School districts often struggle to develop consistent practices for meeting the assistive needs of students receiving special education services. This fun yet professional book will help PK-12 educators learn a process to improve how they consider, select, and implement technology to help all students!
This book:
Provides a methodology for transforming educators into experience designers by adopting a mindset of inclusive practices.
Details how an educational team can effectively request assistance to determine technology needs.
Explains how to provide assistance by coaching an educational team through a process to make informed decisions about technology needs.
Describes a proactive approach to professional development for individuals and for those who train others on the use of technology.
Assists individuals or teams in creating an action plan for developing a culture of inclusion.
Interweaves stories, songs, games, activities and other exciting features to make the experience of reading the book fun!
The New Assistive Tech is a catalyst for breaking down walls between special education and general education, and will help all educators realize they have tech knowledge (and can build upon that knowledge) that can be used to support all students, including those with disabilities.
Episode #101 of the A.T.TIPSCAST features a brief discussion about what comes next in one’s personal quest to learn more about the implementation of the Universal Design for Learning framework. Download a .PDF Transcript of this episode.
This is the first episode of Season 6 of the A.T.TIPSCAST!
Episode #99 features a brief discussion of how digital literacy skills and appropriate technology practices can be ingrained into the habits of young students by introducing them to fictional stories at an early age. The episode also includes an interview and review by a rising second grader who read each of the books.
This episode also features a bumper from Sandy Hanebrink, from http://touchthefuture.us who shares information about the organization which is located in the south eastern part of the United States.
A.T.TIPS in this Episode-
A.T.TIP 286 – Piano and Laylee Learning Adventure Series
Piano and Laylee Go Online
Piano and Laylee Text Message
Piano and Laylee and the Cyberbully
Piano and Laylee Help a Copycat Become a Creative Cat
Piano and Laylee Learn About Acceptable Use Policies
Share the Piano and Laylee books in some way and let me know about it by June 27th, 2012 at 11:59pm. I’ll keep a list of all entries. Then, on June 28th, I’ll use a random number generator to select the winner of a complete set of Piano and Laylee books!! Each different way you share counts as one entry, so share as many different ways as you can! Tweets, status updates, e-mail notifications, posters hung on bathroom stalls…whatever! Tell me about your sharing so I know to add your entries to the list!
This episode of the A.T.TIPSCAST is sponsored by Texthelp Systems, provider of award-winning literacy solutions including Read&Write GOLD and Fluency Tutor. For more information, go to www.texthelp.com.
Episode #73 features an audio version of an article about online learning for a partnership between the International Society of Technology in Education (www.iste.org) and the Council of Ontario Directors of Education (www.ontariodirectors.ca). A version of the article is being published by CODE for their newsletter, the CODE Chronicles. According to the spirit of the article, I thought it would be best to have the article exist in multiple formats. You can read the article, listen to the article, and/or enjoy the comic.
Leave a comment down below or drop me a line at attipscast@gmail.com. Let me know what you think of the show! You can access the podcast and register as a fan of the show from here:
This episode of the A.T.TIPSCAST is sponsored by Texthelp Systems, provider of award-winning literacy solutions including Read&Write GOLD and Fluency Tutor. For more information, go to www.texthelp.com.
Episode #58 features a description of how teachers and students can turn text into short, engaging video segments.
Download the complete set of bookmarks: Complete Set
There is no new podcast episode with this post. This is a complete set of all the bookmarks in one PDF document. Each bookmark features a character from a cartoon strip within the book created using Bitstrips.com. Feel free to download this PDF of all the bookmarks and do any or all of the following:
1. Post to your blog.
2. Print out to use while you read the book!
3. Print out to give to other educators.
4. Share via your favorite social networking site (like Twitter or Facebook).
5. Post to an online discussion forum.
6. Post to an educational listserv.
and anything else you can think of!
Complete Set of Bookmarks
Here’s a link to the complete set of all the bookmarks: Complete Set
There is no new podcast episode with this post. This is the fourth bookmark to be released. You’ll be able to find these files here or over at the Facebook Fan Page for the book. Each bookmark features a character from a cartoon strip within the book created using Bitstrips.com. Feel free to download these bookmarks and do any or all of the following:
1. Post to your blog.
2. Print out to use while you read the book!
3. Print out to give to other educators.
4. Share via your favorite social networking site (like Twitter or Facebook).
5. Post to an online discussion forum.
6. Post to an educational listserv.
and anything else you can think of!
Here’s a link to the fourth bookmark called “AT Hero”
This special episode features an interview Sally Norton-Darr and I did for the ISTE Author Podcast Series. In the interview we talk about what is assistive technology, why we wrote the book, why it is both practical and fun, and provide some tips for new and veteran assistive technology teams. We also have some fun telling about some team pranks! Enjoy!
There is no new podcast episode with this post. As a way to help get the word out about the book, we thought it might be fun to pass around some bookmarks featuring some of the content. This is the second bookmark to be released. You’ll be able to find these files here or over at the Facebook Fan Page for the book. Each bookmark features a character from a cartoon strip within the book created using Bitstrips.com. Feel free to download these bookmarks and do any or all of the following:
1. Post to your blog.
2. Print out to use while you read the book!
3. Print out to give to other educators.
4. Share via your favorite social networking site (like Twitter or Facebook).
This special episode features an excerpt from “The Practical (and Fun) Guide to Assistive Technology in Public Schools” as read by the authors! In chapter 6, “Choosing Assistive Technology Teammates,” the authors make recommendations on assembling an AT team—who should be on the team, what qualities are best in a team member and team leader, and what to avoid. This chapter provides an example of the practical advice found throughout the book while getting a taste of the authors’ unique way of driving home a point—with humor!
There is no new podcast episode with this post. As a way to help get the word out about the book, we thought it might be fun to pass around some bookmarks featuring some of the content. These bookmarks will be released as .PDF files at the rate of one per week for the next five weeks. You’ll be able to find these files here or over at the Facebook Fan Page for the book. Each bookmark features a character from a cartoon strip within the book created using Bitstrips.com. Feel free to download these bookmarks and do any or all of the following:
1. Post to your blog.
2. Print out to use while you read the book!
3. Print out to give to other educators.
4. Share via your favorite social networking site (like Twitter or Facebook).
No new podcast episode with this post but I do have some book related news. The Practical (and Fun) Guide to Assistive Technology in Public Schools comes out in April 2010. You can pre-order your copy now from www.iste.org/chewat. Over the next few weeks there will be much more information coming out about the book, the content within, and ways you can help spread the word to other educators about the book. Here is just a taste of what is coming down the pike, not necessarily in this order:
In order to get the word out about the book, it is our hope that you will spread these files around, sharing them with other educators who might be interested in the content. Feel free to send them out via e-mail, post to your favorite social networking site (like Facebook or Twitter), tell people about them on listservs, have discussions on forums, and print out paper versions to give other educators!
Thanks in advance and I hope you enjoy the experience of reading the book as well as helping it become a success!
Well this was the big secret project I’ve been working on that I had mentioned in previous episodes. I introduce to you now “The Practical (and Fun) Guide to Assistive Technology in Public Schools: Building or Improving Your District’s AT Team” by Christopher Bugaj and Sally Norton-Darr. The book is being published by the International Society for Technology in Education (better known by the acronym ISTE) and will be available for pre-order in February March of 2010.
The Content:
As the title suggests the book provides strategies of building an assistive technology program in public schools. Answers to common questions such as “How do we consider AT for every student?”, “How does assistive technology get documented in an IEP?”, “What are some effective ways of working with Instructional Technology?”, “Who should be on an AT Team?”, “When and how do you write an AT evaluation report?”, “What is the most effect service delivery model?”, “How do you adequately follow-up with teachers and students?”, “How do you collect data and demonstrate progress?”, and “How do you build a comprehensive assistive technology program?” are all found in the book.
The Style:
The book is written in such a way that it is easy to use and fun to read. We wanted to create a book that wouldn’t feel like a chore to read. Therefore, the book is laced with engaging analogies and humorous stories which emphasize and clarify the points being made. In the future we hope to have some excerpts for you to sample, both in text and audio formats. Throughout the book we provide procedures that have not only been relatively easy to implement but also have proven exceptionally effective for us. In fact, that was kind of our mantra for the book, “If it’s working for us, why wouldn’t it work for you?”
More to Come:
I’ll be sharing more information in the coming weeks and month about purchase information, pricing, and how you can help spread the word about the book if you’re interested in helping out.
I hope to meet you at any or all of these presentations. But, if you can’t make it to those, and you’re interested in any of this (or other) content for workshops in your district please contact me at attipscast@gmail.com. We can work together to set something up either in person or virtually!
Leave a comment down below or drop me a line at attipscast@gmail.com. Let me know what you think of the show! You can access the podcast and register as a fan of the show from here:
This book:
The New Assistive Tech is a catalyst for breaking down walls between special education and general education, and will help all educators realize they have tech knowledge (and can build upon that knowledge) that can be used to support all students, including those with disabilities.
The Compendium Blog of The A.T.TIPSCAST 