Documenting Children's Learning Through Multi-Media Projects
By Sumrell, Jennie; Closing the Gap, Vol. 24, No. 4, pp. 1, 5-6Publication Date: October/November 2005
Article discusses the use of portfolios by teachers working with students with disabilities, which provide a way to share information with families on how their child has made friends, participated in activities, attended, interacted, changed temperament, developed social and communication skills, and made progress in ways that traditional assignments leave out. By creating digital individualized portfolios, students’ work and learning and be documented and preserved while cutting down on some the issues that traditional portfolios and documentation may present. This can accomplished via a number of software and educational/assistive technologies, including: (1) Touch Window and Magic Touch from Don Johnston, which are touch screens that provide access to students who do not have the fine motor abilities to use a traditional mouse by allowing them to touch a screen that is mounted to the monitor; (2) IntelliKeys and Overlay Maker 3 from IntelliTools, which are programmable alternative keyboards for students who have difficulty using a standard keyboard; (3) Switch Interface Pro 5.0 and SwitchHopper from RJ Cooper and Don Johnston, respectively, which provide students with the ability to access a computer via switch interface; (4) IntelliPics, IntelliPics Studio, and Classroom Suite from IntelliTools, which are universally designed software authoring programs for creating multimedia projects; (5) Boardmaker/Addendum Library and Writing With Symbols software from Mayer Johnson, which are graphic database and word/picture processing programs that contain picture communication symbols that enhance the language and learning process for students on all levels; (6) Kid Pix software from the Learning Company, which is an art program that allows students to create pictures and slideshows; and (7) Kidspiration from Inspiration Software, which provides students and teachers with a way to build graphic organizers by combining pictures, text, and spoken words that depict thoughts.
Assistive Products Discussed: KIDSPIRATION
BOARDMAKER SYMBOL ADDENDUM LIBRARIES (1998, 2000, 2002, & 2004 EDITIONS)
MAGIC TOUCH ADD-ON TOUCH SCREEN KIT
TOUCHWINDOW
MAGIC TOUCH
KID PIX 2 / KID PIX STUDIO
INTELLIKEYS
OVERLAY MAKER
INTELLIPICS
KID PIX
SWITCHHOPPER
WRITING WITH SYMBOLS 2000
Published by: Closing the Gap, Inc. (Website:http://www.closingthegap.com)
