Virtual teaching has made learning apps for special education more important than ever. With students learning remotely, these apps can help them work toward meeting their goals and give teachers the ability to track and gather data on their progress. It is a sign of learning in the 21st century.
The apps below are a great list of tools that can help your special education students practice the skills they need to succeed. Many of them run on multiple operating systems and platforms, but some are specific to a particular operating system. Whichever learning apps you choose to use, make sure that you test them out yourself before assigning them to your students. It is essential to know how they work so that you can help your students troubleshoot any issues.
Learning Apps for Special Education
Dragon Dictation
The Dragon Dictation app is a helpful tool for students who need help getting their thoughts into written form. Students speak, and the app turns their words into a written format. It is helpful for visually impaired students, students with dyslexia or dysgraphia, and those with other learning disabilities. It works on both iOS and Android devices. There is a monthly subscription fee for using it.
Sequence It!
Designed to help children with autism understand sequences, this iOS app allows teachers and parents to create sequences that they can present to their children for practice. It also comes ready for play with pre-made sequences. Another similar app that is also for iOS is Sequences for Autism. This one is priced under $5 and is available for the iPad.
Word Magic
Word search puzzles have never been so fun and kid-friendly as they are in this app. It is designed for both iOS and Android so students can use it on a variety of devices. It allows children to practice identifying and digesting words instead of merely observing them. There are no ads in the game, so it is an excellent choice to share with students.
Read Along Books
The Read Along Books app is designed to read to your child for up to 20-minutes a day. The stories are kid-friendly, and the text is highlighted as it is read. This helps children follow along and recognize words as they are said. It is also helpful for ESL students who need to hear the pronunciation of words in the text. It is available in both iOS and Android formats.
Check out this list of apps that will also read text aloud to your child.
Miogym: Speech Therapy
This app promises to transform speech therapy into a game where learning how to move the mouth and face is fun. The first two levels of the game are free, but there are subscription plans for subsequent levels. It was designed for use on an iPad.
Talking Calculator
With a big, bold design, this app allows students and teachers to use a calculator that talks to
them. Not only does it say the numbers and symbols, but it also tells the answers to the
problems that are entered. The app is only available for iOS and works on the iPad and iPhone.
Remember that no matter what app you select to use with your students, it must be something
that interests them and is easy to navigate. If they have trouble accessing it or there are many
glitches in the system, it will frustrate both of you. So, choose wisely and make sure that you
have a thorough understanding of any app you assign to your students before giving it to them.
