skills with the balls and the scarf holder. Put letters on the balls and they could work as a spelling pad, or play hangman on it. Endless possibilities.

Michelle-sand scoop-extension is scooping water, food tray-visually impaired or people who don’t have great control. Love the cutting prototype for a hand protector for a physical impaired student trying to work on cutting life skills in the kitchen.

Chelsea and Christine-elastic around a glass to increase grip. Love the pool noodle card holder. The endless uses as a chair fighter, large grip, weighted lap buddy for autistic. Velcro-add it to pants to help students dress more easily.

Rachel and Suzanne-cutlery sets that are coloured sort or match. Texture rubber bear. Simply using a can cooler for a better grin. Bug looker at her.-the magnifying glass that cab be held..Great science application. FLy swatter for pointers. Seat cushion for figiting. Garden grabber for reacher. Mats that are ergo for students with juvenile diabetes or obese. Great journey.

Chris and Jill-shared the magnetic letters and baking sheet-for Syrian students and those who are nonverbal. Medicine bottle magnifier-focuses on the label great for labelling other things that the students might use. Catnip ilex toy squishy- Positive saying pylons-sorting awesome.

My Thoughts and Take Aways

About AT Presentations-My eyes were so opened by this experience. I don’t pride myself on being creative and looking outside the box. I tend to be very rigid in thinking. This is why I found this exercise so powerful. I tend to see a need for tech and and then I google or Amazon it to find the AT. This often proves to be a very costly and timely process. After seeing so many of my fellow colleagues ideas I now have a wide bank of ideas for AT on a dime. With the school purse strings tightening all the time I often feel helpless or compelled to spend my own money.


My thoughts about Searching apps for AT-We searched the following sites/stores/locations in search of Assistive technology:

Microsoft Webstore-Google
Google Play-android
ITunes Store-iPads
Chrome Webstore
AppleStore

It was a great exercise to help open my eyes to the best devices available for our students. As an IPad and apple product user I realize I have been spoiled with the the countless apps available. I guess I have been “spoiled” in a sense. The Apple Store and iTunes Store have countless opportunities for different programs for “Alternative Augmentative Communication”. The android google play has some pretty decent selection as well. The Chrome Webstore has barely any though. It was very difficult to find 5 apps. It has just confirmed to me that iPads are the way to go. Although our school board is trying to move towards chrome books I believe this is not necessarily the best option for the students with the highest communication needs. As a resource teacher I will be making sure that the program planning teams in our school are aware of this when making programming decisions for our students.