Ipad - good apps?

kingfisherblue

My son has Down's syndrome and uses the Proloquo2go programme on an Ipad in school. It is a special school and they have found that several of the children can use P2G successfully. I'm currently in the process of getting funding for an Ipad and P2G so that my son can use it at home as well.

24skins

The iPad isn't a replacement for a laptop or netbook, it's a different beast altogether - the main benefits of an iPad as an interface for children are the lack of frustration factor (there's no boot-up time) and 100% touchscreen operation (often "touchscreen" lappys require some manual keyboard use).

I haven't found the small capacity an issue; my son has had the 16gb model since January, he's running 48 apps including Proloquo2go and still has 8.8gb of empty space.

zzzLazyDaisy

Normally I would advise against buying a young child an expensive bit of kit like an Ipad, when a much cheaper android tablet would do for playing a few games.

But this situation is entirely different. My sister is a Senco and she uses Ipads for the apps that they use with the children in her unit. I agree with the others, if he is used to the ipad, then it is best to stick with it.

If you buy it from Amazon, do check out the square trade warranty - it gives an extended warranty, which also covers accidental damage, which might be useful to have with such a young child I have used them for recent purchases of delicate electronics as they are not overly expensive and give peace of mind. You register the purchase by forwarding amazon's confirmation e-mail. I've not so far had to make a claim though, so I can't comment on how good they are with their claims handling.

jennie-jack

get a bloody good case.

ours use ipads for special needs too. we are looking at things for my son at the moment, its just they are so expensive so more saving will be needed.

kingfisherblue

jennie-jack wrote: »

get a bloody good case.

ours use ipads for special needs too. we are looking at things for my son at the moment, its just they are so expensive so more saving will be needed.

Try the Aidis Trust, Cerebra, or Newlife if you need funding. The Aidis Trust are currently helping me to secure funding - they write to different charities and charitable trusts to get the full amount. I had a telephone interview and they also contacted my son's school for information. They will fund the Ipad, P2G programme, case and strap.

I have heard that Cerebra take a long time, but the Aidis Trust hasn't been very speedy either :cool:

kraftykat

kingfisherblue wrote: »

My son has Down's syndrome and uses the Proloquo2go programme on an Ipad in school. It is a special school and they have found that several of the children can use P2G successfully. I'm currently in the process of getting funding for an Ipad and P2G so that my son can use it at home as well.

If you don't mind me asking, where are you getting funding for the ipad? My daughter has Autism and would really benefit from an ipad as she loves my ipod touch.

GlasweJen

Loving the iPod touch isn't quite the same as using an iPad for communication needs. If your daughter has a need like that then the local CAB will have a list of charities that can part fund expensive bits of kit like this but funding takes ages to procure and involves jumping through lots of hoops.

A_Flock_Of_Sheep

Is DLA not a good thing to spend on an iPAD? It is meant for the additional costs of a disability. I work in benefits advice and people do ask us about charities and we always ask about DLA first and why it is not possible to use this before giving advice on charities.

There is a section in the DLA form about communication and help with this so I presume if you receive DLA you did fill that area of the form in?

DorsetGirl_2

A_Flock_Of_Sheep wrote: »

Is DLA not a good thing to spend on an iPAD? It is meant for the additional costs of a disability. I work in benefits advice and people do ask us about charities and we always ask about DLA first and why it is not possible to use this before giving advice on charities.

There is a section in the DLA form about communication and help with this so I presume if you receive DLA you did fill that area of the form in?

I am using it - saving a bit at a time but they are really expensive and we cant put all the other things he needs on hold for a couple of months while we save the money.

Another charity to try is the Family Fund - they have income limits but its worth a look.

http://www.familyfund.org.uk/

kingfisherblue

kraftykat wrote: »

If you don't mind me asking, where are you getting funding for the ipad? My daughter has Autism and would really benefit from an ipad as she loves my ipod touch.

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