Understanding Down syndrome By: Kerry Thompson

Picture from downrightfaith.com She is SO ADORABLE!

Check out my 5 minute presentation on Down syndrome here! This short presentation is meant to orient audience members to the topic of Down syndrome. It was a class assignment we have done to mix our interests areas with technology! Prezi is a great resource for people looking to give a presentation without being present. Make sure you check the presentation out and leave me a comment!

Southwood Sound Celebrates World Down Syndrome Day!

Guess what tomorrow is....
You guessed it! It's World Down syndrome Day!

Southwood Sound in Tallahassee is going to be celebrating World Down syndrome Day tomorrow from 6-8pm at Southwood Community Center. The event looks like it's going to be a lot of fun! There is going to be food, dancing, face painting, and music therapy. It is so great to see the local community supporting such a great group of people. The Down syndrome Association of Tallahassee will be sponsoring the event and as I have shared with my fellow followers they are a great organization especially for parents who are looking for support within the community.

Thank you to my cohort member Amanda Pafford who shared this information on Facebook. I hope people can make it out to the event!

Top Ten List: Apps for your tablet, iPad, or iPhone

This week’s Top Ten List consists of 10 different apps that may be useful for individuals with Down syndrome, learning more about Down syndrome, and trying to help in teaching or counseling individuals with Down syndrome. Apps are definitely an up and coming technology that many people are using due to the increase in tablet and iPad use. Even for young children using a tablet to communicate or to learn seems to be more engaging and helpful when trying to comprehend information as it gives a viewer both a visual and audio aid. These 10 aps are just a few that I found to be interesting, but please check them out and definitely do your own research on what you think may fit best for you! 

1. My friend Isabelle
4.5 out of 5 stars! Cost: $1.99

This is a great app for parents to get for friends, family members, or siblings that have a friend or family member with Down syndrome. The app is story in which provides readers a great story-line about how "differences are what makes the world so great". The entire book shows how these two friends are similar in their interests and activities and despite the disability that Isabelle has at the end of the book there should be no reason why a great friendship can't come out of being friends with someone with Down syndrome. 

2.       iAdvocate
4 out of 5 stars! Cost: FREE

This is a great app for parents who want to get more involved with their child's educational development. The app gives parents information about the rights their child has in getting an Individualized Education Plan and also helps parents learn strategies on who to best help their child. I really liked the part of the app that gives parents additional resources to go to such as books, articles, or laws to help them understand how they can advocate for their child the best that they possibly could. 

3.       iDress for weather 

5 out of 5 stars! Cost: $1.99

I definitely recommend this app to individuals with Down syndrome or to anyone who feels it is hard to pick what to wear in the morning (which in my case happens to all my friends!). The app lets you customize how you perceive weather and what type of clothing to wear. Then each day it will give you the high and the low temperature of the day and suggest clothing for you to wear. This is great for middle school or high school students who may have to dress themselves in the morning as it provides more independence. 

4. iCommunicate

3.5 out of 5 stars! Cost: $29.99

I personally rated this app lower because of the costs that come with retrieving this app, but there are many fun tools to implement and use after making this purchase. On iCommunicate there are a variety of communication tools that may work for your child such as visual schedules, storyboards, and  flashcards jut to name a few. The highly interactive app may be good for young children who are at home pretty often as it seems that parents are going to have to put some time into using this more complex app. 

5. My Choice Board
4.5 out of 5 stars! Cost: $9.99

This app is great for individuals with limited verbal communication skills because it gives the individual the opportunity to be able to select from choices and make their own decision about what comes next in their daily routine. Choice board examples they gave in the description of the app included but was not limited to activity choices, mood choices, sensory choices. This is a great tool to use if it's difficult to communicate and especially if you are just trying out using an iPad as a communication tool. 

6. Splingo's Language Universe
5 out of 5 stars! Cost: $2.99

This app was created by speech language pathologists to help children acquire listening and language skills. The basic premise of the app is to complete language and listening activities to help the alien Splingo build a spaceship to get home. Splingo's Language Universe provides a fun interactive way to work on a difficult part about having Down syndrome which is dealing with the difficulties of speech development. I strongly recommend this app especially since the app is not too expensive and will be both rewarding as a parent or family member and fun as the individual who needs help in language.

7. The Monster at the End of This Book

4.5 out of 5 stars! Cost: $4.99

This is a great interactive book for parents to read to their child. It is so important for children to be read to when they are young as it increases brain activity and enhances development in so many ways. I especially like this book for children with Down syndrome because it has a sensory component that may be especially helpful to children. This book seems to be a hit among all readers and would be a great addition to your virtual library!

8. ABA Flash Cards & Games- Emotions

3.5 out of 5 stars! Cost: Could not find on my phone!


This app is a simple straightforward app that provides emotions on flashcards that help promote understanding social skills. My only critique is that the app only covers 20 emotions and I think it would be helpful to have different levels of emotions for the various audiences that may be viewing this app. I do think this app may be helpful for young children who are just beginning to try to understand others. 


9. SimpleSort for SmartPhones
4 out of 5 stars! Cost: $0.99

This is a great app for children who are a bit older. It is a fun interactive game that let's the app user learn how to sort items into their correct location. There is even an option to make the difficulty of the game a bit harder as you can increase the number of buckets that you have to sort. I find this to be helpful for children with Down syndrome because it increases organizational skills which as essential in school and work settings later on in life. 

10. Dexteria- Fine Motor Skills Development
4.5 out of 5 stars! Cost: 3.99


I really like this app for individuals with fine motor skills issues. The app seems to be more focused towards older children and adults as it says that this app provides different exercises rather than games for children to play. I appreciate that they are specific in who the audience would be best for because at first I assumed that the app may be for younger children. My favorite part of this app is the automatic tracking and progress feature which can help parents, teachers or occupational therapists understand how well the individual using this app is developing.