Autism Apps

Touchscreen tablets and apps have revolutionized learning and communication for individuals with autism. Picture AAC app utilizes their visual learning strength to help them learn to communicate effectively. Picture AAC app is based on time-tested picture communication and is already being used in 30+ countries worldwide.

Since the launch of iPad tablet, many special education professionals, therapists, parents and caregivers worldwide have discovered that many children with autism are highly receptive to using apps to learn and communicate. This discovery has been reported by major news media and educational news media in the last 1 year including:

Although still early days and some caution needed till in-depth clinical research are available, the anecdote evidence from parents and special needs professionals have been promising.

Touchscreen apps are helping individuals with autism to learn and communicate in a new way that utilized their visual learning strength. Many autistic individuals have shown keen interests in using the iPad and iPhone due to the ease of interaction with the devices and the visual responses from the apps. For a comprehensive list of apps available for autism and other special needs, check out iAutism.info, Autism Speaks, Apps for Autism Wikispaces , Autism Plugged In , AppyMall and NYTimes.

The needs and abilities of people on the spectrum differ greatly and for many of them the existing communication/AAC apps out in the market are either too complicated to understand or are too basic, poorly designed, resulting in that they are not able to use it to communicate their needs and feelings effectively. We, at Hearty SPIN, wanted to develop a communication/AAC app with an interface simple enough that even individuals with moderate-severe forms of autism; those with challenging learning difficulties; or individuals with other low functioning special needs, are able to use and yet it is functional and effective enough for their daily communication.

This led us to spend months researching and worked with several special education teachers, speech therapists and other professionals in the design, trial and development of Picture AAC app. Like the simple yet highly effective picture communication book/binder (with laminated physical picture cards attached on Velcro® ), Picture AAC app, which runs on iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch, enables nonverbal children/adults with autism to use a picture-based augmentative/alternative communication system to communicate effectively. Picture AAC app is now used by several special education teachers, speech therapists, speech language pathologists in schools, children therapy centers and by many parents/carers with speech impaired/delayed users in 30+ countries across Europe, Middle East, Asia, Australia, Canada and US.

Picture AAC appRead on to find out more on the benefits and details of Picture AAC app.

 

 

 

Picture AAC is trademark of Hearty SPIN. All pictures and user interface design in Picture AAC app are copyrights of Hearty SPIN.