Sunday, July 03, 2011

Christmas in July!!

That is surely what it has felt like around here the past two days. We finally got the second installment of our income taxes (we did not file for 2008-I was deployed at the time) last week and the very first thing we bought was an IPAD. I can't tell you how long I have wanted this little thing. It has been in our lives for a mere 24 hours and it is already making its mark. Let me just show you.

This is Nick having fun with one of the apps on his IPAD. On this one he has to put the puzzle pieces together to make the full picture. It is rather fool proof, as the piece will only go in one spot. The computer says the name of the sea animal, then lets him put the pieces in.

More of the same game.

This is a writing/spelling app in which he has to trace each letter in order to spell out the word. Once all the letters are traced, a picture of the object shows up in the middle of the screen and the screen shows the word in his letters that he 'wrote'. We are still getting the hang of this game and right now requires a lot of hand over hand.

This is the same app; but instead of a word, it is just one letter.

This is a simple drawing app that he really likes.

I can't even describe how helpful this little gem has been. It really does make things so much easier! I can now create a visual schedule in a matter of seconds!

Not to mention the ABA applications it has. Nick can have fun playing the 'games' but while he is playing he is having to match pictures with words, use his point, and is learning new words in the process. We have been working full steam on the communication apps. Did I mention this can double as an assistive communication device??!! The limits seem to be endless right now. He beamed when he realized he can use this to communicate what he wants with us. That was a smile I soon won't forget. Personally, if you have a very verbally limited child with autism, I would highly recommend getting one of these. The ease of operation is what gets me. In order to make a story board all I have to do is open the specific application, and choose what I need. There is a camera installed in the IPAD and if I want to take a specific picture, I take the picture, and it is immediately available to use in the story board. VERY SIMPLE!!

While Nick got the IPAD, Michael was able to get an IPOD which he had been begging for a long time. He is 12 now, and just like any other 12 yr old he likes to listen to his music. He is quite happy with it. He also got a new hockey helmet because his other one was worn out from last season and was starting to hurt his head. We are all doing great and are enjoying the warmer weather finally! It took a while to get here, but now it is here! Don't know what we will do for the 4th yet, but it will probably involve fireworks at some point. I have the next two weeks off so I am going to try and get Nick scheduled for his MRI and blood draw during that time. The EEG is scheduled for the 26th. Other than that, a pretty un-eventful month. Hope everyone has a great 4th of July!!

5 comments:

Unknown said...

I'm so excited for Nick! I hope we can do the same thing soon!

Amy said...

I definitely recommend it. I just wish it would be easier for special needs families to acquire this. We ended up buying one ourselves. There seemed to be a lot of hoops you have to jump through in order to attain one for free. Even though everyone I talked to said how great it would be for him. I mean seriously. They wanted a Dr's dx and reports, and even then it was not guaranteed he would be chosen for one. So, we sprang for it ourselves. There is a counting app that I installed that he has really taken a liking to. Spelling, writing, drawing, music(there is a piano app you can get for free) and numerous others.

Unknown said...

We have no hope of getting one for free because our two older kids are verbal, and the one that's not is still being evaluated. However, we are trying to "earn" one through The Puzzling Piece.

Amy said...

I hope you can get one!! How close are you to earning one?? I am just trying not to burn Nick out on his. Now he brings it to me and asks to watch Dora on it. We have netflix at home and can actually get it installed on the ipad. So anywhere that has free wi-fi he can also watch TV/movies. Just another neat thing about it.

Unknown said...

We have 12 pieces as of the last update, and we need 60. Hopefully we'll be there soon!