Assistive Technology Learning Disabilities » Indiana Assistive Technology Blog

Assistive Technology Solutions for Learning Disabilities

AT Basics, AT Loan Library, Assistive Technology Products 3 Responses »

Jan 142010

Money Calc and Communication Device

A Learning Disability is a neurological disorder that affects the way a person learns, making it difficult to process information. Some common problems associated with learning disabilities include difficulty in reading, writing, speaking, grasping math concepts, and language comprehension. According to LD Online, fifteen percent of the U.S. population, or one in seven Americans, has some type of learning disability.

The INDATA Project recognizes that learning disabilities can complicate an individual’s way of life, and pledges to resolve such issues by providing resources for the necessary assistive technology. Our Loan Library offers many learning disabilities devices including:

Money Calc – This calculator is designed to facilitate learning centered around money math problems. It has the option to display decimals with dollar signs, dollars, and cents (as in $5.00 instead of just 5). Its big bright keypad includes buttons the shape of coins and mini dollar bills.
Franklin Speaking Children’s Dictionary and Spell Corrector – With this device, students can check their spelling with phonic technology, hear over 40,000 words pronounced correctly, play word-building games, and more.
AbleLink Schedule Assistant – Those with literacy challenges can use this device to organize their appointments with ease. You can record a message to remind you of an event at the day and time you specify.
B. A. Bar – Language therapy is made easy with this portable device. Its digital voice corrects pronunciation errors and recalls instructions and assignments, making it an excellent assistive tool for work or school.
Co:Writer – A word prediction program featuring several learning aids, such as topic-specific dictionaries and vocabulary bank to help improve students’ reading and writing.
LiveScribe Pulse Smartpen – No ordinary pen! This device will actually record audio as you write, and then play it back when you touch the pen to where you started writing. Read our review about it here.
Communication devices can also be very helpful for people who have difficulty speaking.

Be sure to check out other learning aids available at the INDATA Loan Library. What kinds of assistive technology can you link to learning disabilities? Share your thoughts!

Product Review: LiveScribe Pulse Smartpen

AT Loan Library, Assistive Technology Products 1 Response »

Nov 102009

As I travel around Indiana and speak to different groups of people, I bring a handful of assistive technology with me to demonstrate different products in our loan library. One of the most popular items is called the LiveScribe Pulse Smartpen. It’s tagline is “Never Miss a Word” and you sure won’t if you are using this pen.

Here’s how it works – there is a tiny camera behind the ballpoint that captures what you are writing and where you are at on the page. A microphone on the opposite end is listening to what is being said around you.

Let’s say you are in a classroom and the teacher is giving a lecture. When you write, the pen records what the teacher says. If you review your notes from the lecture later on and realized that you forgot to write something down, turn the pen on and press the ballpoint on the page wherever you were writing. The pen will start to playback whatever was being said at the time. That way, if you wrote that you have a test in March but forgot the date, you can hear it straight from your teacher!

Sarah wrties with the LiveScribe Pulse Pen

Lots of people use this pen. News reporters like it because they can focus on the person they are talking to rather than frantically writing notes. Students like it because it helps them pay attention in class and realize what information they are not hearing while in a lecture. Others like the technology and just enjoy using the pen.

The pen has other neat tools like a calculator and even a small keyboard so you can make your own music! There are several styles of notebooks, memo pads, agendas and journals available. The pen is available in the INDATA loan library, however there is a high demand for it. You can purchase this pen at the manufacturer’s store, Target, Amazon.com, or Best Buy.