Scaffolding the Writing Process: How Do I Move My Students From Non-Writers to Independent Writers?
By Feit, Suzanne; Closing the Gap, Vol. 26, No. 4Publication Date: October/November 2007
Review of Classroom Suite 4, a multi-template computer program for teaching writing skills to students with physical, cognitive and learning disabilities. Classroom Suite 4, designed with UDL (Universal Design for Learning) in mind, contains templates that allow students to develop the fundamental language skills of phonemic awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. It can be combined with the IntelliKeys keyboard or IntelliSwitch for alternative access. Toolbars can be customized with words, phrases and sentences which can then be moved to the IntelliKeys using Overlay Maker 3. Teachers can add word banks to the program to expand vocabulary; Talking Tooltips enables the student to hear a word aloud when gliding the mouse over a button. Templates such as Sentence Builder and StoryMaker allow students to select pictures and put them together to form sentences, and create their own pictures and write about them. Classroom Suite 4 aligns with the National Reading Panel and curriculum maps for national reading programs. Specific templates within the program address baseline assessments for data collection; this information is saved into a student portfolio for progress tracking and alignment with Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals and objectives.
Assistive Products Discussed: INTELLIKEYS
OVERLAY MAKER
Published by: Closing the Gap, Inc. (Website:http://www.closingthegap.com)
