Assistive Technology Thoughts

Well I just finished all my assignments on Assistive Technology. I had no idea that the Imac and Windows had so many free tools for those who need special assistance. I mentioned in an earlier post that I had a student who brought in his own equipment. Quite honestly I think most of what he had was already available if you just search out all of the helpful tools. I think the iMac is far ahead of Windows in what they offer. They have incredible tools to convert and speak or text information for users who have problems in these fields. Why spend thousands of dollars on equipment if most of what you need is free and available? Some of the gizmos they had available when I researched products for my PowerPoint assignment were extremely expensive. If I get any other special needs students who fit this criteria I will look for ways to help them in the classroom....for free.

Assistive Technology...Making a difference to that Child

I remember reading the story of the starfish. For those who aren't familiar I have posted the story below (thanks to starrbrite.com).

The Starfish StoryOriginal Story by: Loren Eisley

 One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed
a boy picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean.

Approaching the boy, he asked, What are you doing?

The youth replied, Throwing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them back, they'll die.

Son, the man said, don't you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can't make a difference!

After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish,
and threw it back into the surf. Then, smiling at the man, he said
I made a difference for that one.

I think this reflects my views of what assistive technology does for students with specific needs. It makes an incredible difference to that one child as they are introduced to a piece of technology aimed at helping them achieve an equal footing in the classroom. After studying video and reading about this alternative for students, who traditionally had been held back, the future looks bright in many ways. One area of concern is the reality of funding for expensive pieces of equipment. With budget cuts and people struggling with staying afloat in life, how are schools and families going to be able to overcome the cost of these machines? As a teacher at a shelter I have had one instance of witnessing how assistive technology  makes a difference to a student. As I mentioned in a previous post, I had a young man who was legally blind enter our shelter. With him came a computer with special attachments. When I assigned students to complete a Powerpoint, he was able to use the  devices to zoom in and develop his own presentation. The other students all wanted to work with him because they were fascinated by how the device brought everything to a large view. This was much more than a mere magnifying glass. He had tools of all types to focus and adjust as he needed to. I pray that we will be able to afford machinery for each child (or adult) in need of assistance in the classroom.

Thanks to our friends at Factmonster.com for the educational and entertaining way our US coins are made. I just ordered my annealing furnace from Amazon :).

How Coins Are Made

Source: The U.S. Mint

Step 1: Blanking	The U.S. Mint buys strips of metal about 13 inches wide and 1,500 feet long to manufacture the nickel, dime, quarter, half-dollar, and dollar. The strips come rolled in a coil. Each coil is fed through a blanking press, which punches out round discs called blanks. The leftover strip, called webbing, is shredded and recycled. (To manufacture the cent, the Mint buys ready-made blanks after supplying fabricators with copper and zinc.)
Step 2: Annealing, Washing and Drying	The blanks are heated in an annealing furnace to soften them. Then, they are run through a washer and dryer.
Step 3: Riddling	The shiny blanks are sorted on a “riddler” to screen out any that are the wrong size or shape.
Step 4: Upsetting	Next, the good blanks go through an upsetting mill. This raises a rim around their edges.
Step 5: Striking	Finally, the blanks go to the coining press. Here, they are stamped with the designs and inscriptions, which make them genuine United States coins.
Step 6: Inspecting	A press operator uses a magnifying glass to spot-check each batch of new coins. Then all the coins go through a coin sizer to remove any misshapen or dented ones.
Step 7: Counting and Bagging	An automatic counting machine counts the coins and drops them into large canvas bags. The bags are sewn shut, loaded on pallets, and taken by forklifts to be stored in vaults. New coins are shipped by truck to Federal Reserve Banks. From there, the coins go to your local bank!

What I Know About Assistive Technology

I haven't done any research on this yet but I believe assistive technology relates to students with special needs. I have encountered this in my classroom. I had a legally blind student for awhile and he had a special tool to help him magnify the screen for him. This was a way to help equalize the field for him to do projects just like anyone else. I have seen many professionals who are paralyzed and many use assistive technology to help them communicate, live, and lead professional lives. This is what I think assistive technology is.

Yo, Yo, Yo, Check out Flocabulary

Here is a great site to connect students with their current music likes and learning. Flocabulary.com is a lot of fun for students and mixes rapping with education. As I write this I am still singing the last tune I listened to about multiplying by 7. As teachers we need to take the standard learning and somehow bring it to a level that will get kids excited about learning. If I have the students sing old songs they might enjoy it but if I have them sing along to raps they will be much more aware and walk away with more understanding. The site covers six different areas with each one have numerous sub groups and sub, sub groups. The most obvious one is math. It covers multiplication, division, subtraction, and addition. The science section has a number of fun songs to help students learn. Social studies, language arts, vocabulary and even the week in rap are covered in this fun learning tool. You really need to try this in your classroom and I believe you will get students much more involved and excited about learning.

Internet4Classrooms is Da BOMB!

Okay so I have been reviewing a number of websites during the last few months. I have come across many incredible sites to help teachers and students in the goal of learning, but I was absolutely blown away by Internet4Classrooms.com. If you want resources at your fingertips PLEASE check this website out. I was in discovery mode for about a half hour and I still haven't come close to uncovering all the gems this site offers. To start off with they offer the brain teaser and question of the day to use. I thought this would be one problem or question but it goes much further than that. The brain teasers section provides numerous links to come up with unique ideas regarding brain activities. The question of the day can be customized to a subject or area you want. Many links are ready to take you a fun question you can use in your class. The SAT/ACT section allows anyone to practice a particular area of need. I love how the standards are available to browse through and links are available for lessons tied directly to that standard. WOW, what a great tool this is. Countless links are ready to hook a teacher up with informative and unique ideas about teaching students needed areas. But wait, how much would you pay now? The tech tools tab is filled with tremendous helps on Excel, PPT, numerous applications, and an unbelievable amount of 2.0 tools. This includes bogging, podcasts, video, and so much more. All this and I think I have barely scratched the surface. Please do yourself a favor and check this website out when you get a chance.

Check Out ChartGo!

Need a chart quickly? You could pull up Excel and spend time creating a chart...or you could go to ChartGo.com and quickly create a customized chart by simply selecting what chart you want and clicking a few buttons to customize the style. I spent a few minutes on the site and in about 2 minutes created a lovely chart. With a few more clicks I was able to enhance it even more. For the student on the go, this is an excellent tool to help students complete a chart quickly. As a teacher I might want to show this to my students. Unless the lesson is for the student to learn how to work in Excel, I would recommend using this website to my students. As a working professional going to school I appreciate tools to help me complete work efficiently. Check it out when you get the opportunity.