Love it & List It Linky: Language Apps

I'm linking up for another fun "Love it and List it! Linky" hosted by Jenna at Speech Room News!  (See Jenna's original post HERE.)

This month's topic is Language Apps!  Here are my favorites (in no particular order):

1. Speech With Milo Interactive Storybook (Doonan Speech Therapy):  I love this app for many reasons.  Basically, it's great for my preschool kiddos.  They can listen to the story, interact with the pages, and record themselves retelling the events on the page.  Plus, it's a bargain at only $1.99!
2. Language Adventures (Smarty Ears, $14.99):  This app/board game can be used to target a variety of objectives and is a ton of fun for the kids!
3. Rainbow Sentences (Mobile Education Store, $7.99):  This is a great app for working on syntax, expanding utterances, and so much more! I wrote a full review on this app that you can read HERE.
4. Syntax Workout (Virtual Speech Center, $16.99):  I have a group of students who will do just about anything for a few minutes of "reward" with this app!  They don't mind "working" so that they can work some more with the app!  What's not to love about that?  This is another app I've reviewed in the past, check it out HERE.
5. Cookie Doodle (Shoe the Goose, $0.99):  OK, this is technically NOT a language app...but the language potential is endless! Follow the directions of the recipe, sequence the steps, decorate and describe a cookie.  There are so many things you can do with this app and the kids just love it!

And there you have my top 5 language apps!  What are yours?

App Review: Question Builder

When I first got my iPad in August of 2011, I was so excited!  To get started, I had purchased an iTunes card so that I could add a few apps.  At that time, there weren't nearly as many apps designed for speech and language use on the market as there are today.  This was one of the very first apps I purchased on my very first day of being an iPad user...

Question Builder by Mobile Education Store "is designed to help elementary aged students learn to answer abstract questions and create responses based on inference."  Who doesn't have students on their caseload working on improving their ability to answer questions?  I know I do!

Getting Started:

The first tab along the bottom of the app is the "Info" tab.  Selecting this tab will give you a written description of the app:

When you first open the app, you will be taken to the "Settings" portion.  You will be prompted to enter a new student for data collection purposes.  The app will automatically start up with the last student who used the app.  You can easily change the student or add a new student by tapping "Not You?"

From the settings screen, you will choose the settings you want for each specific child.  You can target questions by specific type (Why, Where, How, What) or include a variety of types (Random).  As with most of Mobile Education Store's apps, there are multiple levels of play.  You can also select color code reinforcement, text reinforcement, and audio reinforcement.  More on all of the settings in just a moment!

Once you have your settings selected, tap "Play" to begin!  Regardless of the settings you have chosen, you will be shown a picture and asked a question.  The student then needs to select the correct answer and tap select. They can also repeat the question if they need to do so.

If the student is incorrect, they will receive verbal feedback (e.g,. "That's not quite right," "You are really trying," etc.).  If correct, they will either receive auditory feedback alone, or receive feedback with a reinforcement cartoon like this car that popped up and danced after the correct response was given:

Now that you have an understanding of the premise of the app, I'm going to go back and talk about the different settings that are available.  First up, Level of Play:

• In Level 1, the student will be given three possible responses to choose from when selecting their answer.  
• In Level 2, they are given 4 possible responses.
• In level 3, they are given 5 possible responses.

Level 2 - 4 possible responses

Color Code Reinforcement:

Notice the red bar along that top that contains the target question?

Turning color code reinforcement off will remove the red bar:

Color code reinforcement removed from a Level 3 question

Deselecting Text Reinforcement will remove the question entirely:

This is a great option when you are working on auditory comprehension tasks and don't want a student to rely on reading the question.

If you have Audio Reinforcement selected, Question Builder will repeat the correct answer (e.g., "That's right.  The beaver ate the tree.").

Stats:
The last tab from the bottom menu (technically the 3rd, but it's the last one I'm talking about) is "Stats."  This is where you will find all of the data collection for your students.  You do not get percentages.  Rather you will be able to see how many correct answers a student got on the first, 2nd, and/or more attempts.  You can fairly easily calculate a percentage by adding up the total.  For example, in the screen below, this student got 70% of Level 1 questions correct on the first attempt and 30% correct on the 2nd attempt.  They got 75% of Level 2 questions correct on the first attempt and 25% on the 2nd attempt.

That's pretty much everything you need to know about Question Builder!  Here's what you should take away...

The Pros:

• Question Builder allows for multiple levels of play and a variety of supports, so you will be able to use this app for a wide age range of students.
• The reinforcement cartoons are cute and the kids always want more of them!  ("Can you make the car come back Mrs. Manchester?" -- "Nope. Only you can do that by answering more questions!")
• I've yet to have a student use this app and tell me they are done before I'm ready for them to be done...meaning that they have been actively engaged and entertained while working on needed language targets!
• Data collection!  Data collection is always a nice feature in an app and I don't mind that you don't get a percentage.  Like I said, it's fairly easy to calculate.  

Changes I would like to see in an update:

• Most of my students are non-readers.  It's great that this app reads the questions aloud.  However, there is no option to have the response choices read aloud.  I end up reading the choices myself, which works fine, but it's always nice to have a read aloud option.
• The data is cumulative...you can't view statistics from different dates.  This makes it difficult to montir progress.  You could jot down your data, reset the stats, and keep a record of a child's progress over time.

The Bottom Line:
Question Builder is a great app for working on a student's ability to answer questions.  The limitations are minimal and easily overcome.  The app has built in reinforcement that increases student motivation.  There are multiple levels and that allows you to use this app with a variety of age ranges.  Question Builder was one of the very first apps I bought when I first got my iPad and it was well worth the price ($5.99 in iTunes)!

Do you use Question Builder?  What is your favorite feature?

I do have a code for this app to give away, but you will have to keep your eyes on the Facebook page for more info!!

Disclaimer:  I was given a code for Question Builder to give away (I purchased my own copy), but the opinions expressed are mine alone. :)

AAC Week: Review of Speech Journal by Mobile Education Store

Welcome to the last day in this short series on AAC.  I hope you've enjoyed it, picked up something useful, and/or learned something new!  Today I wanted to share the app Speech Journal by Mobile Education Store ($3.99 in iTunes).  Although this app wasn't specifically designed for AAC, it is definitely applicable to AAC.  

According to the Mobile Education Store's website, Speech Journal

"is designed to allow parents and speech pathologists the ability to create customized versions of any targeted speech-language activity. Uses for Speech Journal include: picture sequencing, multi-step picture schedules, multi-step directions, articulation, expressive language exercises, building narratives, individualized social stories, practice conversations. Speech Journal can also be used as a personal diary and as a way to create family vacation photo slideshows.Any image from your photo album can be imported into Speech Journal...Speech Journal can also function as a basic voice output augmentative communication device for children with limited verbal ability."

How it works:

When you begin, you will need to create a new student profile.  The Speech Journals you create for each student will be saved (if you choose to do so) under their profiles.

Once you have set up a student, this will be the screen you see when you open the app.  You can change the student here if you wish.

Notice the three options along the bottom?  You have "Info," which tells you about the app, "Record," which lets you create your Speech Journal (above), and "Archive," where you can access saved journals (more on that later).  In addition, in the blue bar along the bottom, there is a link to watch a video tutorial on how to use this app.

When you're ready, you can begin creating a Speech Journal by selecting "Choose Image" from the screen above. You will be able to choose where the pictures will come from:  Photos or Camera.  I chose photos:

You will need to allow Speech Journal access to your photos the first time you choose this option.  Then you can choose from any photo in your camera roll.  The pictures above are from an album I created from Google Images (see my post on that HERE) for a student working on initial /k/.

Once you select the image you wish to use, you can add audio by tapping the "record" button.

From the next screen, you can play back the recording and re-record if you don't like it.  Now, if you wish to add other "pages" to your Speech Journal, you will tap "Choose Image."

You can see that you can either "Add Image to this recording" (add a page to the Speech Journal) or "Choose Image for New Recording."  A word of warning...If you select "Choose Image for New Recording without first saving, you will lose everything you've added so far.

You can add audio to this image by tapping "Continue Recording."  Continue like this until you are ready to save your Speech Journal.  Tap "Save Recording" and name it.

Once saved, you can access your Speech Journals in the "Archive" section.  "Play All" will play the Journal like a slideshow, complete with audio.  You can add to your story by tapping "Continue Recording."  You can also delete any recordings that you do not wish to save any longer.

And lastly, you can email the Speech Journal to someone.  It will include all of the photos, as well as the audio recording.

You can very quickly create Story Journals to work on a variety of targets:

• Articulation:  As I added pictures, I had a student record their productions.  We could play back and the student could judge accuracy of production.
• Sequencing:  I have a few students with a goal of describing a procedure with 3-4 steps in sequence.  For this Journal, I added pictures showing the sequencing of washing your hands.  I then had students practice describing each step.  At the end, they could hear their completed description of the entire procedure.
• Social stories:  You can take photos of the students during any particular activity and add the narration to complete a social story.
• Narrative skills:  Add photos and have students work on creating a story with beginning/middle/end, age appropriate grammar/syntax, etc.

Speech Journal and AAC:

Really the possibilities are endless with this app!  Since it is AAC week, I'd like to take a few moments talking about how this app can help students who require alternative and augmentative means of communication.

Parent Communication:

Non-verbal students who require AAC often are unable to tell their parents about their day.  I once worked with a teacher who used to send home a list of questions and a Step-by-Step Communicator. The mother would ask the questions and the child would activate the switch to answer the questions.  I thought this was a great way to establish a home-school connection with this family!

That was pre-iPad.  Now you can easily use an app like Speech Journal to take pictures of the child throughout the day and give a narrative account for the parents.  It is fairly quick to create a recording in Speech Journal and it's much quicker to speak a narrative than to write out a note!

In addition, many students are now using iPads as their communication devices.  If this is the case and the iPad travels back and forth, the teacher can create Speech Journals about the child's day at school and the parent can create Journals to inform the teacher of the child's time at home.

If the iPad belongs to your district and not to the student, that's not a problem! Just email the Speech Journals to the parent and you can still establish the same lines of communication!

Voice Output Device:  You can use Speech Journal as a basic voice output device.  Insert a picture, record a message, and have the child hit "play" as they would hit a switch.  For example, if you are working on a farm theme and want to have the children say the sounds that animals make, you can create a Speech Journal with animal pictures and record their sounds.  Now the child who is non-verbal can participate with their peers.

So, as you can see, Speech Journal is a highly versatile app that is great for working on just about any objective, including AAC.  This app is quite reasonably priced in relation to other speech/language specific apps as well!  You can find Speech Journal in the App Store.


Tell me, what objectives would you target using Speech Journal?

App Review: Conversation Builder

Today my co-worker, Stephanie, is going to share her thoughts on Conversation Builder by Mobile Education Store.  Take it away Stephanie!

I am so pleased to have the opportunity to review the Mobile Education Store app, Conversation Builder ($19.99 for iPad in the App Store, $7.99 for the iPhone in the App Store).  If you’re anything like me, teaching social language skills is a tricky area.  Despite my best efforts to portray a range of facial expressions, vocal intonations, sarcasm and humor – most of the time my kids probably just think I’m crazy!  They’re so right!   But, I digress… 

The Conversation Builder app is formatted very similarly to other Mobile Education Store apps, opening right up to the settings page.  All of the important set up information can be accessed very easily.  The first step to getting started would be to input your user information. 

You can manage your user information by selecting from existing users or creating a new user.   

 Now you are ready to modify your settings.  This is where things get interesting!  Since there are soo many different setting options, you are really able to customize the conversations to meet your student’s needs.  The “Conversation Type” allows you to choose:  a 1:1 conversation that lasts for 4 turns, a 1:1 conversation that lasts for 8 turns, or a group format which allows you to pass the iPad around the table and create a conversation between your group members.  

 The next setting option is called “Conversation Initiator.”  This feature allows you to set who will begin each conversation.  There are 3 choices:  your student, peer, or random mode. 

The last group of selections are called “Conversation Modules.”  These are theme based conversations about a variety of topics.  They include:  animals, friends around town, holidays, playground, water play and winter.  There are 20 different conversations, paired with a picture prompt, for each of these modules.  There is also a “Base Conversation Module,” which includes 6 or 7 conversations from each theme, for a total of 40.  Finally, there is a “Randomize” button, which randomly selects conversations from each of the theme modules. 

Now, its time to get talking!  When you press play, you move into the conversation mode.  A picture is presented, along with 3 multiple choice answers at the top.  Depending on the conversation initiator you selected, either a peer will begin speaking or the student will be prompted to think about “What’s the best way to start this conversation.”  Then, by looking at the picture prompt, you can make your selection from the above choices.  When an appropriate answer is chosen, the student is able to record their selection using their own voice.  The app guides you through each conversational turn until it is finished, with the conversation “partner” responding to your student’s comments and questions.  Finally, a box pops up that allows you to play back the entire conversation (using the student’s voice), save or email the conversation.  My student’s thought it was very funny to listen to a “conversation” between themselves and the iPad.  

For those students who could benefit from visual supports, you are able to tap the “History” button at the top of the conversation page.  By enabling this option, the conversation is displayed in text… just like texting would be on a smart phone, with different colors and page orientation for each communication partner.  

  

The bottom line…

• Like I said before, anything to make teaching pragmatic language easier is a plus in my book!

• Customization!!!!  There are lots of options to choose from so that you are able to select the correct starting point for your student, and move up from there. 

• My kids always LOVE listening to their own voice!  This was no exception.  It puts their own voice right in the conversation with the computer.  Extra giggles on that one…

• I liked the themed modules.  The themes are such that you could totally use this to practice socializing the whole year ‘round, and have it be relevant to our students. 

• I would like to see the multiple choice options have a “read” option, so that my non-readers wouldn’t need me to voice the selections. 

• I think a module for changing the topic of conversation would be great.  That came up a few times and I always answered incorrectly, because there was an appropriate “on topic” answer there as well.  If they were able to make it a “module” I would know when to expect it and explicitly teach my kids to look for it. 

It was awesome to review this app from the Mobile Education Store.  They tackle some difficult topics in their apps, and I have yet to be disappointed.  Keep up the good work!  Although Kyle from Mobile Education Store provided me with a copy of this app (and another to give away) in exchange for my review, the thoughts and opinions above are solely my own. 

Once again, thank you to my good friend Carrie from Carrie’s Speech Corner.  I am grateful for your generosity!  

~Stephanie

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App Review and Giveaway: Language Builder

It's no secret that the iPad has changed the face of speech and language therapy.  What an amazing tool to capture the attention and interest of some of our most challenging kiddos!  Today I'd like to share with you one of Mobile Education Store's first apps designed with SLPs in mind.  Without further adieu, here is Language Builder ($9.99 in the App Store)!

Language Winner was voted the 3rd best educational app of 2011 by AppsForHomeschooling.com and the 9th best educational app of 2011 by SmartAppsForKids.com!  

According to the app description, Language Builder is designed to help children accomplish the following educational goals: 1) Improve sentence ideation ; 2) Improve sentence formation; and 3) Improve receptive and expressive language.  

Let's take a look, shall we?

Info:

As with all Mobile Education Store apps, there is an "info" tab along the bottom.  Tapping this tab will bring you to a brief synopsis of the purpose of the app as well as how to use the app.

Settings:

From the settings screen, you can set up/add/change a student profile.  You can choose to have the "hint button" enabled or disabled, turn on/off audio instructions, change the level of hints, and select image themes.  You can also watch the Video Tutorial for more information.

The Available Image Themes include:

• Original Game Pack
• Inside Playtime Game Pack
• Places Game Pack
• Winter Game Pack
• Pets Game Pack
• Sports Game Pack
• School Game Pack
• Water Game Pack
• Hobbies Game Pack
• Medical Game Pack
• Playground Game Pack

You also have the option of randomly selecting from all of the themes.  

From the settings screen, you can select one of three different hint options:  Hint Level 1, Hint Level 2, and Hint Level 3.  We'll see more about these in a minute.

Play:

You will be shown a picture and prompted by a voice recording to "make a sentence about the picture."  There will be three buttons - "Record," "Hint," or "Skip Picture."  As you can probably guess, tap "Record" to record the child's response.  "Skip picture" will move you along to the next picture.  (All the levels begin the same way...the hints are the what changes.)


Hint Level 1

Tapping "Hint" on Level 1 will give you a fill-in-the-blank sentence with two blanks:

Hint Level 2

This time you are shown just the beginning of a sentence and the student must complete the rest.

Hint Level 3

On this level, when you tap "Hint," you will be given two words to use in the sentence.  For this example, you are told to "Use the words 'big' and 'sky' in your sentence."

Notice that you can record your students' responses?  Once you record, you can play it immediately and/or save the recording for future analysis.

When you save the recording, you are prompted to give it a name.

Archive:

The last tab along the bottom of the screen is "Archive."  This is where you can see the recordings that you saved.

Tap on a saved sentence and you will be able to play the saved sentence, delete the sentence, or share the sentence.  Tapping "Share Sentence" will attach the image and audio clip to an email, which you can send to yourself, teachers, and/or parents:

In case you want to see some more samples of the target images:

And that's Language Builder in a nutshell!  Here are my thoughts:

The Pros:

• Real-life photos.  The photos are great for depicting action.  Students will be able to relate to many of the images as well.
• Simple, yet effective.  This app is simple to use, but can be used to target many different objectives - sentence formulation, pronoun use, present progressive verb tense, articulation carry-over, monitoring voice and fluency strategies, etc.
• Recording feature.  What student doesn't love to hear their own voice?  This can be motivating for some of our kiddos who would not complete this type of task in a flash-card format.
• Archive feature.  This is a great feature when you want to keep pre/post test data. I also love that you can email the recordings to yourself so that you are not taking up too much space on your iPad.  
• Ability to add multiple players.
• The different hint levels allow for scaffolding with students.  From any given picture (before you record), you can change the hint levels to provide more/less support as needed.

The Cons:

• No multi-player option.  I don't know about you, but most of my sessions consist of groups of students.  You could come up with a profile of "Language Group" and save recordings with the child's name.  
• There is no audio for hint levels 1 and 2.  Not a major con, but most of the students on my caseload cannot yet read, so I need to read the hints to them.

The Bottom Line:

Language Builder is yet another quality app from Mobile Education Store!  Language Builder is great for targeting sentence formulation, but can also be used for a variety of other objectives.  You could also use this app with a variety of age ranges.  I love apps that are versatile and Language Builder is definitely one of those apps!

Could you use Language Builder in your practice?  Kyle was gracious enough to provide a copy for me to give away.  You can enter using the Rafflecopter below.

Disclaimer:  Although Kyle from Mobile Education Store was kind enough to provide me with a copy of Language Builder to review and another to give away, the opinions expressed in this review are mine alone.

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App Review & Giveaway: Rainbow Sentences

I've seen a few reviews out there for Rainbow Sentences and I really didn't think it would be appropriate for the students on my caseload (mostly preschool, some kindergarten).  When Kyle from Mobile Education Store asked me if I'd like to try it, I was a little hesitant.  However, I knew it would be a great app and I was very curious to see it in action.

I was right! Rainbow Sentences is a great app!  I was also VERY pleasantly surprised with how well it worked with my little ones!

How it Works:

Once you open the app for the first time, you will be prompted to create a new student profile.  (You can enter multiple students with this app, but you can only take data for one student at a time.)

After that, you are taken to the "Settings" screen:

About the Settings:

Audio Instructions

This one is fairly self-explanatory.  On:  A narrator gives you step-by-step instructions.  Off:  You do not get the instructions

Correct Answer Reinforcement

If you have this option selected, when a student arranges the sentence correctly, a verbal reinforcement is provided ("That's right.  The correct sentence for this picture is...").  If you turn this option off, you do not get the verbal reinforcement.  Rather, you will move on to recording the correct answer if that option is selected.  

Record Correct Answer

This is one of the best features of all of Mobile Education Store's apps!  Once a student selects an appropriate answer, you have the option of recording the student saying the response.  You can turn this option off, but I can't imagine why you would want to!  Most kids love to hear their own voices.  Plus you can compare the narrator/student production.

Complexity Level

Level 1:  The student has to arrange two elements to form a sentence:  

Who/what the sentence is about + what they are doing.

Level 2:  The student has to arrange three elements to form a sentence:  

Who/what the sentence is about + what they are doing + where they are doing it.

Level 3:  The student has to arrange four elements to form a sentence:  

Who/what the sentence is about + what they are doing + where they are doing it + why they are doing it.

*In all three levels, some of the sentences have an additional element:  what the subject is doing the action to.  Here's an example:

Line Color Coding

You can choose to have the blank lines (where you drag the words) color coded or not.  If you do not choose color coding, the lines will be black:

Line color coding "off"

Word Color Coding

Just as you can choose to use color coding for the lines, you can choose color coding for the words.  Again, if this option is turned off, the words will appear in black:

Line & word color coding "off"

Color Themes

Another really neat feature!  You can use the standard "default" color theme, or create your own!  Just give your color scheme a name and select your favorite colors for each sentence element!

Word Grouping

You can choose to have the students order the sentences by individual words or by groupings of words.  Here is a scene with word grouping on and one with word grouping off:

Word grouping on

Word grouping off

Using the App

Once you have your preferred settings selected, tap "Play" from the bottom menu bar.  You will be shown an illustration and prompted to "drag the words to make a sentence."  

You can tap the words to hear them spoken.  Once you have the words in place, you can tap "Play" to hear your sentence read aloud.  When you think the sentence is correct, tap "I'm done!"  If you are not correct, you will be told "That's not quite right.  Try again."  If the student needs help, you can select "Play lesson" to hear a short tutorial.  

If you have the "Record Correct Answer" setting turned on, you can choose to record the student's response or move on to the next sentence.  You can save the recordings in the student profile.  They will save to the "Archive" screen on the bottom menu bar.

saving a recording

archive of recordings

Another fantastic feature is the data collection.  Notice the "Stats" button on the bottom toolbar?  If you tap that button, you will be shown a summary of the student's correct/incorrect responses.  You can then email the stats to a parent or to yourself.

data summary

See the "Show my puzzle" button?  Rainbow Sentences has built-in reinforcement.  For every five correct responses, the student is rewarded with a puzzle piece.  When the puzzle is completed, it becomes a short animated clip.

Puzzle reinforcement in progress

Puzzle completed

What I like about this app:

• Versatility!  Yes, there are three levels of complexity.  Beyond that, though, you have the line color coding and word color coding options.  Turning those off will increase complexity within each level.  This means that you can use this app with a wide age range!
• The color coding!  Because of this feature, you can really use this app with children who cannot read. The kids I used it with cannot read, but were able to match the colors and imitate the sentences.
• The illustrations.  They are bright and colorful.  Some are relatable...others are silly...they are all engaging!
• Data collection.  Need I say more?
• Built in reinforcement.  

What changes I would like to see:

• I really wish I could think of something to write here, but I really can't.  (I think this is a first for me!)

The Bottom Line:

I'm a fan of Mobile Education Store and their apps for language development.  With that said, I was very pleasantly surprised by Rainbow Sentences!  It really surpassed my expectations (even though my expectations were already high).  I thought for sure that this app would only be beneficial for students who are able to read.  Really, if a child can match colors, they will be able to benefit from using Rainbow Sentences.  I think this is a must-have app for expanding expressive language skills! 

Rainbow Sentences sells for $7.99 in the App Store.  Kyle was kind enough to provide another code for me to giveaway!  Enter using the rafflecopter below.

Disclaimer:  Although Kyle at Mobile Education Store was kind enough to provide me with a code for this app review, and another to give away, the opinions are 100% my own. :)

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