1. Apps to Support Students with
Learning Differences
Ricki Wagner, Allison Waskow, Liz Riccardi
Dr. Shannon Haley-Mize

2. Why?
• Remove barriers to content and participation
• UDL – multiples means of engagement,
representation, and expression

3. Traditional vs. UDL
Traditional approach
UDL Approach
Assumes student diversity is a
problem and that barriers are
inherent in learners
Assumes that student diversity is
the norm and that barriers arise in
learners’ interactions w. inflexible
curriculum
Assumes that inflexible curricula is
disabled; curricula needs to be
designed or redesigned to meet
the needs of a wide diversity
Assumes that curricula is fixed:
modifications & accommodations
must be made to deal w. student
diversity
Accommodations and mods can
result in lowered expectations &
achievement for some learners
Designing curricula from the start
that is both flexible & meets the
needs of all students results in
high expectations for all

4. Application: Using Tech to Support
Individuals Students

5. Apps to support learning differences in
Math

6. Todo Math Practice
*Free *Does not require internet

7. Todo Math Practice
• Can be used for students to practice different
levels of mathematics.
• Timed practice can be used as an assessment
• Any student with abilities ranging in K-2 ,
struggling with mathematics could benefit
from this.
• Rated 4.5 stars in the iTunes App Store.

11. Apps to support literacy

12. Little Story
*Free *Does not require internet
Little story is a story-writing app that allows you to:
✔ Add as many stories as you can like
✔ Select one of two gorgeous story book templates
✔ Add your own voice - now your toddler can listen to the entire story in
mommy's or daddy's voice
✔ Add word highlights - Customize word highlights and make your stories
interactive. Once added words are highlighted in red and respond to touch
✔ Add picture highlights - Click on any picture within the edit mode to add
picture highlights and make your stories interactive. Great for adding names
or describing objects
✔ Supports three playback modes - read to me, read by myself, and auto-play
which automatically turns from page to page
✔ Add your own photos in a click
✔ Multi-sensory learning tool - combining seeing, hearing, and tactile
feedback
✔ Multi-language support - since you can edit all existing items and sounds
so you can record everything in your native tongue

13. Little Story
• Great app for creating almost any type of
story, including social stories.
• Would work well for students who have
limited fine motor skills because you can add
real photos as well as your voice to each page.
• Also good for students who are beginning
readers because finished products have 3
reading options.
• A 5 star app in the iTunes App Store!

18. Apps to support organization

19. myHomework
*Free *Does not require internet
• Great organizational tool for all students!
• Allows students to keep track of homework, tests,
projects, etc.
• Can easily include class schedules.
• Made to sync with the teacher version of the app
which allows students to look attachments and
resources with a touch of a screen
• Allows students to get announcements from
teachers

23. Idea Sketch
*Free *Does not require internet
• Mind-mapping tool
• Easy to use
• Can change colors of text boxes or add
pictures

24. Idea Sketch
• Would be great for students who have trouble
organizing their ideas.
• It could be used as a pre-writing activity.
• (would be very difficult for young learners to
understand)

26. TeacherKit
•
Create own settings for
– Grading system
– Attendance terms and colors
– Warnings about attendance and grades
– Able to make own classrooms and or groups
Class Summary
Attendance, Behavior, Grades, and Levels at a glance
Quick charts to glance at for class performance
My Class
Create seating charts based on position or alphabetical order
Send emails to all students or all parents with one click
See snap shot of student’s attendance, behavior records, and grades
Attendance
Able to mark present or absent with click
Show how many absences student has had
Behavior
Able to mark positive or negative behavior
Provide note space to record specifics of events
Customizable headings to label behavior
Grades
Customizable weight and grade proportions
Easy to read chart format
Total section
Add multiple assignments
Sort students by first name, last name, or grade
* Data analysis such as charts and progress monitoring available for $5.99

27. Chartkeeper
• Add multiple classes, periods, or groups that you can choose
from
• Easy to add students
Three tabs separate the three main uses
Attendance (Green)
• Allows you to take attendance with one tap
• Able to mark present, absent, and tardy
Seating Charts (Purple)
• Allows you to create seating charts that are easy to change
• Ability to move students anywhere makes all seating
arrangements recordable
Record Observations (Blue)
• Allows positive (green) and negative (red) behavioral
observations
• Ability to add notes to each observation to record specific
incidents and details
• Able to “Take a Note” on student to record things like data
scores, schedule reminders, parent information, preferred
rewards, etc.

29. Post Incident Learning- Positive
Behavior Strategies
• Designed to teach individuals to control their
own behavior
• Can be used independently or with support
• Can be personalized to individual’s
communication needs

36. How can it be used?
• Teaches self regulation
• Can help variety of student behaviors and how
to manage them
– Aggression
– Social skill deficits
– Anxiety

37. It’s Focus Time
• Self help and mind management tool to help
students:
– Focus Time
– Manage tasks more efficiently
• Sets daily targets and monitors progress
• Customize sessions and breaks

38. How can it be used?
• Recommended for anyone struggling with
concentration and self regulation
– Students with ADD/ADHD
• Can be used for specific learning tasks difficult
to sustain concentration and attention
– studying, reading, writing, taking a test,
brainstorming, creating something, etc.

43. Self-Regulation Training Board
• Designed to help students learn and practice
emotions in healthy ways
• Targets physical, emotional, and cognitive
regulation
• Individualized plan:
– Recognize signs
– Label emotions
– Choose a healthy plan of action

46. The Planner Guide
• An organizational and reference system for people with
social and cognitive challenges.
• Helps individuals become less prompt dependent,
think for themselves, and build self-esteem!
• Can be used with readers and non-readers.
• Uses text and age-appropriate graphics.
• Includes 135 reference guides that provide information
on what to expect or how to do a task in various areas
such as: communication, relationships, community,
home, school, interdependence, self-advocacy, etc.

51. Sequential Spelling
• Approach to Multi-sensory instruction
• No memorization of any kind is needed
• Repetition and the use of rimes emphasize patterns related
in specific ways to the sound of a word.
• As students work their way through a series of related
words using the same rimes, those rimes begin to have
meaning both as writing AND as sound.
• Mistakes are welcomed and expected
• Teachers are notified when students complete a lesson and
words they are struggling with through email.
• Promotes independence for students, but can be modified
for any level of learning.

56. Worksheet Wizard Lite
• Children are able to respond to text based
questions without the need to write.
• Educators and parents have the ability to
change, modify, and create their own text and
picture based worksheets.
• The skills can be easily generalized to a
classroom and paper worksheets.
• It is customizable for each student and
provides the opportunity to collect data for up
to five students at a time.

60. Your Thoughts:
Advantages vs. Disadvantages