For this assignment we were asked to chose a student or a group of students who we thought might benefit from the use of an iPod touch, and choose appropriate Apps for that particular student or group of students using the iTunes App store. After having played around with Apps on my own recently purchased iPod Touch, I initially thought...what student wouldn't benefit from using the iPod Touch! I have a funny feeling the day that iPod touches come in a class set like calculators is coming sooner than we may think. Needless to say, I had some difficulty choosing one student, and I was searching the iTunes store for apps, I heard my self continuously saying..."Oh! This App would be so good for so-and-so!" In the end...I decided on the following student...
Student Profile
- Entering Junior High in the fall (Grade Seven)
- Autistic, high functioning
- Very supportive family
- Age level academic cognitive ability
- Very articulate
- Excellent sense of humour
- Can be sensitive
- Easily becomes stressed or anxious
- Enjoys comics and wrestling
- Loves reading to younger children, and making up stories
- Enjoys using technology, and playing games on the computer
- Struggles with some social situations and peer relationships
- Difficulty making new friends
- Becomes frustrated when established routine is disturbed
- Becomes frustrated with poor decisions of peers
- Frustration can turn to anger, and subsequent head banging
I can see how addictive searching for Apps can be!! I could easily spend hours doing extensive "detective work" in the App store for a variety of students, but I decided to focus on free or inexpensive apps in my searches, so that I could afford to test them out! I know that there are many Apps that would target the needs of this particular student, but I decided to choose three apps that I felt this student would benefit from the most. The Apps I chose are the following:
Surviving High School is very much like a "choose your own adventure" story where the user is the main character. The user makes various choices relating to typical high school life and their decisions affect the outcome of the story. The user is faced with perplexing situations and gets to choose how they will react to the situation, thus deciding what kind of character they will be. It is fairly user friendly and is filled with real situations that potentially arise in high school. It is fun to play and seems to have an engaging storyline.
Angry Box is essentially a place to vent your anger, and would act as a good release of frustration. The user can post a message into their angry box, view angry messages from other people, and read famous quotes about anger. The App also moderates messages and screens inappropriate messages."Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned." - Buddha
Fluid is a sensory App that turns the screen of your iPod touch into a liquid like surface and is "totally interactive with your fingers." This would definitely keep any user entertained for a while, especially for relaxation purposes. As the user touches the screen the simulated liquid surface reacts. The default picture is water over rocks, but the background can be changed to to any picture you have on your iPod. The App also plays soothing music in the background, but the user has the choice to leave it on or turn it off.Why these Apps?
I believe all three of these Apps (along with a "few" others) would benefit this student in different ways in and out of the classroom environment. I now realize that there are various Apps that could achieve the same result, perhaps even some that would better suit his needs. I see how the search for Apps and the downloading of apps is as dynamic as as the student. I can easily see how the Apps on a users iPod would be constantly changing in order to best suit their needs.
I chose the Surviving High School App for this student because it offers choices about social situations that he will be faced in high school daily life....even junior high for that matter. At first I thought the high school setting may be too advanced for this student because he is only entering grade seven. However, after exploring a bit further, I can see that many of the situations would also arise in junior high. This is great because I could not find an App for the junior high level. This student struggles with many social situations, and has difficulty accepting the typical reactions of his peers as they all enter the awkward teenage years. I think this App would be a great way to explore social stories in a fun and interactive way. He could "play" the game, then possibly discuss his solutions to the problems that arise. It is a fantastic way to prepare him and get him thinking about situations that may arise, and to also open up a dialogue before he is faced with a specific situation.
I chose the Angry Box App for a very specific reason. This student frustrates easily in a way which may or may not escalate. Often his frustrations come when an outlet or a listening ear is unavailable. He does not have an EPA and if it is a time when the classroom teacher and learning center teacher are occupied, the situation is more likely to escalate. Entering a message in his own personal "Angry Box" may be the outlet he needs to begin the calming down process, until someone is available to talk through the issue. I can see this working for this particular student, especially if he knows the source of the frustration will later be addressed. However, I can honestly say that I do not see this working with all students who have anger management issues (a few come to my mind right away!) This just goes to show you that you need to match Apps specifically to students and explore them beforehand. I also see that the anger quotes in this App could act as starting points to discuss anger and frustration.
I chose the Fluid App purely for relaxation purposes. When I explored this App, right away I thought of this student. It has a very calming nature, and would be great as a technique to quell his stress and anxiety. This deep sensory App would offer the peace and control he needs to conquer situation
s that evoke aggression and stress and perhaps help him to handle them in a more meaningful and purposeful way.Exploring Apps was a fun experience! I can now see even more how iPod touches in the classroom would benefit a myriad of students. Now I am off to play with Apps on my own iPod!!
