Archive for Assistive Technology

Using Doceri to Replace Smartpen Pencasts

May 20, 2016 Algebra, Doceri, education, Helping students, iPad, iPad applications, Livescribe, Livescribe, livescribe smartpen, Mathcast, Teaching, Teaching Online, Technology, tutorials, tutoring, videos Comments Off on Using Doceri to Replace Smartpen Pencasts

Since Livescribe took down the Echo community site where I had over 500 pencasts stored, I have completely quit using their product.  Instead, I now use a much better product, which is a free app on my iPad called Doceri.

Doceri allows you to use colors (any color and any size), highlighters, graphics, and the best part is you can edit your writing!

I had created a work-around using my smartpen to place the test below the pencast to write test keys, but that was cumbersome and is no longer possible.

Here is a video where I took a screenshot to answer a student’s question and then wrote over the document using Doceri on my iPad to create an animation/video to answer their question.

 

If you don’t want to add sound, then Doceri automatically creates an animation from your writing.   However, I strongly recommend adding audio.  Once you add audio you can upload the video to YouTube to share with your students.  In the near future I will try to find some time to write a How – To post on using Doceri to write test keys.

 

New Tech to Try!

November 1, 2012 Algebra, education, eInstruction Interwrite Workspace, Evernote, handwriting math, Helping students, Insight360, insight360 clickers, iPad, iPad applications, Livescribe, Livescribe, livescribe smartpen, Mathcast, Mobi, Student participation, taking notes, Teaching, Teaching Online, TechFriends(Geeks), Technology One comment

I apologize for not writing more posts this semester, but I have been swamped with work and play 🙂

I just received the new wi-fi Livescribe smartpen called SKY today and I promise to write a blog post soon about the features and how I plan on using it.  Wi-fi opens the potential of the smartpen to be even smarter!! I can’t wait!

I have been using Doceri 2.0 along with the Mobi 360 w/ clickers in my math classes and plan on updating all of you on how well that is going (it is going REALLY well, by the way)  and how I have used them with my students.

Stay tuned….

 

An Intelligent iPad Stylus

July 24, 2012 Bamboo Paper, Distance Education, Doceri, Doceri Good Point stylus, education, handwriting math, iPad applications, Mathcast, Pen Ultimate, Screen Chomp, Teaching Online, TechFriends(Geeks) One comment

I recently wrote about Doceri 2.0,  which comes out today ( July 24, 2012) at noon PST in iTunes stores!  The old version is called Doceri Remote, which was version 1.2.2 but the new version will just be called Doceri and will be version 2.0.

I thought I would follow up with a review of their “goodPoint” Intelligent stylus.  The stylus has a chord which plugs into the headphone jack; this allows it to be controlled in Doceri 2.0.

I normally use the Wacom Bamboo stylus, which I love, but I thought I would give this “Intelligent” stylus a try.

Doceri vs Bamboo

I tried both with Doceri 2.0, and I have to admit the extra features in the goodPoint stylus were really nice to have when creating animations!   The main features I appreciated were the fact that  you can get a very fine point that is consistent, and that it allows you to rest your hand on the screen while writing with it.    The back of the goodPoint is also an eraser.   I would have used it more, but I kept forgetting it was there, since I have never had a stylus with an eraser before.

To get a better feel for how it compared with my Wacom Bamboo stylus, I compared them with 4 of my favorite iPad apps.

Here are some screen shots comparing the two different stylus brands (2 screencasting apps, and  2 note taking apps).  You decide which has the better handwriting – some are close and some are not.  Sorry my handwriting is not great, but some apps do help it along more than others!

From within the Doceri application on my iPad:

Doceri comparison

Doceri goodPoint stylus wins here!

On the top of the screen, I tried to use the Wacom Bamboo stylus with my hand on the screen, but I could not.  Having to write with my hand not on the screen definitely made my hand writing worse (OK, it is not great anyway, but it was harder to write that way, and not as clear).  With the Doceri “goodPoint” stylus, I was able to rest my hand on the screen while I wrote, which was much more comfortable!  The writing was smoother as well.

Before I found Doceri 2.0, I was using ScreenChomp as one of my favorite screencasting apps on the iPad.  Here is a comparison of Bamboo stylus and the Doceri stylus using ScreenChomp:

Screen Chomp comparison

Close, but since I can’t rest my hand on the screen with either, I would prefer to use the Bamboo stylus here (only because it does not have a chord).

As you can see the writing is similar using both (maybe a little better with the Doceri stylus?), but in both cases I was not able to rest my hand on the screen and still have the application let me write.   For me, that is a huge deal, as I am much more comfortable writing like I do on paper, with my hand on the surface while I write.

Next I thought I would compare my 2 favorite note-taking applications on the iPad (that allow me to hand write).

First I tried Bamboo Paper by Wacom:

Bamboo Paper comparison

Handwriting is close, but Doceri wins since I don’t want stray marks on my screen.

The good news was that the application allowed me to rest my hand on the screen while writing with both the Bamboo and the Doceri stylus, but as you can see in the screen shot above, the Wacom Bamboo stylus created extra marks when I did this, while the Doceri “goodPoint” stylus created no extra marks.  The hand writing seemed fairly similar to me, but it was nice not having to worry about marks when I set my hand on the screen with the Doceri stylus.

Finally, another note-taking app for the iPad I really like is called PenUltimate.  I thought I would compare with that app as well:

Pen Ultimate comparison

This app allowed me to rest my hand on the screen with both the Bamboo and the Doceri stylus.  However, Doceri stylus wins again, since I don’t want stray marks on my screen.

If you don’t mind the stray marks and some apps not allowing you to rest your hand on the screen, then the Wacom Bamboo stylus is a great choice.   However, given that I definitely prefer to place my hand on the screen and I don’t want any stray marks, then I prefer the Doceri goodPoint Intelligent stylus over the Wacom Bamboo stylus.

*Just a point of clarification: I was told by Doceri that the goodPoint stylus should really not do ANY better or worse than the Wacom (or any other stylus) for stray marks in apps other than Doceri.  The fact that it did for me is probably just a coincidence.  They agreed, though, that when using it in Doceri, the palm rejection is a major difference when using the Doceri stylus!

 

 

Learning to Write His Name!

December 9, 2011 Assistive Technology, Autism, iPad, iPad applications, Livescribe, Livescribe, livescribe smartpen, TechFriends(Geeks), Technology Comments Off on Learning to Write His Name!

My Autistic Great Nephew: Update #2:

I heard back from my niece last week about how her autistic son is doing with the Livescribe smartpen and his iPad.

If you have not seen the earlier part of the story, click here.

The story left off where my niece was going to her son’s school for the IEP meeting…

She told me about how much he loves the sound dots and that every time they get a new book he gets so excited to “dot” it!  He brings her everything he owns with writing on it so they can put a sound dot on it.
Then she shared the sad news with me that they did have her son’s IEP meeting, but it was very frustrating.  “They don’t want to use any technology. They also don’t think it is a good use of time to attempt to teach him the alphabet. So we’re just going to keep working on it ourselves”

Lucky for her son, she did not give up!  I got this update from her last week:

“Exciting News!
Last week (her son) started writing his name on the iPad!
This week I got a letter home from the school saying they are willing to try to incorporate using his iPad into his academics at school. My hope is the next step will be for the instructors to start using the (smart)pen so that they can give him lessons that can translate into home use.”

Pretty amazing stuff!!  I am so glad he has her to advocate for him.  What a great thing for him to be able to write his name!

The Livescribe smartpen and his iPad have made a huge difference in my great-nephew’s ability to learn the alphabet and start to learn to read.

Amazing!

 

 

 

Update1 on “Help For My Autistic Great Nephew”

September 3, 2011 Assistive Technology, Autism, education, Helping students, iPad applications, Livescribe, Livescribe, Livescribe Pencast Player, livescribe smartpen, Teaching 2 comments

Help For My Autistic Great Nephew – update 1

A couple months ago I purchased a Livescribe smartpen (click for links within my blog) for my niece to use with her autistic son (I think that makes him my great-nephew?)    I showed her how to use it during a family reunion in the Outer Banks over the summer. (Here is a link to the previous article)

Ethan’s mom sent me the following “first impression” of using the Livescribe smartpen with her son, and gave me permission to post it.  Her autistic son Ethan is 9 years old:

Every child learns differently. Part of Ethan’s struggle has been that he does not learn by the same standardized methods that most children are able to use for learning.  He is great with technology, likes repetitiveness and although he does enjoy social interaction he does not like to “perform” when someone is trying to teach him something.  The smart pen allows us to combine and functionally utilize these traits.

Ethan does well with his iPad but unlike the pre-programmed educational apps, with the smart pen we can create our own learning material specific to his needs. For instance if he is struggling with the letter “A” he can sit down with his iPad on his own (in his own space) and replay (over and over) the note session that shows how to write “A” as well as hearing the sound.  It also allows me to focus on topics of interest for him. He loves baseball so we can practice spelling and writing sentences all tailored around “Ethan playing baseball.”

The sound stickers are also really cool.  We are able to record each page of a book on them so that Ethan is then able to “read” books to himself.  He enjoys reading books but at his age most kids are able to read to themselves. This allows Ethan to read/listen to his books independently when I am not available.  It also is great in that he is able to repeatedly hear the words in connection with seeing them over and over. ..because let’s face it, as a parent you can only read the same book over and over in one day before you lose your mind.

Ethan’s mom is using the Livescribe smarpen (click to go to the main Livescribe website) to write out the lessons she wants her son to learn, then uploading them to his iPad for him to interact with by hearing and watching the lesson.    She is using the sound (dot) stickers to record herself reading each page of his favorite books.  She then places a sticker on each page for  him to “read” the book by himself.  By tapping the sticker with his smartpen, he can hear the words on the page being read to him by his mother! 

I will continue keeping updates in this blog on how his first IEP meeting goes this year at school, and how his learning progresses with the use of the Livescribe smartpen.

Livescribe now has a website for solutions for teaching students with learning disabilities:
http://www.livescribe.com/en-us/solutions/learningdisabilities/

 

Help For My Autistic Great-Nephew

July 10, 2011 Assistive Technology, Autism, FableVision, iPad applications, Livescribe, Livescribe, TechFriends(Geeks), Technology 3 comments

 Helping Children and Adults with Autism

Link to the video I’m Here (if it does not show up above)

“This short film, based on an original story and art by Peter H. Reynolds and produced by FableVision, movingly conveys the loneliness a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder often experiences, and the life-changing effect each of us can have in breaking through that solitude.FableVision created the film for SARRC (Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center).

FableVision CEO Peter H. Reynolds, NY Times best-selling children’s author/illustrator, illustrated the film. The film includes a powerful musical score by Ruth Mendelson. “I’m Here” is the precursor to the film and book “Wings of EPOH.” Both products are co-published by FableVision and SARRC.

Information: http://www.fablevision.com/wingsofepoh/index.php  ”
*Taken from the You-Tube video information about “I’m Here”


Personal Experience With Autism

I just got back from spending a great week with my mother, and my siblings and their families, in the beautiful Outer Banks!   My niece was there with her autistic son.   I showed my niece my Livescribe smartpen and what I thought it could do to help her son not only learn his letters and numbers, but also to speak.

I quickly put together a couple of demonstrations for her:

EthanAlphabet
brought to you by Livescribe
EthanNumbers
brought to you by Livescribe

My great-nephew is pretty hard on paper, so  he mostly uses his iPad.    I then showed my niece how her son will be able to view the pencasts on his iPad using the Pencast Player app!   She was very excited to try it out!    We talked about creating pages with just a single word on them with her voice.   This would allow her son to “say” the word when he touched it on his iPad.   Her mind started buzzing with ideas on how to help her son.   She couldn’t wait to show his teachers the smartpen, in hopes it could help other children in his class as well.

The next level of excitement for her came when I showed her the new Livescribe sound dots.   With these dots any sound can be recorded and then the dot can be placed onto any surface.   Her son has several picture books which the dots would be perfect for!   My niece also thought about recording herself reading every page of his favorite books, so he could “read” the book while she was doing her homework.  It would give her son more freedom, but he could still hear her voice!

I sat down that evening and ordered her a Livescribe pen, several sizes of paper and some sticky notes (to use until the sound dots are released).   She is going to allow me to track his progress using the smartpen and report from my blog on it.   My niece will be sending me updates on how he is improving at school and how she is using the pen with him.   I am so excited for her, but especially for her amazing son, who just happens to be Autistic   : )

 

 

 

 

Making Math More Accessible For ALL Students

April 25, 2011 Assistive Technology, bluetooth headset, Dragon NaturallySpeaking, Droid, education, flexT9, Helping students, learning styles, Livescribe, Mathcast, taking notes, Teaching, Teaching Online, TechFriends(Geeks), Technology 5 comments

Reaching Different Learning Styles Through Technology

As you can probably tell, I have 2 passions that drive my teaching….technology and helping students.

My latest journey has been traveling down a path to find ways to help reach the different learning styles of my students. In turn this will help make my math courses more accessible to students who require either text, speech or visual aids because of physical or learning disabilities.

I started with the Livescribe smartpen to turn student notes into animated text with sound.  Then I tried to transcribe the text from the pencast using Dragon Naturally Speaking ,which works GREAT if I am speaking into my computer, but the student pencasts don’t pick up my speaking as well because I am walking around the room, so I am not near the pen most of the time.

Since Dragon cannot transcribe the text WHILE I am teaching from the Mobi software, then I needed to find a way to record my speaking during class and then download it into my computer so Dragon can create the transcript.  I spent some time today looking for options that would not require me purchasing a hand-held recorder.

I have a Plantronics Discovery 975 bluetooth headset that pairs with both my computer and also with my Droid X cell phone.   I use it with my computer and Dragon to ‘speak text’ into many programs on my computer, including Word and email (I still need to try it with MathType!).

I thought I found the perfect mobile solution…to be able to walk around the room and teach while wearing the bluetooth headset, but have the audio transcribe directly onto my phone!  I purchased the Droid version of Dragon called flexT9 …great idea and it works perfectly…except flexT9 does NOT support bluetooth headsets yet.   I can still use it for transcribing speech to text on my phone, but I have to be close to the phone mic.  It is an amazing app for $4.99!

I started looking for a voice recording app for my Droid that would support bluetooth.

I found Voice2Do (FREE).  It is the ONLY voice recorder I found that supports bluetooth.  I recorded a short message from my bluetooth headset to my Droid X (which was across the room) and then emailed it to my computer (to email the .wav file you must purchase the professional version).    Finally, I had Dragon transcribe the audio file and it worked GREAT!

I plan on playing with it for a couple more days and then trying it out in my classes.   My goal is to have the Livescribe pencast student notes and the Workspace board notes for visual learners, but then take the audio for the lesson and create a written transcript, which can also be read out loud by most computers, for students whose learning styles require reading or hearing the information.

I will post a link when I get it all put together.

 

Writing Math in Windows 7!

April 21, 2011 Algebra, Assistive Technology, education, handwriting math, Helping students, Math Input Panel, Math Projects, Teaching, Teaching Online, TechFriends(Geeks), Technology, Windows7 2 comments

I was so excited to see a new window show up when I upgraded to Windows 7…it is called the Math Input Panel.  With a name like that I had to be excited before even trying it out!

 

I immediately started playing with it and was surprised and VERY happy to see how easy it was to handwrite math and have it insert the typed version into my Word document!  It does not always pick the correct letter or number, but you can easily edit an individual symbol.

 

I have tried writing some algebra, and it does a great job with that as well!


 

I am excited to see more tools for my students to be able to use to ‘write” math on their computers as well.   Although Word comes with Equation Editor, my students do not know how to use it.    Now, students can easily handwrite their math problems and have them typed up!

For students with disabilities – or anyone who wants to have the math read out loud to them, Word can then take the file that has the math equations embedded  and be saved as a MathXL document.   MathPlayer should then be able to read the math out loud….I will try that next and see how it works out!

 

Training My Dragon!

April 9, 2011 Algebra, Assistive Technology, Dragon NaturallySpeaking, education, Livescribe, Mathcast, MathType, MyScript, Teaching Online, TechFriends(Geeks) 9 comments

Dragon Naturally Speaking Web Link

 

I have started on a quest to make math more accessible!   I recently purchased Dragon NaturallySpeaking, Premium ver 11.0.   It just came today and I have been playing with it to train it to trancribe my voice.     So far it has  done a great job in Word, but then I decided to have it transcribe the audio file from the Livescribe pencast below.

Link to pencast

 

When the pencast is still on your desktop, you can export the audio separately.  I then imported the audio file directly into Dragon and the original transcipt is shown below (I just cropped a small part of the transcript for you to see).  I still have a lot of “training” on Dragon to do, but it didn’t do a bad job for the first try!  It certainly has potential to help create a transcript for my pencasts for students who need one.


(click on the image to see a larger version of the text)

Livescribe also has transcription software you can purchase called “MyScript”.  Here is a link to the software.   It has some difficulty transcribing the math, but here is the first pass it made:

(click on the image to see a larger version of the text)

My next task it to to learn to use MathType,

together with Dragon, to create equations that can be read aloud for students.   I will post when I make some progress there.  🙂

 
 

Analytics Plugin created by - Powered by Womens Sunglasses and Human Services Degree.