iCan Special Education Fun
By Keri Wilmot,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Learn routines and vocabulary with repetitive activities.
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iCan Special Education Fun
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What’s It About?
In ICAN SPECIAL EDUCATION FUN kids choose different activities from a variety of categories to help learn new skills and vocabulary about their community, routines, feelings, letters, numbers and colors. Within each category there are eight different activities that include on-screen coloring pages, jigsaw puzzles, as well as matching games and sequencing activities. Cues are provided to kids on how to play each game, such as whether they might need to swipe or tap. Each activity has a menu at the top of the screen so parents can modify the activity (i.e. choosing between 8 or 20 items provided in a matching game). Parents can also turn off background music, scroll through the options to choose a different task, or whether they want to offer a hint. Videos can be favorited and downloaded to watch offline. In the Grown-Ups section, parents can print activities and watch tutorial videos, to help kids transfer skills to the real world.
Is It Any Good?
The highlight of this app is the ability for kids to practice and learn new concepts about daily routines through sequencing. Using iCan Special Education Fun they can learn about eating at a restaurant, getting a haircut, brushing teeth, taking a bath, and toileting. The routines are presented first as a social story, and then kids have the opportunity to practice putting the steps in order on their own.
Overall, this app is best used on an iPad. Many of the activities like the jigsaw puzzle, tracing, and coloring are too difficult to do in small spaces with accuracy on a smaller screen, like an iPhone. Because kids can't change the brush tip in the coloring app, it's impossible to color within the lines. During games, positive feedback is provided immediately with a correct answer, such as "You're great" or "You're awesome" followed by an on-screen sticker. After that, a vocabulary word or a comment about the sequence is repeated. At times the praise can be distracting from the concept. It would be helpful for parents to be able to filter content within the app to target specific concepts or skills, to remove items kids have mastered, or to minimize the amount of content seen so kids don't get overwhelmed. The subscription might be steep for a single user, but for those with large families or teachers and therapists of kids with special needs who can use it with multiple clients each day, the cost might be more justified if purchased at the yearly rate.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how iCan Special Education Fun helps kids learn the names of items in their day-to-day life through the use of matching games. Parents might want to play the game on their own first, then see if there are items in their home kids can find. You might need to offer a different vocabulary word if you call the item something different in your family.
In some of the activities such as tracing, coloring and the Scratch a Sketch activity, players use their finger to wipe away the screen to connect dots, fill in the lines or find a picture underneath. Show the kids how to wipe the screen slowly, so they can work on accuracy and control, rather than quickly tapping the screen without success.
While it can be exciting to want to help your child with these activities, be mindful of the verbal cues you offer, or jumping in to use your own hands to activate items on the screen. Some kids need extra time to practice and learn new skills and too much cueing won't help them learn or problem solve.
App Details
- Devices: iPhone , iPod Touch , iPad , Mac
- Subjects: Language & Reading : letter or word recognition, naming, vocabulary, Math : numbers
- Skills: Thinking & Reasoning : memorization, part-whole relationships, prediction, problem solving, solving puzzles, Self-Direction : academic development, Communication : listening, Health & Fitness : hygiene and self care
- Pricing structure: Free to try (one-week trial, then $7.99/mo.)
- Release date: December 2, 2008
- Category: Education
- Topics: Numbers and Letters
- Publisher: BFTV, LLC
- Version: 4.0.4
- Minimum software requirements: iOS 10.0 or later
- Last updated: November 17, 2021
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