Percentally Pro is back with version 2! In full disclosure, this means there's a separate app for the 2nd version of Percentally Pro. You might be asking yourself why is that. Well, the 1st version included dependencies on the iOS calendar and iCloud integration, both of which turned out to be very detrimental. First of all, users had to agree to let the app access their calendar in order to schedule sessions in Percentally Pro. Then, data in the app was not reliably transferred across devices by iCloud. Finally, and worst of all, users were losing student data. As a result, we had to build a separate app that removed the destructive dependencies. We built our own scheduling system, and we implemented local storage to store data in the app. Through testing, we found the 2nd version to be a[...]

Apple has said that Apple Watch would be coming in early 2015. And lately there have been rumors about the device shipping in March. As a developer, speech-language pathologist (SLP), and a presenter of iOS apps for special needs, I need to anticipate the device’s impact on our profession. Recently, I have been researching the platform more, so I’d like to share what I know and how an SLP may use Apple Watch. For the initial rollout of Apple Watch, 3rd party apps will be extensions of iOS apps; that is, the apps will be part of existing apps for iPhone/iPad, as opposed to standalone apps that function without an iOS app counterpart. In fact, developers create a Watch app as a target of an existing Xcode project, similarly to how an app may have free and paid versions as targets in the s[...]

Expressive Solutions LLC is pleased to announce the release of Percentally Pro for iPhone on the App Store. Percentally Pro is a robust data collection app that tracks educational goals via sessions for students with special needs. The scheduling component of Percentally Pro helps special educators such as teachers, SLPs, and OTs to organize and manage student data. Percentally Pro enables you to create goals in a goal bank, add students and assign goals to them, then schedule and run your sessions. With a minimal amount of setup, you will be up and running quickly! Features - Schedule sessions that are repeating or single instances - Track minutes per session automatically or manually - Collect data (tally or percentage-based) - Indicate whether tallies are correct with promp[...]

Here it is: summertime. A time when many adults are wondering how they’re going to keep children engaged and entertained during all of those free hours. Whether you are a speech-language pathologist (SLP) providing services as part of Extended School Year (ESY), or a parent with your own child to amuse, a new trend could be just what you need: coding for kids. Many schools are jumping on the computer programming bandwagon and offering children the chance to learn basic coding skills. But, with schools still reeling from the Great Recession, many kids might not have access to such classes yet. No worries. You can easily include coding in speech therapy to target expressive language or introduce it to your own child with some great mobile and web apps. No need to worry if you don’t know a[...]

If you are looking for a fun way to target social communication skills, as well as beginning computer programming, Robot Turtles is a great new board game you can play with your students (with or without autism). Robot Turtles requires players to use simple commands to move their turtles to capture a jewel on the game board. When students give commands, they are replicating the process computer programmers use to give instructions for a computer to execute. Games, in general, provide opportunities for social communication; Robot Turtles in particular involves specific interactions between the game players that enable more opportunities for social communication. For students who show an interest in games and computers, playing Robot Turtles can be a highly engaging way to practice social co[...]

“Honey, please set the timer to ten minutes.” Whether you know it or not, when uttering these words, you’re speaking in developer terminology. A developer is a person who creates software such as apps. A developer writes code, which is a series of commands - otherwise known as instructions - for a computer to execute. Why would you even care about knowing this terminology? Software is all around us, in our personal and professional lives. As technology continues to advance at a rapid pace, new developments impact us whether we embrace them or not. As adults, we can choose to keep pace with these changes or do our best to ignore them. But, for the children we serve in our practice, there is an increasingly accepted feeling that learning about technology is a necessity, not a choice, if t[...]

When we heard about the death of the beloved Maya Angelou yesterday, one word immediately popped into our minds: fortunate. This may seem like an odd choice, but allow us to explain. We had the privilege of hearing Maya Angelou speak at the 2012 ASHA Convention in Atlanta, Georgia. She was humorous, captivating, and so incredibly wise. You couldn’t help but feel that you were in the presence of a great soul-- a kind-hearted woman who overcame tremendous obstacles by virtue of her fierce determination and positive attitude. The energy in the room pulsated with every story she told, every nugget of wisdom she bestowed upon us. It was a once in a lifetime experience for all who stood in line early in the morning, coffee in hand, to be electrified by her words. Among the many lessons she[...]