We have all read about the wonderful program at the Princeton House Charter School, and the devotion of the parents, teachers, and therapists to the Autism population that they serve. They are a leader in the use of Bluebee Pals for therapeutic use, but what were the apps they mentioned? What is this cutting-edge school using to enhance learning and interaction?
The apps utilized at the Princeton School Charter House in conjunction Bluebee Pals confirm the tremendous impact of technology in special needs classrooms.
** Sheela Sweredoski used Text to Speech App with Reading Activity involving using Dynamic words to expand writing
Bluebee Pals are the one consistent measure to help with that transition every step of the way! By playing the learning app with Bluebee and then using either a book or voice recording to reinforce the lesson with your trusted friend – it helps make the lessons stick with the use of Bluebee as a support and reference point with transitions of materials.
**Carissa Thompson holding Sammy Bear used Proloquo2Go (preprogrammed buttons to ask questions) with Pete the Cat Story. speech therapists: Hannah Kennedy (in the classroom with Carissa) Megan McGovern (speech and language apps and “made visual supports with bluebee via Boardmaker Online software”)
The teachers at the school use Early Reading Skill Building apps, and then pair the apps with activities from familiar books and pictures to help the students generalize the materials being taught.
**Lauren Feel used Early Reading Skills Builder Curriculum
Here are a few of the apps the teachers and therapists are using with Bluebee Pals
Early Reading Skills Builder Curriculum http://www.attainmentcompany.com/ersb – This is a blended curriculum using traditional tools and manipulatives to create an immersive experience. Using Bluebee helps improve motivation and attention by being a non-threatening presence in which to deliver material.
“Text to Speech Apps with Reading Activities 
involving the use of Dynamic words to help expand the ability to write,” said one teacher at PHCS. Favorite Storybooks from Oceanhouse Media, Spinlight, Speakaboos, and many stand-alone books have a read to me option, that can be used to allow Bluebee to communicate the story. Many books have been reviewed on this site under Blogs. It is nice to set up a cozy reading corner with Bluebee whispering the text in your ear. He/She is always ready for a grand story or two!
Proloquo2Go is an AAC app to enhance communication for children that lack a means for verbal communication. At the Princeton House Charter School, teachers are using this app in conjunction with preprogrammed questions for such popular class stories as in the Pete the Cat series. This allows Bluebee to ask questions, have children follow directions, and engage them in conversations to increase their pragmatic/social language skills. Here is a review of the site by our very own Rebecca Eisenberg, MS, CCC-SLP at https://bluebeepals.com/?s=Proloquo2Go
Therapists have made visual supports for Bluebee via Boardmaker Online software to accompany a story or as a precursor to using AAC apps or other devices. Boardmaker has been a standard in the industry for pictorial presentations and visual schedules. Using pictures helps a child learn the sequence of familiar tasks and activities and to identify icons that are most often used in AAC software.
Autism iHelp Apps is a suite of apps that teach vocabulary. It can be scaffolded from presenting a picture, pairing a picture with a label, and then needing to identify the picture from a field of 4 objects. The photos are clean and crisp, but more importantly, clutter-free. There are many options to customize this to a specific child. The app also includes a data collection feature.
Super Duper Publications has an app for everything speech related.They build in fun with their games and activities so children begin to use language in a fluent manner. Learning sticks with these activities, as the material is relevant to its use, and children can then apply it accordingly. Check out their suite of apps under the search “Super Duper Publications” in the iOS app store.
Smarty Ears, another company with fun and fabulous apps for speech therapy, and has a wide following with their suite of apps for parents, teachers and speech therapists. Articulate it was created for and by speech pathologists. They cover a multitude of themes to relate to any child’s interest area. Each app is customizable and has a stellar data collection feature. The apps are flexible for use at home, in the classroom as well as in a therapy clinic.
Splingo Apps, by the Speech and language Store LLP, is another company with exceptional apps for speech and language acquisition. Follow Splingo the Alien around whilst honing your listening skills. Kids listen to Splingo’s instructions and act accordingly to help Splingo build his spaceship to get him home. Kids get a kick out of Splingo and the app can be used with early learners using 1-2 words (18 mos.) all the way up to kids following 4 step commands.
Check out the videos and the comments from the staff of the Princeton School Charter House under the Bluebee Pals Project!