iPad

We took the plunge, we made the jump,
The cost of it made my heart thump.
The iPad's here, and it will stay,
Elinore improves her skills each day.

Elinore's speech is so much clearer since we started engaging with the iPad. Her special instructor brought it for her therapy, and in one week, things had already begun to change. Matching games made no sense to her, and in the second iPad session, she understood the concept. Colors that we have been working on for months with no apparent success, suddenly are being identified with 75% accuracy. Her speech is more understandable. Maybe it was just time for another leap in development, but I personally believe the iPad had a huge impact.

So, deep breath, we bought one.

We chose the iPad over another brand tablet from the heavy chatter in the homeschool universe about educational apps, autism apps, and speech apps. Although Elinore does not have a diagnosis of autism, she still has some quirky, autism-like traits. Just like exercise does not benefit only fat people, autism strategies and apps can still be helpful to those with a different diagnosis.

Elinore has become a very techy tot. She knows how to open and close apps, find the ones she wants, and watch movies on Netflix.

Here are some apps she enjoys, in no particular order:

Angry Birds- I still can't believe she can play that (free version)
Easy Bake Oven- Even grown-ups enjoy designing cupcakes, and there are oodles of options (free)
Miss Spider's Tea Party- It's a book, it's a movie, there are puzzles, matching, and painting; many toys in one app (currently free)
Monkey Preschool Lunchbox- Our first app purchase, used in special instruction, and wow, she shows off her skills in puzzles; this is the one that helped her gain skill in identifying colors ($1)
Trunky Puzzles- I downloaded the free version, and Jeff bought the whole pack; Elinore adores these (free and pay options)
Lego Duplo Zoo- Follows a story line, and you can construct small duplo items in the story; we also got Lego Creationary (free) and Lego Harry Potter (bought on sale for $1)

Elinore is now capable of clearly saying, "Mom, Hannah took my iPad!"