Tag Archive for: Social Skills Apps

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Social-Emotional Apps for Special Ed

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November 2, 2015

Photo credit: Jayne Clare

Social and emotional learning (SEL) is the cornerstone of emotional intelligence, as these abilities do not come naturally for some special education students. Children in special ed settings need to have their confidence, courage, and emotional awareness nurtured in order to successfully play, work, cooperate, and be productive in their studies. We have all heard that technology can be a great playing-field leveler in a classroom with diverse learners. It can also assist in providing social and emotional skills. Let’s face it — the digital lifestyle is here to stay, so using digital technology to enhance SEL makes perfect sense.

However, I have yet to encounter research that focuses on the effectiveness of using apps designed solely to enhance the social and emotional health of children. Researchers and educators have only begun to closely investigate the impact of these technologies on SEL. For special ed teachers, that research can’t come soon enough.

Young children acquire and utilize their initial social skills mostly in the context of play and shared activities. Through play, they form their first interpersonal interactions and develop important social skills related to empathy, cooperation, conflict resolution, and self-control, which will be used throughout life to maintain healthy relationships with others.

9 Skill-Building Apps

Several apps can be used in the classroom or at home to assist in reinforcing social and emotional learning while also helping kids cope with the pressures that we all face. These apps can help teachers and parents in addressing students with special needs, and many are also available in a web format.

    1. Breathe, Think, Do (Sesame Street) teaches children to keep calm and carry on by introducing three possible strategies for working through problems. It touches on familiar emotional challenges such as problem solving, self-control, planning, and time on task. Intended for very young children, this simple app gives players different scenarios in which the Blue Monster character needs to regulate his or her emotions using the breathe-think-do technique.
    1. Touch and Learn — Emotions (Innovative Mobile Apps) is chock full of wonderful photographs representing four different feelings per page. The child is prompted to match the verbal cue with the appropriate photo. This app focuses on helping kids read body language and understand emotions by looking at pictures and figuring out which person is expressing a given emotion.
    1. Avokiddo Emotions provides opportunities for younger children to explore a wide range of feelings through several silly characters and a plethora of props. This app incorporates activities to help children understand the subtle cause and effect of facial expressions. The main idea is exposing young children to a variety of feelings and helping them grasp emotional connections with those feelings.
    1. Emotionary (Funny Feelings) is designed to give a wide age range of kids the tools and skills to express themselves well in our world of emoticons. The app has become a popular resource for the special needs population. This collection of emotions and funny feelings now allows users to draw their own emotionary “selfie” to match how they are feeling.
    1. GoNoodle is a wonderful web-based way to get younger kids out of their seats and moving. These short physical activities provide brain breaks that can help keep them focused throughout a long day. Studies have shown that physical activity increases blood flow, which increases concentration and attentiveness. This enhances students’ ability to acquire and recall information. These activities make them cross the mid-line of the body, engaging both sides of the brain. GoNoodle provides teachers with fun, interactive ways to get kids moving and feeling good about themselves.
    1. IF. . . The Emotional IQ Game (If You Can) promotes teamwork and collaboration, accentuating how to be in touch with our own feelings and the feelings of those around us. With this app, kids (recommended ages 9-11) learn to listen, make friends, and deal with bullying in an adventure story/game format. IF’s motto: “Play Learn Grow: Succeed at school with friends in life!” This pretty much says it all.
    1. The Middle School Confidential series is a powerhouse of SEL lessons by tween/teen expert Annie Fox. The book/app series for ages 8-14 is a graphic novel sequence focused on making stepping-stones out of stumbling blocks on the road to becoming a teenager. Readers follow the adventures of a group of seventh-grade friends trying to navigate the ever-changing drama of their friendships, families, and school. Excellent resource!
    1. Stop, Breathe & Think (Tools for Peace) promotes mindfulness, meditation, and compassion for middle and high school students and adults. Research has shown that people can develop kindness and compassion by focusing on them through mindfulness and meditation practices. You can cultivate your frame of mind in a very short timespan with simple meditation.
  1. I would be remiss if I didn’t include the The Social Express in this collection of apps. Its quality content keeps students engaged and on the path to mastering healthy social and emotional skills. Research-based webisodes give kids the exposure necessary to develop meaningful relationships and become more socially competent in all realms of life. This program covers the gamut from preschool through high school with a robust SEL curriculum.

The Puzzle of Tech Use

Most students with or without disabilities can and do benefit from SEL-focused technology in the classroom. Incorporating these tech tools should increase student incentive to learn through individualized lessons, especially when tailored to a student’s specific needs. When done well, tech not only reinforces key SEL skills that children need to learn, but it can also drive student enthusiasm and promote self-assurance.

This topic may seem like an oxymoron since we want children to learn how to focus during “real time” and how to live with less tech. A wonderful TED Talk addressing this conundrum is Sherry Turkle’s “Connected, but alone?”

Do you know of any digital SEL resources for special education students? Please tell us about them in the comments below.

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Great Review of App: Social Skills Coping Strategies for Kids

Common Sense Media Reviews My DPS, by The Social ExpressThanks to Common Sense Media for a great review of a social skills app for kids from The Social Express: My DPS, Digital Problem Solver!

My Digital Problem Solver Helps Kids with Social Skills Coping Techniques

Here is an excerpt from the review of our social skills coping app for kids:

What parents Need to Know:

Parents need to know that My DPS is an excellent app to teach emotions and problem-solving techniques. The app focuses on identifying a variety of emotions through facial expressions, body language, and written/spoken language, and suggests coping strategies to deal with a range of social situations. My DPS is short for “My Digital Problem Solver” and uses CGI-animated videos to show social situations and coping skills in settings relevant to kids.

My Digital Problem Solver app, by The Social ExpressMy DPS is an excellent app to help teach emotions and social problem solving techniques. It’s easy to use, can be customized to show a variety of emotions, and teaches valuable everyday life skills. The CGI animations are impressive, and the app’s music is calming with comforting lyrics. The app would be even better if it had a spoken text option for non-readers and a way to import video to customize coping strategies options.

That said, My DPS is a fantastic tool to help kids learn effective coping techniques. You can read the complete review by clicking here.

What kids can learn

Kids can learn to identify emotions and successful coping mechanisms, as well as hone interpersonal skills to help them manage a variety of social situations. The CGI animations also help kids handle stress by developing self-reliance to move beyond emotional obstacles. The in-app visual and aural cues are accessible to kids with developmental and learning differences. While the aural and video cues can’t be modified, still picture and text cues can be customized to match specific emotions and coping strategies. The customization options and impressive animations help make My DPS a great way to learn about emotions.

Common Sense Media is a great resource for parents looking to find the best apps to help their kids. Find out more by visiting their website by clicking here.

 

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Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism & Social Learning Startup Donate to Schools with Autism Classes

The Doug Flutie Jr Foundation for Autism Partners with The Social ExpressSan Diego, CA and Framingham, MA—(PRWeb) October 23, 2012—The Social Express™, creators of new interactive social skills programs for special needs children, has partnered with The Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism and donated copies of its program to schools who teach children with autism.

“We’re very proud to donate The Social Express learning program to The Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism,” said Marc Zimmerman, CEO and Founder of Brighten Learning. “After using our program, teachers tell us that students are extremely receptive to its social skills lessons like ‘talking about what others like to talk about’ and ‘being part of the group’.  Many ask to use the program everyday.“

Zimmerman added, “Educator feedback also tells us that The Social Express characters engage students so well, they’re able to begin learning tough social concepts. We’re excited to share the program with more schools!”

The importance of technology to enhance children’s learning in the classroom is widely accepted. For children with autism, laptop computers are especially helpful but are out of reach for many schools with autism specific classrooms.

The Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism has long recognized this fact. In 2000 the Laurie Flutie Computer Initiative was created for the purpose of donating computers to underprivileged families of individuals living with autism as well as to schools with autism-specific classrooms.

Chris Chirco, Program Director at the Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism, stated that, “The Flutie Foundation is excited to partner with The Social Express.  Computer technology has become a key component in the education of many individuals with autism spectrum disorders and The Social Express offers a very visually stimulating and engaging interface that is sure to appeal to children on the autism spectrum.  Learning social skills can be critical for an individual with autism to succeed independently.”

Computers are given to schools with autism-specific classrooms that could not otherwise afford to purchase them. To date the foundation has distributed close to 500 computers to families and schools in New York and New England.

In its initial phase, The Social Express is a 16-lesson interactive video-modeling social skills learning program. Parents, professionals, and educators of special needs children like the high-quality, Hollywood-style animation that holds their attention without over stimulation and the scenes that reinforce the best choices for kids to make in social situations.

Children with autism, ADHD, Asperger’s, and other social-emotional deficits find the characters engaging and many ask to use it every day. Learn more about The Social Express by visiting the website: http://thesocialexpress.com/

About Brighten Learning, Inc.:

Brighten Learning™, founded by parents of autistic twins in 2008, is a privately held company based in Encinitas, California.  The company develops The Social Express™ and other interactive social skills software and learning management systems. The company’s mission is to help special needs children with social-emotional deficits to improve their lives. The company’s video modeling social skills learning programs help children with ADHD, Autism, Asperger’s, and related disorders to improve their interactions with others. Visit the company at http://thesocialexpress.com/

About The Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism:

The Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism, Inc. was established in 1998 by Doug Flutie and his wife, Laurie, in honor of their 20  year old son, Doug, Jr. who was diagnosed with autism at the age of three. The Flutie Foundation’s mission is to support families affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder. The Foundation is committed to increasing awareness of the challenges of living with autism and helping families find resources to help address those challenges. We provide individuals with autism and their families an opportunity to improve their quality of life by funding educational, therapeutic, recreational and advocacy programs. For more information on The Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism, please contact Maria Baez at the Ebben Zall Group at (781) 449-3244, or visit www.flutiefoundation.org.

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Apps for Social Skills and Autism Interview by Time Timer(R)

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Thanks to Jessica Chase of Consonantly Speaking website and the Time Timer®  team for a great blog post: Apps for Social Skills and Autism.

Jessica mentioned The Social Express when asked to name her favorite social skills apps.

Here’s an excerpt from the Time Timer interview:

Time Timer: What is the goal of speech therapy? How can it help children across the Autism Spectrum? 

Jessica Chase: Speech-Language Therapy is all about helping people communicate by any means possible.  People on the Autism Spectrum are so diverse. Some have much difficulty communicating at all, while others are great verbal communicators but have difficulty with social communication skills. Some may be working on using eye contact, some may be focusing on using an Alternative Communication device, and others may be learning how to maintain conversation topics.

It really depends on the person’s communication needs, but speech-language therpay can greatly benefit people on the Autism Spectrum – and the sooner they start, the better. 

TT: Which are your favorite apps for building social skills?

JC: I recommend the Social Express, Conversation Builder, Emotional Detective, Social Adventures and any of the Wonkido apps.

I also like the Fun Decks: What Would You Do At School If, What Would You Do at Home If, How Would You Feel If and Practicing Pragmatics.

Jessica also recommends The Social Express for Speech Therapists.

You can read the complete interview at the Time Timer’s blog by clicking here

Time Timer is a cool company that offers many different visual timers.  Each timer displays a wonderful large red (colorful) dot.

The dot becomes smaller as the time counts down. Time Timers are available in in physical clock form or as an app.

From the website, Time Timers are recommended for special needs children and youth.

Recommended by Autism and ADHD experts, the Time Timer is totally intuitive. It comforts toddlers, builds independence in youth with learning disabilities…

They also suggest ideas for using Time Timers to help children with autism. Here are two tips from the company’s Tip Sheet for Special Needs:

Succeed at timed activities:  “Finish your dinner before the red runs out.”

Learn to anticipate transitions: “Here’s what ‘5 more minutes’really means.”

I think we may all need help with ‘What 5 more minutes really means’. Like maybe when I’m watching a football game and my wife has a chore for me to do…

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How To Purchase The Social Express Using Apple’s Volume Purchase Plan For Schools & Organizations

Hi Everyone, We just received our first volume purchase from a school! Get The Social Express for 50% buying 20 or more! To Do this (FOR NOW) Go to itunes, search for The Social Express, then click on the drop down arrow and select copy link, then paste that link in the Volume Purchase Portal or www.volume.itunes.apple.com/us/store Have a great weekend and thank you for all the work you do to help our kids!

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