NACD telephone seminars are available as podcasts!

NACD is one of several neurodevelopmental organizations.  Here is a link to their mini site on Down syndrome if you would like to learn more:

http://downsyndrome.nacd.org/index.php

I had heard that NACD was doing a series of telephone seminars a couple of months ago, but was away from home each time they were on & couldn't listen to them.  I just found out that they are available as podcasts & am thrilled to be able to listen to them now.  I downloaded them this morning &  have only had a chance to listen to about 10 minutes of the first one on Down syndrome, but so far I am really enjoying it.  I appreciate the fact that they waste no time and start talking about important concepts right away. Here is a link so you can enjoy them too:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-national-association-for/id426566512?ign-mpt=uo%3D4

The new OT

Last week, was my daughter's first visit with her new OT.  K gets PT & OT at the same time, so the PT that she has seen since she was 3 weeks old was there also.  The OT was trying to get an idea on where K was with her fine motor skills, and the PT explained that K is doing very well - actually she had always been at age level or even a little ahead in fine motor skills.  The OT produced this puzzle as her first activity: 

K not only is very adept at this type of puzzle, but she kows all of these shapes & more.  She took the first puzzle piece & clumsily tried to stuff the star in to the square shape.  Slowly with a lot of help from the PT, she managed to finish the puzzle. The PT & I watched in amazement!

Next they stacked blocks. K placed the first block, then set the 2nd block precariously to one side of the first.  She continued this for several attempts, never managing to stack more than 3 blocks at a time.  Her delight in playing with the OT became more evident to the PT & myself as time went on! I think the OT was really beginning to doubt the PT and I when suddenly K decided to do a complete 180 and show off - what a little stinker!  She then stacked all of the blocks  perfectly before crashing them down - there were more than a dozen of them!

Next it was time to cut a piece of paper.  K's ND is not recommending any cutting activities for her at this time, so we have not been practising at all.  K picked up the scissors and was easily able to cut the paper in half. The OT then got out a piece of paper with a line on it and K cut straight down the line. Even I was suprised that she could cut like that with no practice!

There's never a dull moment!

Hunting For Easter Eggs!

I've never claimed to be a photographer, so please forgive the quality of my pictures. lol!  I thought this would at least give a little peak into our Easter morning.

Mmmmmm............chocolate!

Easter Fun!

We had a  great time today dying Easter Eggs.

Careful concentration!

The finished product!

Our iPad Case

When we bought our kids an iPad for Christmas, we were concerned about keeping it safe. K is quite good with it most of the time, but she is still a 3 year old and occasionally forgets. I had bought an otterbox case for my iPhone, and have been very happy with how durable it is. My phone has survived numerous bumps, including being thrown from the upper balcony down to our hardwood living room floor. When I went looking for an iPad case I was relieved to find that they also sold iPad cases. I feel a lot more secure with it in this case.



If you are interested, here is a link to my post about our favorite apps:

http://downsyndromeupupupandaway.blogspot.com/2011/04/apps-k-loves.html

Signing Time videos are 50% off until midnight on the 20th!

Signing Time is a big part of how we taught K to sign.........and the main reason that she knows way more signs than the rest of the family. We kept up for the first couple hundred, but after that, we just couldn't do it!

Here is my previous post on our experiences with teaching our daughter to sign:

http://downsyndromeupupupandaway.blogspot.com/search/label/sign%20language


Here are the Signing Time websites:

The U.S. website:

http://www.signingtime.com/

And in Canada:

http://www.signingtime.ca/?gclid=CKbJ95zuqagCFYS8KgodR0MVHw

Why I luv Specs4Us - a picture says a thousand words!

K has worn glasses since she was 9 months old.  We had a very difficult time even finding a pair of glasses to fit a tiny 9 month old.   Her first pair were a terrible fit, but fortunately, we found out about what was at the time, a brand new company called  Specs4Us. They make glasses designed specifically for kids with Down syndrome.  I think the thing that I enjoy the most about this company is the incredible customer service. This company has always gone above and beyond the level of customer service that I have come to expect.  The first time we ordered glasses, they even sent me a few pair to try on to be sure that the fit was correct.   My daughter's glasses got broken last year after a horrific accident that I'm sure no pair of glasses could survive !  It was on Valentine's day, which was a Sunday.  I sent of an email to the owner, Maria Dellapina, certain that I was not going to receive a reply at least until Monday morning.  Within the hour, on a Sunday, I had a reply!  Now that's customer service!

The other thing I really appreciate about Specs4Us is their durability.  The bottom pair in the picture below is from about 10 months ago - my daughter isn't always easy on her glasses!  She is getting better thanks to a change in opthamologists & a more appropriate prescription, but that's a whole other story! If I remember right, this picture was from the time that K's glasses got run over by a large 4X4 truck. I really didn't expect them to be saved, but, after warning me that they likely wouldn't survive, the optometrist was able to bend them back into shape without them breaking.  We are still using these glasses. They have been bent back from similar shapes to this about ten times, but they are still going strong! I have never seen a pair of glasses as mangled as hers have been several times, that have been brought back to life!  

check out the bottom pair -10 months ago........

and tonight - still as good as new!

Here is a link to Maria Dellapina's Specs4Us site if you are interested:

http://specs4us.com/



A few minutes a day is really all it takes!

A lot of people are turned off to teaching sight words to their kids because they think it is a huge, undertaking of time - it really isn't.  Preparing cards takes a little longer, but there are premade cards or reading programs that require little or no preperation.

We loosely follow a Doman reading program to teach our dd to read.  Our flashcard sessions have always been very fast. I have a farm, a home business, a couple of volunteer positions, and 4 kids who are involved in sports, etc. - for many reasons, I need to be efficient! I also believe that babies and little kids learn very quickly. Much more quickly than adults and by going slowly, they can easily become bored and lose interest. Even now, with such a strong love of flashcards and words, if I pick up a set of cards and slowly wander through them, K will quickly lose interest and walk away.

I can't emphasize enough, how much of a difference speed has made to our reading program. Some programs encourage matching and other games. Other programs say to make sure the child knows each word before moving on. Neither of these things would have worked for us for 2 reasons.

1. My dd was only 6 months old when we started (sporadic as we were then) and nonverbal. Even when we became fairly consistent at 18 months, although we weren't certain at the time, she still had a reading level that exceeded her vocabulary even if you include sign language. That, and the fact that we were careful not to let K feel any pressure, meant that it was a long and sometimes excruciating wait to see if she was retaining any words or if we had been wasting our time for almost 1 1/2 years! Had we wanted to be sure that she learned each word before we continued, we wouldn't have been able to start so young.

2. K wouldn't have, and still won't stay interested if we go over the same words over and over. Presently we are showing 40 to 60 new cards a week ( I. The beginning it was only 5 or 10. We have settled into aschedule of doing cards 5 days a week - she pretty well knows them by day 3, has them down cold by day 4 and as a day of review. If we forget to change them that, you can tell she is starting to get bored - she will insist on holding the cards herself, and generally just become difficult. She is always excited to get a new set of cards!

When K was a baby, our flashcard sessions took 1 minute 4 times a day at the most. Right now our flashcard sessions take less than 5 minutes each, still 4 times a day.



A few minutes a day has been a better return on my investment than I ever imagined!


UPDATE:  I times a flashcard session tonight to see how long it actually takes us.  K is learning 51 new words this week - we didn't do nearly this many when she was young.  Because he flashcards don't often contain pictures now, we often quickly flip through them 2 or 3 times.  Even doing this, her entire session was done in 3 minutes & 32 seconds. 

Beading and Lacing - Finally We Hit the Jackpot!``

K's occupational therapist  has been suggesting that K try beading for a long time.  We try to follow her interests as much as possible and choose activities that she enjoys.  I believe kids learn better when they enjoy the activity.

This is the first set we bought.  We
thought the large beads would be easy for her to thread.  K hated them!

Next we tried these beads. She refused to use these ones for the purpose of beading too.

P

We even tried using pipe cleaners because the OT said it would be easier for her.  She hated that.

Next we tried sparkly pipe cleaners, and guess what?  She hated that too.

It wasn't a complete waste though.  She loves pouring beads from one cup to another, counting, sorting by color & many other games - just not beading!

We found these neat little containers at the local dollar store. 

  K would spend 1/2 hour at a time pushing beads through & sorting them - they are great for strengthening little hands!...............just not for beading!

Lacing cards were recommended too, but of course - she hated them!

Then, the other day, I found this set at a local rummage sale!  It was a 50 cent purchase!

She loves the sea animal pics!

She did the octopus with minimal help, & finished off the dolphin her sister started! It just goes to show what can happen when you follow your child's interests - and have a little luck on your side!

As a side note:  many of the early learning toys (everything on this page except the dollar store containers) we purchase come from 2nd hand stores or rummage sales.  I am very choosy about what I buy, but have gotten some great deals!  I couldn't afford 1/2 of this stuff otherwise! I do clean everything with natural cleaners before using them and they are as good as new!

and I thought spring was coming!

It sure looked like it a couple of days ago!

Spring photos and a conversation with K

It has been a very long winter here with more snow than we have had in years, but last week we had a wonderful warm day.  Dressed in their farm clothes, my younger two had a great time exploring, and just doing all of those things that kids are supposed to do during this season.

Playing in the last remaining snow banks

Chasing and being chased by our friendly cats

Jumping over logs & playing with sticks

A couple of days later, K & I took a look at these photos on the computer.  She loves looking at pictures and  it is a great way to get her talking.  When we looked at the first 3 pictures, she talked about being happy, playing outside, the cat, the snow, her sister, and all of the typical responses that I was expecting.  However, when we looked at the above picture and I asked how she was feeling I was surprised when she said  "I was sad. "  I didn't expect this, as I thought they were both having a good time, so I asked her why & she responded "That was scary! My foot stuck." It turns out that she got her foot caught & her big sister had to rescue her.  I didn't like to hear that she was scared, but how wonderful that she was able to tell me what happened.

I'm so excited! I get to share!

I got a call from a Down syndrome organization that is a few hours away from my home yesterday.  They would like me to speak to their parents group next month, about my experiences in teaching K to read.  I am so excited to be able to share this information in person!  I am so convinced of our kid's potential & really appreciate being able to hopefully inspire other parents! Now, cross your fingers for me that K decides to show off on that day!  She is often a ham now - as long as everyone is watching!  But................I think I'll bring a few videos along just in case!

Learning about money

K loves flashcards - any kind of flashcards!  I found these cards at a rummage sale the other day.  They are about telling time, identifying & adding money. 

Some of those concepts will wait for a later date, but I thought why not teach her about coins now?  She already insists on being the one to pay when we are at a store! We've been looking at these cards for a few days now & she can already identity the coins on the cards, so I started getting her to sort real coins.

I was trying to include her in the picture, but K was in a mischievous mood today - she grabbed a couple of cards & ran away giggling!

My heart is breaking.......................

With tears streaming down my face, I just left a birthday wish on the blog of a another mom for her sweet little 6 year old boy. Birthdays are supposed to be a happy occasion, but my heart is breaking for a mom I've never met and her son whom she has not yet had the opportunity to meet. He was born with an extra chromosome in a country where children like this are not treasured and adored in the way that Christie and I would. Somehow, for 6 years Alexander has managed to survive in an orphanage and has recently been transferred to an institution. It breaks my heart that any child should live in these conditions, and without a mother to protect him.

Please check out Christie's blog and if you can find it in your heart, please donate help bring AJ home to his Mom, Dad and brothers so that he doesn't spend another birthday alone.

http://taylorvillethree21.blogspot.com/2011/04/alexanders-birthday-blitz-april-10-17.html

Sensory Play - Popcorn

This was one of K's favorite sensory play activities.  This is best very closely supervised because there is a choking risk with the unpopped popcorn.  We were lucky that K stopped putting things in her mouth fairly early.  She still enjoys this occasionally, but when she was about 2, this activity would keep her occupied for almost an hour at a time! 

You can expand on this activity by having your child count the animals, sort by color, type, etc.  We would change the objects we added fairly often.

This picture is from last fall.  We varied the activity by adding Halloween shapes.

Speech Brag.....................I think?

K attends preschool 2 days per week for about 3 hours a day.  She is fully mainstreamed in a typical preschool.  K talks fairly well at school, but is not quite as relaxed there as at home, so  they have been working on getting her to use longer sentences.  Yesterday, K's teacher informed me that K had used a complete 6 word sentence.  She was speaking to the assistant teacher & told her:  "I am going to kick you"................Again I am in that funny place of being so proud when maybe I shouldn't be :) LOL!  Oh, & in case you are wondering?  She got an immediate time out before she could follow through, just as she would have at home.

Baby Days - how can you stimulate a newborn?

When K was a newborn, I started reading  up on things you could do to stimulate a newborn.  Often I could find very little information. I'm not sure if there wasn't a lot out there or if maybe I just didn't know where to look because there seems to be a lot more just a few years later. I thought I'd share my list of some of the ides that worked for us. I'll probably remember a few other things later, & I'll add them if I do.

Some of this list will be common sense, but here are some of the things we did:

I was very determined to breastfeed -  here is that story:

http://downsyndromeupupupandaway.blogspot.com/2011/02/9-years-later-my-breastfeeding-story.html

We talked to K a lot, but we always waited for her to respond.  If she any kind of little noise we responded to it like she had very important things to say.

We sang to her.

When we carried her, we would dance, sway, spin in circles etc.   We gave her lots of vestibular stimulation, all the while carefully protecting her neck.

We explained things  a lot.  For example: "This is the kitchen where we eat dinner.", " That is our dog, Her name is Snowy"   "We are going to town to buy groceries to eat.", Often it was very simple things like these, but I think it really helped expand her knowledge & vocabulary.

When K's older sisters were newborns, we would very gently pat them dry after a bath.  With K, we were still gentle, but I patted, rubbed, & allowed her to feel a variety of different kinds of touch. 

We  had a bag of sensory objects that we would rub over K's body such as a smooth stone, a bath mitt, a piece of silky material or a piece of fun fur.  We also talked about water in her bath being warm or cool.

We did baby massage almost daily, using an organic, and edible oil so her body was not absorbing any toxins. We made sure we went over her whole body right down to her fingers and toes.  There are many  reason for doing massage, but a big one was to help her realize that she had hands, legs, etc.  The sooner she discovered her body, the sooner she could use it to become mobile.

We used sign language almost from day 1. I recommend at least a few very basic signs to allow your baby to make important requests for things like food & drinks, & more importantly, to let them realize that they have the ability to communicate See my earlier post My Views on Sign Language here:

http://downsyndromeupupupandaway.blogspot.com/2011/02/my-views-on-sign-language.html


We allowed K to look at simple black and white images and put some on the ceiling or the wall beside her bed for her to look at if she happened to be awake in her bed. We made sure to change her crib toys often so she always had something new and stimulating to look at.

We played classical music such as Mozart and Bach.

We talked about sounds we heard in the environment, "Oh, did you hear the dog bark?".

We also talked about things we smelled, " Oh, can you smell the pretty flowers?"

K did a lot of tummy time. At first she hated it. The whole family was involved in getting down on the floor with her and encouraging her to stay on her tummy longer. As she got older, we read books played with toys and did anything else we could think of to encourage her to spend increasing amounts of time on her tummy.

We almost always dressed K in comfortable clothing that allowed her to move easily.  We did not swaddle her unless we felt she needed it for comfort, again, so she could move easily.

She began sleeping on her tummy at quite an early age, likely because of all the tummy time,  and although, the common belief is that babies are safer on their backs, it is pretty hard to argue with a baby who insists on sleeping on their tummy and instantly rolls over when placed on their back. Ever since K started sleeping in her crib, we have used a mattress cover that is supposed to prevent SIDS and after some more researching I became more comfortable with her sleeping on her tummy. In hindsight, I actually really appreciate it for the core strength benefits.

We tried not to use any sort of device such as bouncy chairs, swings or even strollers any more than necessary. we substituted tummy time wherever possible. We carried K as much as possible rather than use a stroller because being carried necessitates use of some muscles to help balance and allows for a lot more social interaction.

As I said earlier, tummy time was a high priority, however, we made a few exceptions. Supper time is family time and we wanted K to be a part of this. As an infant, we would set her in a bouncy chair in the middle of the table so she could be an active participant - carefully supervised of course - you never know when a baby will surprise you! As her strength increased we used a Bumbo chair, but again, these were the rare exception to our "no baby devices" rule. We also used the Bumbo chair when eating out and set it right in the middle of the table. We really tried to let her experience everything.

We stimulated K's vision by  moving interesting toys with contrasting colors back & forth for her eyes to follow.

We encouraged K to hold onto our fingers & eventually her strength increased enough that she was able to hang from our thumbs.

Winter can be very cold here. At times, all of my babies had to have a blanket over their infant carrier because the air was just to cold for them. I never gave this a 2nd thought with my older kids, however with K I was very conscious of only using a blanket when necessary. I was also careful to choose blankets with stimulating patterns and made sure the pattern was on the inside so she could enjoy it. We always had toys on her car seat handle and made sure we changed them often.

We did not learn about crawling tracks until K was a little older.  Otherwise we would have started that right away too. We did start using it around 6 months, if I remember correctly, & K was crawling independently by 8.5 months. Here is a link to my earlier post on crawling tracks:

http://downsyndromeupupupandaway.blogspot.com/2011/02/learning-to-crawl.html

Lastly, down time is also important.  Although we were careful to stimulate K as much as possible, we tried to respond to her cues when she had enough too.  Everyone needs down time and we really tried to respect K's need for it.

Wow!  that list looks long, now that I've typed it out!   It looks like a lot, but most of things things just fit into our day.

Webinar on Breastfeeding Little Ones with Down Syndrome

 Here is a link to a free parent webinar on breastfeeding with Brian Stotko & co.  This webinar is very informative.
http://breezemsprod2.tch.harvard.edu/p93272789/

Kindergarten.com's ABA Apps are Free for the Month of April!

I heard about this over on Brandie's blog  http://livinforthelove.blogspot.com/   I love these apps & already have all of their free ones.  So, like the one track minded kind of gal I am,  tonight I finished downloading every single one of them!  They really are good apps though!  Just search for kindergarten.com in the app store.

Gifted, advanced, high functioning. low functioning......labels or excuses?

I really don't like any of those words.  They are labels and whether one's perception of these words is good or bad, they are still labels & categorize the people they describe.  Labels give parents an excuse to treat their child in certain ways.

The other day someone told me they thought my daughter is reading because she is very high functioning.  I in no way want to take the credit away from my daughter for how well she is doing, but I also have to ask myself:  "Is she reading & learning other concepts so quickly because she is "high functioning" or is she "high functioning " because we gave her the opportunity to read (amongst other things) & consequently to learn so many basic facts, as well as the improved speech that came along with that.

Last week I read a comment on a forum by a parent whose typical son is also reading at 3 years of age.  I  had to giggle when I read about how someone told him that his child could read only because he was "gifted", and that typical children could not learn to read at age 3. I'm still giggling as I type this, while my own "gifted child" is occupying herself nearby reading a book.

That parent said that their child couldn't learn to read because they weren't gifted.  Are these excuses?  My child can't do this because they are not high functioning or only gifted children can learn to read this young.
.
Sorry if I sound harsh, but I think sometimes labels are an excuse for not giving it a try.  Don't get me wrong, if you aren't intereseted in teaching your child to read or learn other skills that's your choice, but don't refuse to try because you don't think they can do it.  What have you got to lose if it doesn't work?  Exposure to new vocabulary? Speech practice? Time spent with your child?  If that is the worst of what happens & your child never learns to read, or doesnt learn those skills, it doesn't seem like a terrible waste of time to me. High expectation are the best gift you can give your child.

BrillKids now has a Forum for Parents of Children with Special Needs.

This is a brand new forum & I'm excited to have a place to talk about early learning for kids with special needs. Check out the forum here:

http://forum.brillkids.com/parents-with-special-needs-children

All I want for my birthday is..................................

a box of lucky charms cereal?.......................

This was my newly turned 12 year old's one birthday request............. and no, I don't totally deprive my kids, although, I don't keep this kind of cereal in my house either.  Oh, & this wasn't her only gift :)!

I am careful about what I feed all of my kids.  That doesn't mean I don't give them any treats.  They still  get junk food more often than I would like, however I try to keep most of their diet very healthy.  I am especially careful about K's diet because I figure that if her body is already having to work a little harder due to that sometimes pesky extra chromosome.  Why make it work even harder to digest junk or allow it to run on a less than adequete fuel? 

With rare exceptions we avoid processed foods, artificial flavorings, artificial colorings, and MSG. My kids do get treats & probaby  more sugar than I would like, but  we try to find healthier alternatives.  We buy a lot of organics.We make treats like home made icecream using whole ingrediants including raw sugar. They are allowed the occasional organic, cane sugar sweetened pop or candy.  If they are out with friends & want a treat or are offered something, they are allowed - nothing ( except aspartame) is completely forbidden, we just try to substitute healthier choices when possible. 

The other thing I try to do is use all  natural soaps,skin products, shampoo's etc.  Your skin is the largest organ of your body & absorbs whatever skin or hair products you are using. If it can't go into your body, I believe it shouldn't go onto your body.  Either way it all ends up in your body, so we try to avoid chemicals in this way also.

When to start teaching phonics?

Since we started teaching K sight words, my plan has been to begin teaching her phonics when she is 6 or 7. I agree with articles such as this one:

http://www.specialhelps.com/Articles/PhonicVSSightReading.htm

that explain why a younger child will usually have difficulty learning with phonics, however, I have also heard the experiences of early sight word readers starting to intuit these rules and be able to begin to use phonics to figure out words much earlier than this. I have always found this intriguing, yet never really understood it until recently. I'm still not 100% sure, but at least I have a theory now!  Is it possible that kids can be taught phonics earlier, but with a sight word approach rather than learn phonics rules in the traditional way?  It is the only solution that I can come up with and has helped me to figure out where to go next with K's reading program. We are almost done with the Dolch word list (up to grade 3), as well as phrases that we have been working on.  Next, I am going to work on groups of phonics words. The biggest reason for my new theory?  K has started to figure out new words by herself!  The most recent example is her ability to read the word "Poc" on my older dd's helmet. This is definately not a word we have taught her. K is doing this more and more and I'm excited to see if this new direction in learning words will boost this emerging ability!

The great debate - Phonics VS sight reading

My question?...................Why is this even a debate?

We have mainly done sight words with K, but my intention has always been to teach her the rules of phonics when she is old enough. In my opinion both are necessary. Today as you go through your day, pay attention to how often you need to use phonics. Very seldom right?  I hadn't thought about this until a few months ago. I was actually kind of surprised at how little I use phonics. I can go days, sometimes weeks, without needing phonics. Does this mean I think phonics is unnecessary? Not at all.  We can't learn every single word in the English language by sight, just like we can't sound out every word in a language that has many words that don't follow any rules. Both are necessary and K will be taught both.

Apps K loves - Updated May 25

I got an iPhone back in December and we quickly became entranced by it's educational possibilities. We were hooked and soon bought an iPad. K's fine motor skills have always been right where they should be for her age, however, I've been very pleased to notice an improvement in the short time that we have had an iPad. This list will be a work in progress and I'll try to add to it as we discover new ones.

SUPER WHY- literacy game based on the TV show.

Timmy's Preschool Adventure - I love that this app involves thinking and reasoning skills as well as basic math skills such as counting and patterns.

HW deluxe - this game involves spelling a word by moving letters into the correct place.  You can use hints so the child matches letters or leave them off so the child has to figure out the letter order themselves. We started with the lite version, but K enjoyed it so much that we quickly purchased the deluxe version.

Park Math HD - math games of varying levels - K loves this one!

Monkey preschool lunchbox - Various games - some letter stuff, etc., but mostly math.

Kindergarten.com - there are a wide range of flashcards apps. They have wonderful clear, concise pictures and a written word that is also spoken aloud.  These are free!

iTouchiLearn - this game has 3 different degrees of difficulty, from a simple touch the picture to see a short movie clip which includes a written and spoken word, to a match the word game.

BB magic lite - Bob books on the iPad - this app has imple phonics games to go along with the Bob's books. We have the lite version and it is a favorite.

Dress-up - just how it sounds - when K plays everyone is dressed in multiple layers!

Talking Rex - K loves this dinosaur! This app is great for getting kids talking. It is quite hilarious to hear this T Rex giggling, calling out to family members, making animal sounds and the many other silly things K says to it.  You can also play fetch, feed it, etc.

The above apps are K's Favorite educational apps. Much to my surprise, along with the rest of the family(except me), she loves Angry Birds. She also shares a couple of favorites with my 8 year old such as LPS ( littlest pet shop) and snowboard.

Many of these apps have lite versions that can be tried out first and several of them are free. We have actually only paid for a handful of the apps on our iPad.



UPDATE - May 25/11 - Here are a few new favorites:

ilanguage - Language Builder - This is a great app for language skills.  The app displays various scenes with people, pets, etc.  The child is encouraged to say a sentence about the picture which is recorded & can be played back.  This is one of K's recommended speech activities, so it is a perfect activity for her right now.  You could also have your child use only one or two words or for a nonverbal child I still think it would be great to do with someone else recording the sentences for them to listen to.

Peekaboo - this is a simple but cute app that would be great even for babies.  An animal can be heard behind the barn doors.  Tap the screen & the animal is revealed - it is a very cute guess the animal game.  K doesn't play it anymore, but I thought I'd add it because younger kids will really enjoy it.

Tangrams - fun puzzles

Brain-Go - This app has five pictures.  The child must put the one that doesn't match in the trash can.

NLC Autism - this app is the opposite of Brain -Go.  An item is displayed & the child must decide which category it fits in.

Word Magic - This is another spelling game.  A word is displayed with one letter missing.  There is a picture & the word is spoken.The child must choose from several letters at the bottom to fill in the missing letter.

Sequencing - 3 pictures are shown & the child must place them in the order of first, next, & last.

Nature Appy - This app has high quality animal pictures, and includes animal sounds & the word.

Magic Piano - Even babies will have fun with this one!

PaintSparkles - I just downloaded this one tonight - K hasn't even played it yet, but I think it's really cool :)! I like that a voice announces each new color that the child choices.  This would be great for kids who don't yet know their colors.  There are sparkles & music each time the child draws.