Embracing iPad Technology with
Toddlers Using Traditional
Therapy Techniques
Presented by
Lisa Luna DeCurtis, MA, CCC-SLP &
Dawn Marie Ferrer, MS, Licensed SLP
Topics
 Personal Story
 Philosophy
 Statistics
 Benefits for Toddlers
 Developmental Theories
 Benefits for SLPs
 Therapeutic Techniques
 Favorite Apps & Sites
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Who We Are
 Both SLPs, Luna for 19 years & Dawn for 23
years
 Both in private practice in the San Francisco Bay
Area
 Both specialize in Early Intervention (Birth – 5),
ASD, Social Cognitive Skill Building, & FamilyCentered Therapy
 Both are parents (guess which one has a senior
in college)
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Who We Are (continued)
 Co-founded Morning2Moon Productions in 2011
 Luna is an English/Spanish Bilingual SLP
 Dawn is the private clinic coordinator at Abilities
United in Palo Alto
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Personal Story with Mobile
Technology
 Dawn begins occasionally using iPod touch in
therapy with her older clients (5-18) in 2008
 Luna buys an iPad in June 2010 to use with her
2.5 year-old son while traveling back East
 Dawn initially has no interest in the iPad thinking
that it was just a BIG iPod touch (big deal)
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Personal Story with Mobile
Technology (continued)
 Dawn and Luna get together in August 2010 and
discover the magic and possibilities this new
technology has to offer for clients (playing
Scrabble had something to do with it too)
 Morning2Moon Productions is founded in
January 2011
 First M2M app, “That’s Silly” is released in May
2011
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Philosophy
 It’s not about the tool, it’s about the technique
 Use the techniques you find effective with this
technology
 Try using the iPad to augment therapy routines,
not replace them
 Extend a concept by using a corresponding app
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Prevalence of Apple’s Mobile
Technology
 First iPhone released in June 2007
 First iPod Touch released in September
2007
 First iPad becomes available in April 2010
 iPad 2 released in March 2011
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Prevalence of Apple’s Mobile
Technology (continued)
 Over 125 million iPhones have been sold in 80
countries since its launch
 Over 40 million iPads have been sold since its
launch
 Over 250 million iOS devices (iPad, iPhone,
iPod touch) sold
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Prevalence of Apple’s Mobile
Technology (continued)
 3 out of 4 tablets sold in the US are iPads
 Over 500k apps available on the App Store
 Over 1 billion apps now downloaded per month
from the App store
 App Store available in over 100 countries
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Benefits of Using iPads with
Toddlers: Why it Makes Sense
Developmentally: sensorimotor stage, birth – 2,
children primarily use sensory & motor skills to
learn about environment, explore & interact with
objects & people, learn cause & effect, and are
developing the foundations for communication
skills
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
 Positioning: allows for use in several positions:
sitting in a chair, lying down on the back (supine)
or the tummy (prone), upside down
 Intrinsic Enjoyment: children choose activities
they enjoy and reject or ignore activities that are
difficult, static and “no fun”
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Benefits of using iPads with
Toddlers: Why it makes sense
 Reinforcement: the use of apps allows you
immediate access to materials to expand and
reinforce what the child is learning and is
interested in at the time
 Novelty: same concept can be presented in
different ways to hold the child’s interest while
reinforcing concepts
 Imitation: Children see their parents/caregivers
using phones, computers, & tablets and naturally
want to imitate these actions
 Multi-sensory: combines visual, tactile and
auditory stimuli
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Theoretically Why Using
Interactive Media (iPads, apps)
Makes Sense: Piaget (1896 –
1980)
 Jean Piaget Swiss psychologist and researcher
wrote about Stage Theory & Cognitive
Processes
 Stage Theory: description of a set of discreet
stages through which children progress over
time
 Cognitive Processes: Piaget’s explanation of a
set of processes that help child move from one
stage to the next
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Video 1: Over-Generalization
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Video 2 : Look what I can do!
 Accessibility: Doesn’t require sophisticated fine
motor skills such as those needed to operate a
computer mouse. A simple tap, point, swipe or
touch activates many of the features of an app
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Piaget’s Developmental Stages
Stage
Age
Description
iPad/app skills
Sensorimotor
Birth – 2.5
Learning takes place
through the direct
manipulation of objects
using all senses
Cause & effect;
repetition &
imitation;
multisensory
Preoperational
2.5 - 7
Period of representational
& prelogical thought
Language
acquisition; object
permanence;
representational
play emerges
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Piaget’s Developmental Stages
(continued)
Stage
Age
Description
iPad/app skills
ConcreteOperational
7-12
Period of focused logical
thought, more mature
understanding of the world
& objects in the
environment; learns things
can & do change
Understanding time,
space, & number;
scientific exploration
emerges; perspective
taking
FormalOperational
12-17
Unlimited logical thought;
abstract logical emerges
Understanding
complex concepts;
can use abstract
symbols to learn
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Theoretically Why it Makes
Sense: Vygotsky (1896 – 1934)
 Russian Psychologist & Philosopher
 Known for Social Constructivist Theory
 Discovery model of learning
 Learning & development are a social and
collaborative activity
 Student (child) must construct her own
understanding in her own mind while teacher
acts as a facilitator
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Vygotsky (continued)
 Learning should take place in meaningful
cultural contexts (SimCity)
 Zone of Proximal Development, the distance
between a child’s independent problem solving
& her capabilities of problem solving while under
adult or a more capable peer’s guidance
 The “zone” is just slightly beyond what a child
can already do by herself
 Good apps are challenging but not
overwhelming & allow the child to succeed while
learning something new; hence operate in the
zone of proximal development
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Bloom’s Taxonomy: 6 levels within
the cognitive domain
Evaluation
Synthesis
Analysis
Application
Understanding
Knowledge (facts)
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
1. Knowledge tasks (lowest level)
Task
 Name
 List
 Match
 Order
 Define
 Repeat
 Review
 Memorize
 recall
App
 ABA Flashcards Cards at
Kindergarten.com
 My Very First App (Eric
Carle)
 My First 1000 Words –
Flashcards by Alligator Apps
 Matching Jobs
 Farm Animals by Photo
Touch
 Wheels on the Bus by Duck
Duck Moose
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
2. Comprehension tasks
Task
 Describe
 Sort
 Classify
 Report
 Identify
 Review
 Translate
App
 That’s Silly by
Morning2Moon
 Language Builder, Sentence
Builder, Question Builder,
Story Builder, Conversation
Builder by Mobile Education
Store
 I Close My Eyes by Little
Bella
 Sequencing, Prepositions,
Verbs by Speech with Milo
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
3. Application Tasks
Task
App
 Demonstrate
 Cake, Cookie, & Candy
Doodle by Shoe the Goose
 Illustrate
 Casey’s Contraptions by
Snappy Touch
 Solve
 Toontastic by Launch Pad
Toys
 Employ
 Use
 Toca Tea Party, Toca
Doctor, Toca Birthday Party,
Toca Robot Lab, & Toca Hair
Salon by Toca Boca
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
4. Analysis Tasks
Task
App
 Categorize
 BrainPOP by BrainPOP
 Appraise
 Squeeze, Top-IT, Tric Trac,
Name That Number, &
Bluster by McGraw-Hill
 Calculate
 Compare
 Contrast
 Distinguish
 Examine
 Question
 Test
 Treasure Kai and the Lost
Gold of Treasure Island by
Treasure Bound Books
 Stack the States, Stack the
Countries, & Presidents vs.
Aliens by Dan RussellPinson
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
5. Synthesis Tasks
Task
 Compare
 Formulate
 Manage
 Organize
 Plan
 Prepare
App
 Star Walk by Vito
Technology
 Cut the Rope by Chillingo
Ltd.
 Touch Physics by Mark D.
Simpson
 Propose
 Aces Traffic Pack Classic b
Concrete Software
 Set up
 Tesla Toy by PDJ APPS
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
6. Evaluation Tasks (highest)
Task
 Assess
 Defend
 Estimate
 Judge
 Predict
 Support
 Value
 Test
Apps
 National Geographic Kids by
National Geographic Society
 Tie Dye Doodle by Shoe the
Goose LLC
 Science 360 for iPad by
National Science Foundation
 Species on the Edge by
HarperCollins Publishers
Ltd.
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Theoretically why it makes sense:
Montessori (1870 – 1952)
 “The greatest sign of success for a teacher….is
to be able to say, ‘The children are now working
as if I didn’t exist.’
 “Never help a child with a task at which he feels
he can succeed.”
 “One test of the correctness of educational
procedure is the happiness of the child.”
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Montessori continued
 “We cannot create observers by saying
‘observe,’ but by giving them the power and the
means for this observation and these are
procured through the education of the senses.”
 “Never give more to the mind then you give to
the hand.”
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Video 3: I follow directions
 Responsiveness: Immediate response/action
when the screen is touched
 Portability: Can bring the iPad to where the child
is vs. bringing the child to where the tool
(computer) is
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Benefits for the SLP
 Allows you to carry and store less stuff (books,
music, puzzles, flash cards, games, pictures,
icons, tests, drawing/painting supplies, tape
recordings, files. etc.).
 Email your notes/results directly to parents
 Take notes and audio record your
students/clients
 With a Wi-Fi connection can access relevant
information when spontaneous subjects or
questions are generated in the therapy session
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
SLP benefits (continued)
 Can share materials, homework, app
recommendations with parents who have mobile
devices
 Allows you to enter the child’s space
 Many apps are free or are very inexpensive
 Can easily take pictures and videos and use
them in therapy
 Gives you a chance to easily explore more
challenging tasks with students/clients
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Let’s Talk About Techniques
 Floortime (DIR)
 Relationship Development Intervention (RDI)
 The Hanen Program (It Takes Two to Talk)
 Connect, Direct, & Reflect (CDR)
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Technique 1: Greenspan’s
Floortime
 Follow the child’s lead
 Join in at child’s developmental level and build
on natural interests
 Open & close circles of communication (build on
child’s interest and inspire child to build on what
you’ve said or done)
 Create a play environment to use as a vehicle to
foster the child’s natural interests & provide
opportunities for opening & closing circles of
communication
 Extend circles of communication
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Technique 2 : Gutstein RDI
 Level I: Novice – develop emotion sharing &
social referencing
 Level II: Apprentice – accept small degrees
of change & function as equal partner in
referencing & regulating each other’s actions
to maintain coordination
 Level III: Challenger- main goals are
collaboration, co-creation, &
improvisation
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Technique 2 : Gutstein RDI
(continued)
 Level IV: Voyager learn to share perceptions,
points of view & imagination with others
 Level V: Explorer – practice the creative
interchange of diverse ideas
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Technique 3: The Hanen Program
 Early language intervention techniques used to
train parents to be language facilitators
 Encourages parents to take the primary role in
helping their children improve communication
skills
 Emphasizes working in the child’s natural
environment where the motivation is high to
communicate with the important people in their
lives
 Takes the approach of following the child’s lead
to keep the motivation high to communicate
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Technique 4: M2M’s Connect,
Direct, Reflect (CDR)
 These are the techniques we have successfully
used with a wide range of children from 12
months – 18 years old with diverse diagnoses
 We encourage parents, caregivers, & siblings to
be present and observe, and then later practice
the techniques while we provide coaching
 When possible, we work in the child’s natural
environment, usually at home
 We observe first to determine the child’s
interests
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Connect
 Make the initial connection by using the iPad to
get the child’s attention. Play a favorite song or
sound effect briefly until child looks your way.
Hide the iPad behind your back encouraging the
child to reference you for more.
 Further the connection by reacting with nonverbal excitement (clapping, smiling, dancing,
laughing, etc.) and vocal sound effects to motive
the child to continue interacting
 Model taking a turn using the iPad while the
child watches
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Direct
 Once you’ve connected, begin adding structure
(have child sit near you, reference your face,
etc.). Give the child simple directions such as
touch the screen, push the arrow, turn the
(virtual) page by swiping, or have the child give a
particular command to have you continue the
activity
 Maintain control of the iPad allowing the child to
access it at appropriate times
 Pair real objects with the virtual ones to reinforce
and extend concepts
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Reflect
 Reflect with the child by reviewing what you did
during the session
 Repeat key vocabulary and concepts using other
toys & materials
 Reflect with the parents about what their
observations were, and then, about what your
goals were and whether or not they were
accomplished
 Reflect with the parents on how they can
incorporate effective techniques in everyday
activities
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
What all 4 techniques have in
common:
 Play-based
 Focus on building interpersonal relationships,
establishing the connection
 Foster emotion sharing
 Follow child’s interests
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
What all 4 techniques have in
common (continued)
 Experiences take place in the child’s natural
environment
 Emphasize reciprocal communication and turn
taking
 Involve & empower the parents and primary
caregivers to take a lead role in helping child to
improve communication skills
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Other Techniques used by SLPs
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Video 4: Narratives - Luna explains
how to use apps to teach narratives
 Go to eindividualhealth on youtube : Use of iPad
to tell stories to view a series of training videos
by Luna on communication and learning
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Teach the technique to master the
tool to reach the goal
 What are your favorite therapy techniques?
 How have you incorporated the iPad into
therapy?
 What kind of responses have you had from your
students/clients when using an iDevice?
 What kind of reactions have you gotten from
parents?
 Is there anyone here who wouldn’t consider
using an iPad in therapy at this time?
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Guidelines for Therapy:
The 7 P’s
 Developed as a way to consider why, how, and
when to use the iPad with children
 Give you ideas for maximizing learning on
iDevices
 Helps when selecting which apps to use
 Provides guidelines for parents and caregivers
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Guidelines for Therapy:
1. The Preparation
 Determine the rationale behind using a mobile
device/apps vs. using real toys/objects. Why
does it make sense in this situation with this
child?
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Guidelines for Therapy: #2
The Participants
 Consider the child’s age, developmental level,
attention capacity, and specific needs
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Guidelines for Therapy:
# 3 The Parameters
 Think about how long, where, and with whom
the child the child will use the iPad. What are
you comfortable with?
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Guidelines for Therapy:
#4 The Purpose
 What is the app’s advised purpose?
 What is the goal you want to focus on?
 Are they compatible?
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Guidelines for Therapy: #5
The Positioning
 Which positions yield the best outcomes? Side
by side? Face to face?
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Guidelines for Therapy: #6
The Playtime
 How will you experience shared enjoyment?
What is your play style? What is your child’s
play style?
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s Guidelines for Therapy: #7
The Potential
 How will you extend the app learning and anchor
it to real-life experiences?
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
M2M’s guidelines for choosing
apps
 Addresses goals
 Appropriate amount of stimulation
 Allows for interaction
 Ease of use
 Simple to understand (for the therapist and child)
 Stimulates additional learning
 Teaches relevant concepts
 Fun and entertaining
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Our Favorite Apps
 Wheels on the Bus, Itsy Bitsy Spider, Old
McDonald by Duck Duck Moose
 I Close My Eyes by Little Bella
 Nighty Night by Shape Minds and Moving
Images
 Toca Doctor, Toca Tea Party by Toca Boca
 Sound Shaker by Zinc Roe
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Our Favorite Apps (continued)
 Special Words by Special iApps
 Winnie the Pooh Puzzle Books by Disney
Publishing Worldwide Interactive
 iTalk Recorder by Griffin Technology
 Speech Tutor, Minimal Pairs by Synapse Apps,
LLC
 ArtikPix by Rinn Apps
 My First AAC by Ncsoft
 Answers Yes/No by SimplifiedTouch
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Our Favorite Apps (continued)
 Image Finder by CMG Research
 Monkey Preschool Lunchbox by Thup Games
 Verbs with Milo by Speech with Milo
 Elmo Loves ABCs by Sesame Street
 Bob Books by Learning Touch
 I Like Books by Grasshopper Apps
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Our Favorite Sites for Finding Apps &
Learning About Children’s Interactive
Technology
 Moms with Apps
 Children’s Technology Review (Warren
Buckleitner)
 Squidalicious, Thinking Person’s Guide to
Autism (Shannon Des Roches Rosa)
 Speech-Language Pathology Sharing (Eric
Sailers)
 Special Education Apps (a4cwsn)
 iTeach Special Education (iDevices in Special
Ed)
 SLPeeps
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Remember…….it’s about the
technique, not the tool
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
The iTool is here to stay…………
 “You can’t uninvent the iPad.” (Warren
Buckleitner)
 Parents will expect you to be the expert with this
technology to use in speech and language
therapy
 Children 2.5 and under are the “digital natives”
with the iPad
 An increasing number of schools are using
iPads for learning
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Questions
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions
Contact:
[email protected]
[email protected]
ASHA 2011 L. Luna DeCurtis & Dawn Ferrer, Morning2Moon Productions