1. teaching academics to students with significant intellectual disabilities using assistive technology
Karena Cooper-Duffy, PhD.
Jessica Perry, MAED
Western Carolina University
North Carolina Rehabilitation Association & North Carolina Assistive Technology Program
November 2-4, 2016
Crowne Plaza Resort, Asheville, NC

2. Objectives
1: Accessing academics for students with significant intellectual disabilities is challenging
2: Items such as Big Macs, IPADS, adapted books, virtual manipulatives, apps can be used to enhance access to academic for students with severe disabilities.
3: Teaching students with severe disabilities using assistive devices and systematic instruction can increase access to academic content.

3. Objective 1 Challenges to access academics

4. Challenges of accessing Common Core grade level skills to students with significant intellectual disabilities
For Students with Significant intellectual and physical disabilities
Students may have limited use of fingers or hands to touch/manipulate materials.
Students may have limited verbal skills to tell you answers to questions about content
Students may not understand abstract content.
Students may have limited life experience to relate to the academic content
Students may have limited purposeful movements to indicate a response.
Teacher challenges

5. Students may have limited use of fingers or hands to touch/manipulate materials.
Students may have limited verbal skills to tell you answers to questions about content
Students may not understand abstract content.
Students may have limited life experience to relate to the academic content
Students may have limited purposeful movements to indicate a response.
Students may have difficulty understanding the content.

6. Challenges of accessing Common Core grade level skills to students with significant intellectual disabilities
Teacher/professional challenges
Teaching a group of students with SID
Many of the students need modifications all at the same time
Limited access to expensive devices
Not know how to use the devices
Devices require maintenance
Needing support to implement the devices .

7. Teaching a group of students with SID ( multiple grade levels)
Busy teaching functional skills
Many of the students need modifications all at the same time
Limited access to expensive devices
Not know how to use the devices
Devices require maintenance
Needing support to implement the devices .
Limitations of the setting. – tables not high enough, not enough outlets, chairs cannot get close enough,

8. Other challenges ???

9. Keep it simple. Think low tech or no tech first. ( adapted pencil)
Think as typical as possible to reduce stigma.
Ask others who know the child ( Person, family, siblings, OT, PT, SLP, other teachers, GE)
Use resources you have individualize for the student
Adaptations Framework
Demands of the setting/ ECCSS
Student ( Strengths and limitations)
Adaptations that can bridge the gap
Evaluation ( without the adaptation vs with the adaptation).

10. Objective 2 Items such as Big Macs, IPADS, adapted books, virtual manipulatives, apps can be used to enhance access to academic for students with severe disabilities.

11. Communication Systems
Picture/text vocabulary
Objects
Big Mac, Step by Step
Go Talk
Tech talk
Dyna Vox
IPad with App – proloquo2go $, Free: speak it, sounding board, My Talk
Eye gaze boards
Camera mouse (Free)

12. Accessing literacy Traditional books
Page turners, laminate pages, cut and bind, Velcro on back of each page, spoons, boardmaker pictures on each page to enhance vocabulary,
Adapted paper books.
UNCC adapted books
Rice Sherlock Center
PrAACtical AAC adapted-books/
UNCCH Center for Literacy and Disability Studies
ECU MAST (Look through Modules for adapting books and story based lessons)
Electronic books
Apps – view books on Ipad – News2you BookFlix , story kit
Powerpoint
Websites – Tar Heel reader, Literactive.com, Starfall.com,
Bookshare.org, Epic!
Curriculum
Early Literacy Skill Builder – Attainment
Me Ville to We Wille – Attainment
Building with stories – Attainment
Start to Finish – literacy starters

13. Student access to literacy
Repeated line with a single switch – BigMac
Laminated vocabulary sheet with picture/text vocabulary list on a Go Talk 9
Eye Gaze chart with enlarged vocabulary
Multiple choice questions with picture/text answer options
( under student resources)
Boardmaker
Picsymbs
do2learn.com

14. Accessing math Physical manipulatives
Virtual manipulatives – add website
Starfall.com
Graphic organizers
Curriculum - Building Early Numeracy Skills ( Elementary)
Teaching Math Standards ( Middle and High School)
Number worlds

15. Science Starfall.com Brain pop Curriculum through Attainment
Teaching Science to the Standards  ( Middle and High School)
Early Science Curriculum ( Elementary)
Scholastic News

16. Objective 3 Teaching students with severe disabilities using assistive devices and systematic instruction

17. Videos
Literacy Story based instruction
Math Identify the problem
Science prediction & results *

18. Questions
Share ideas you have for using AT in your academic instruction?