Simon Sound It Out!

Simon S.I.O. (Sound It Out) is software program from Don Johnston that provides beginning readers with individualized instruction and corrective feedback.  Similar to Starfall, Students navigate through Simon systematically and at their own pace as they learn phonics and word families.  Students also practice spelling, differentiation of similar words, and reading newly learned words within texts.  Simon collects data during every activity and produces detailed progress reports so that teachers can monitor student progress.  One great feature of Simon is that teachers can listen to students reading word and sentence recordings and analyze overall scores from activities.

Students who need extra time and practice learning letter sounds, word families, and blends will most likely benefit the most from Simon.  This program is also single switch adjustable for students with motor disabilities.  Simon is an excellent supplement to any early classroom phonics instruction!

To find out more information about Simon SIO Pricing visit http://www.donjohnston.com/products/simon_sio/pricing.html 

Reading is Fundamental

Reading is Fundamental's mission is to motivate young children to read by working with them, their parents, and community members to make reading a fun and beneficial part of everyday life. RIF's highest priority is reaching under-served children from birth to age 8.  RIF is the largest children's nonprofit in the USA.  RIF prepares and motivates young children to read by providing free books and literacy resources to children and their families.  RIF is available in both English and Spanish, so it would also be a great tool to use with ELL students.

The section of RIF that I use most with my students is "Leading to Reading" for children age 0-5, more specifically the "Preschoolers" section.  Once you are in the preschoolers section you can choose from several categories including read, sing, play, explore, and doodle.  There is also a separate section for grown-ups where parents and or teachers can visit to gain ideas and resources for encouraging literacy skills in young children.  

In the Read section there is a great selection of story books.  The books are read to the child, highlighting each word, at a moderate pace.  This encourages early reading skills and comprehension.  All of the stories are beautifully illustrated and animated and include sound effects and background music.  My students have come to love these stories and have even memorized a few! In the Sing section there is a great collection of songs for children to listen to.  Much like the story books the song's lyrics are highlighted as each word is sung.  On the Play tab there are games to enrich learning literacy.

This website is a great tool to enrich student learning both inside and outside of the classroom.  It is an excellent supplement for early childhood education, special education, and ELL students.

E-Books for Kids!

MeeGenius is an excellent reading resource for young children.  MeeGenius is available on the web as well as in the App Store for Apple devices for free, however you need to purchase the books to go along with it.  Some stories are free, and I love that MeeGenius has a lot of classic children's stories.  As a Pre-K teacher in this day and age I am noticing that a lot of the classic stories and nursery rhymes I learned when I was younger are not so common with these young kids.  MeeGenius brings story-time into the 21st century as it makes books fun and easy to read along with, all while promoting comprehension skills.  

There are two options for each story, "Read to Me" or "Read it Myself".  When you choose "Read to Me" the stories are read aloud at a moderate pace and the words are highlighted as each one is read in order to aide children in the development of reading skills.  MeeGenius would be great to use in a reading center, or as a whole group story time.  Either way it is a great technology to use with young children to enhance their reading skills.  

Start Your Engines!

Little Sky Writers is an excellent writing technology for use with early learners.  This interactive app is available for the low price of $1.99 in the App Store for Apple devices.  Using this app children learn to write their letters by navigating a plane of their choice through a series of letter-shaped flight plans.  Students who use this app will learn to form their letters correctly every time while gaining hands on writing experience.  This app is great for Kindergarten readiness preparation as well as a writing supplementation.

With three levels of experience, children can gradually work their way to mastery.  Once they have completed all the levels they receive a certificate.  In addition to learning how to properly form letters, there command tower "Roger" also teaches the sound of each letter and provides some examples of words that begin with the letter.  

  

In my own classroom I purchased a few stylus pens (similar to these:http://www.dano2.com/pages/appcrayon) for the students to use while interacting with Little Sky Writers so that they also gained practice holding a pencil and working on maturing pincer grips.

Learn to Read with Starfall!

Starfall.com is a free service available on the internet that can be used as a teaching supplement to help children learn to read through phonics.  Starfall's use of phonemic awareness and systematic approach to phonics suites early learners, Special Education, and English Language Learners.   Starfall's reading program is great for young children.  The website is extremely kid-friendly, as it is easy to navigate and its colorful, interactive design proves to be fun and engaging for students.  The use of praise and positive reward helps motivate learners and builds their self-confidence as they learn to read.  The website is also full of teacher companion tools for educators to use in addition to the website.  Starfall's first level of the systematic approach, "ABCs", is also available as an app for Android and Apple tablets and phones for $2.99.  In my own experiences, my students love to play with this app.  They have a great deal of fun hearing, seeing, and interacting with the letters and their sounds.

Welcome to My Blog!  

Here you will find some information on assistive technology, more specifically reading and writing technologies.  I will highlight some programs and apps that teachers can use with students in order to enhance their learning in the areas of reading and writing.  Hope you find this information helpful!