Creating a Classroom of Discovery and Wonder
By Davis, David; Closing the Gap, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 6-8Publication Date: August/September 2008
Article discusses educational tools, available at the Florida Diagnostic and Learning Resources System (FDLRS) website, which can be incorporated into the curriculum for students with disabilities. The author describes how to navigate within the site (http://www.fdlrstech.com/CTG08) to find (1) a story and accompanying materials incorporating Universal Design for Learning principles titled “The North Star”; (2) Assistive Technologies related to computer access, such as text-to-speech, the one-handed keyboard FrogPad, and Overlay Maker for customizing alternative keyboards; (3) tools for reading, such as BookBox, providing inexpensive audio books; (4) resources described under Writing, including Free Online Graph Paper, which allows customization, the no-cost Organize Writing with Graphic Organizers with a link to Rationale, a higher-order thinking and writing scaffold for argument analysis, and flickr toys, a tool for making posters, magazine covers and the like; (5) Math tools such as InspireData which provides cognitive scaffolding through visual supports, Illuminations, a grade-leveled tool found under Virtual Manipulatives, and free calculators such as Big Calc, MetaCalc, and Freecalc, which have sizing options; (6) tools found on the Science page, including a free simulation of an electron microscope from NASA; and (7) creative tools including the Super Duper Music Looper music-creation program and Art Rage, enabling students to “paint” on the computer with simulated media including oil and chalk, found under Creativity.
Assistive Products Discussed: OVERLAY MAKER
USB FROGPAD KEYBOARD
Published by: Closing the Gap, Inc. (Website:http://www.closingthegap.com)
