Appy Tuesday ya'll! Today I would like to share a new app by Smarty Ears called Phono Learning Center! This app designed to be used with those individuals that are highly unintelligible. This app is based on the cycles approach, which was developed by Barbara Hodson. I don't know any other app that uses the cycles approach (way to go Smarty Ears!) Personally, I am a fan of the cycls approach. I may not follow it to the T, but I do use the cycle approach in most of my therapy sessions.
Smarty Ears did provide me with a copy of Phono Learning Center, but the opinions in this review are mine.
When you start up the app, you are prompted to add or select player(s)... yes you can use this app with a group! When you add a new player, you are able to set individual setting based on the student's goals and needs. The screen shot below shows the options when adding a new student into the app.
The first activity that the student is prompted with is an auditory bombardment activity. The students get to pop balloons with their finger and hear a target word as they pop each one.
After that activity is completed, the student is prompted to choose from 4 different activities:
Balloon
Matching
Basket Paper
Puzzle
The photo above is of the balloon activity. Students drag target words into the balloon to help blow the balloon up. After it is filled, the balloon flies away!
The matching game is very similar to concentration or memory. There is a card face up at the bottom of the screen. The student has to find the match.
Basket Paper is my personal favorite! The student is provided with a word to imitate on a piece of paper. After they produce the word, they tap the paper and it becomes a paper ball. The student then gets to shoot the paper ball into the basket!
The final activity is the puzzle. The student is provided with a puzzle piece with a target word. The student is to produce the target word then drag the puzzle piece to the puzzle. In addition to providing lots of opportunities for speech productions, this activity also lets you work on wh-questions and prediction goals.
This app also keeps data in the Report Card center which can be referred to at the end of the session or later as needed. This app has been pretty popular with my younger students. I think that the variety of activities is what keeps their attention. I love the fact that this app provides so many opportunities for speech production and data collection. However, my favorite features of this app is that it includes homework worksheets! This would be great to email to parents after you complete a session! The only thing I would suggest for this app to add is the opportunity for students to record their productions. The recording option in apps not only is fun for the students but also helps them become aware of their errors. Overall, this is a great app and is used frequently in my therapy sessions!
