puzzing intrigue

This kid does impress me at times.

OK, I know i’m somewhat biased and, as his mum, it’s my job to be impressed by him… soooo, at the risk of seeming a little ‘braggy’ i’m going to share a snippet from Mac’s recent school work.

Math(s) is still Mac’s favourite subject, it comes easily to him, he enjoys success with it and it’s easier for output than most literacy/writing based activities… so, what’s not to love?

In class Mac and his and his peers (now in 6th grade) were working on number patterns. Mac was working well and was given the first addition number pattern to complete as a warm up.

8, 16, 32, 64, 128

Mac typed “doubling” as his response to the teacher’s aide, ‘M’, to explain the pattern.

He was then required to provide ‘M’ with a subtracting pattern for her to try and work out, and so he typed:

100, 75, 50, 25

She easily identified it was subtracting by 25 each time.

But it none of this was really challenging Mac so ‘M’ upped the anti and asked him to create a really hard number pattern for her to do.

This is what he typed:

44, 88, 264, 1056, 5280

To quote Ron Burgundy, “well that escalated quickly”.

Seems he followed his brief… it is a tricky pattern.  Mac’s aide, ‘M’, worked on it for quite a while but he had her pretty stumped. None of the other kids in class could get it out – Mac assured them it was a proper pattern, that the numbers were correct.

Mac’s teacher, Mrs M worked it out… eventually… and in the end Mac gave the rest of the class the solution.

But it’s these little snippets and insights that intrigue us about this child.  Mac doesn’t use a calculator, it would be too tedious on this communication device.  When asked about his ‘methods’ for many things he says he “just knows it” and can’t explain his working.  Also, on his device he can only type left to right, unlike many instances in calculations where the rest of use might work right to left. So there’s plenty of times we adults are not quite sure what to do next, while Mac just keeps on doing his things his way, and yes, impressing and intriguing us as he goes.

Oh, and the answer?

Well, really I need to give those who love a good maths puzzle the chance to do it themselves.

But be sure to put your solution in the comments, I’ll pop Mac’s explanation he used for the class in the comments too, but don’t peek. 😉

Oh, and just so we don’t get too carried away as ‘braggy parents’, I do love the comment in his school workbook immediately following this entry which said… “Mac then dozed off in his wheelchair for a brief nap after all his work on number patterns”, seems it’s exhausting this math(s).

Way to go on the snoozing at school Macco!

fridge magnet friday…

Thank you Richard Attfield for these amazing words.

IMAGE DESCRIPTION:
old fashioned fridge door, cream with silver handle with a blue piece of paper containing the quote “Do not give a child a ‘disability label’ – give them equality; give them an education; give them equal status in society; give them freedom to express themselves by the means of their choice. Do not destroy their humanity. Richard Attfield, Poet”

 

the powtoon portfolio…

A homework assignment saw the need for Mac to develop an ‘about me’ portfolio.  We talked about what he might want to include, what it is that is important to him about himself.

We nixed the idea of a poster and decided to use PowToon and their built in templates.  We picked the template, decided on an image to use and then put Mac’s words into the online program.  Some of the items Mac just gave me single words and we discussed how we could expand those ideas into sentences. We also talked about how to split that information across different slides for visual effect.

So if you were wondering just who Mac is… here’s what he thinks you need to know (audio description available below video).

)

AUDIO DESCRIPTION:

Coloured slides with image of blond cartoon boy.  Text reads:

Hello, my name is Mac Burns, I am 10 years old.
I am a son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin, friend.
I’m a bit of a thinker; I like to listen and learn;
but I don’t say much… yet!
I use switches to speak and wheels to move.
I particularly love playing football and handball with my mates.
My favourite subject is maths
and I like learning about politics (with my Dad).
In my spare time I like to listen to music and books;
watch movies and TV;
learn new things on my computer;
and swim… I love to swim.
I really like funny things, stuff that makes me LAUGH.
I love my life.

Final text is accompanied by an image of a stick drawing of Mac in a wheelchair and a huge vertical ramp… click the following link to the blog post to find out more about this image.

https://inkyed.wordpress.com/2012/04/16/no-limits/

choose your own adventure…

Today we were given a sneak peek of an assessment task Mac undertook.  A photo and comments from his teacher (Mr B) arrived showing his work in the text window of his communication device.

Mr B was really pleased with his work, but perhaps more excited by the fact Mac was clearly proud of his work.  It’s an interesting development.  For quite some time now, Mac has (regularly) been going ‘on strike’ in class by either refusing to use his switches or going to sleep in an attempt to get out of doing work.  It’s certainly not his finest trait … and is certainly more prevalent when it is work he thinks he might not get correct (or literacy).

However, on two occasions this week he’s completed a task and then been obviously proud of himself.

I wonder if it’s a new level of maturity, maybe that somewhat fixed mindset of his might just be opening up to new possibilities.  Oh how I’d love for him to enjoy working on things, particularly literacy, just for his own pleasure.

So what work did he do today?

Here’s the raw text in the Dynavox window.

And here’s the raw text turned into a ‘piece of writing’ (with Mac assisting with the punctuation) to ensure he can see how all his hard work is worth it.

They are delightful words… I can’t wait to find out what happens next.

I love the unusual name he’s chosen for the girl and the “stylin” shoes he’s described.

Perhaps our blog readers can add the next line or paragraph in the comments for me to share with Mac.  He can then decide if he wants to collaborate on a “choose your own adventure” style of writing or perhaps be motivated to ‘go it alone’.

the problem with scare campaigns…

As the month of AAC Awareness (augmentative and alternative communication) draws to a close I was struck by the amount of times the QUIT Victoria ad from 2007 “Voice Within” has been running on TV.

Here’s the link:  http://www.quit.org.au/media/?id=28073

It frustrates me that we are constantly bombarded by the insidious messaging prominent in this ad, that, if you can’t speak you can’t communicate – something AAC acceptance is constantly up against.

And… not withstanding, that once again “walking” is put out as the great ‘hope’ not “communication” (ugh).

I accept this ad is important in the context of “quitting smoking” but concede it is quite damaging to the ongoing awareness and acceptance of AAC – it’s pretty offensive.

This maybe have been something addressed (by AAC users and professionals) when it first aired back in 2007 but the reappearance of it during my TV watching was just a little jarring – particularly so when Mac is often watching when these ads come on.

I discuss with him why people choose to use that type of fear based portrayal and why it is so wrong.  We lump those people, the “fear mongers” into the same basket as the “pity peddlers” and the “disability charity merchants”… there is no place for them in our world.

i swear…

 

I checked the battery of the Step by Step Communicator today.

As I pressed it to see if it was working I was thrilled to hear the last recorded message was “put some swear words on it” clearly annunciated by the voice of a nine or 10 year old boy.

So, it appears, the boys have had it out in the playground with them – I am pleased Mac is learning how to be a nine year old boy the right way.

It warms my heart to know he is being taught some inappropriate words by his peers.  And, while not ‘explicit’ in the curriculum documents I have read… I am sure it is implied. 😉

Inclusive Education… what more could you ask for!

 

liver la vida

It’s hard to know how much involvement to have in assignments when your child has no chance of doing it on their own.

A lot of the assignments to date have been more about me teaching Mac the concept of choosing topics, researching and then deciding what to include – I guess this is probably much the same for everyone.

That being said… I wasn’t overly thrilled when he brought home the requirements for his assignment on “organs”.  He had been assigned “the liver” and was to present to the class as if he was ‘the teacher’.

Ugh, the liver, I thought.  How are we going to find age appropriate stuff and avoid the obvious drug, sexually transmitted disease and alcohol damage issues that seem to feature ‘way more prominently’ on the internet than any other.

With some focussed searching we did OK.   We watched some cool videos, found some good websites.  Mac had to decide what he wanted to include in his assignment.  I showed him how to change up the information so it sounded like something he might say.

We decided to go with a Powerpoint presentation so he could progress it with his switches while ‘taking the class’.

We created his own avatar using the WeeMee Avatar Creator app (we like it because it has a wheelchair accessory).

We popped his Avatar into his CrazyTalk 2D animation software so it could speak with his dialogue.

We decided to use the Acapela-Box to download the voice.  We had to pay for some credits to use this despite having his Dynavox.  Thing is the Dynavox doesn’t really ‘hold its own’ for long tracts of speech.  It gets crackly and breaks up a bit too much for our liking.  With Acapela Box we can use the same voice he uses on his Dynavox but with greater clarity and no chance of it failing mid-sentence.

I poked around on the internet and found some pictures, bought some stock images to include and created some of my own elements.  I discussed with Mac what his images might look like, what we could include and importantly made him choose the ‘liver’ image he liked the best.  From memory… I think he over-ruled my first choice for making “liver dude”

Here’s the video version of his Powerpoint presentation
(you’ll need your sound turned on & be sure to read on after you’ve watched it).

THE LIVER by Mac Burns

Did you learn anything new?

Oh, and for those super-observant folk…
Disclaimer: no M&Ms were harmed in the making of this assignment… but, that’s not to say a few weren’t hacked 😉  

what’s in your bookcase?

Here’s a quick look at our Inky Ed! bookcase – lots of great books around inclusive education and a handful worth reading with more of a disability focus.

We have added a few around grammar and language development to use alongside Mac’s growth with his communication device.  You’ll notice Banish Boring Words, The Giggly Guide to Grammar and Unjournaling all have a literacy focus.

The Sneetches and Seedfolks both have interesting messages to take away.  The Sneetches about accepting diversity (thanks Dr Seuss) and Seedfolks about connectivity, community and how just one person can make a difference in the lives of many others.

Do you have any recommended reads to share?  I’d love to keep building this bookcase up for us all to share.

CLICK THE BOOKCASE TO VISIT INKY ED’S SHELFARI PAGE

BLOG CODE: Y589TF6K5396 

switch access for iDevices… from those in the know!

INKY ED OUTSOURCED? well, just for today…

1. Because I haven’t yet managed to get my hands on the “APPlicator” yet (but plan to).
2. Because Jane’s Blog is one you should be visiting regularly in any case.
3. Because Jane has provided a great review  of the Pretorian APPlicator.
4. And, because Jane & Alex have compiled THE comprehensive list of switch accessible apps.

Here’s two links you shouldn’t miss.

CLICK IMAGE TO OPEN PAGE

CLICK or PRESS EITHER SWITCH TO OPEN

the ‘season proper’

Football season is here.  In Australia you are spoilt for choice with the amount of sport and number of ‘footy codes’ to choose from.

In our family it’s Australian rules football and the AFL (Australian Football League).

Mac has consistently maintained he is a Sydney Swans supporter (which is my team 🙂 ) yet his dad is a very loyal Carlton Blues supporter.  I have let Mac know he doesn’t have to ‘truly’ commit to a team until he turns 10 😉 but he has been solid on the Swans for a good few years now.

Mac: championing the red & white
SWANS v GWC with 38,230 of our closest friends

We were reasonably organised this year, even made it to the opening game of the season in Sydney last Saturday.  An historic moment being the first game ever for the new Great Western Sydney Giants (GWS).  I’m not sure he doesn’t love the pre-game frivolity and post-game celebrations a little more than the actual game… that’s probably not that unusual for an 8yo – particularly one who can’t really see what’s happening on the field courtesy of his cortical vision impairment.

While Mac has had a lovely time over the years snuggling with his Dad, usually in front of the fire, for the couple of hours it takes for an AFL  game to take place he hasn’t really been that engaged.   He’s been to a couple of live games in the early days but they seemed to ‘freak him out’ a little with the crowd roar and the whole ‘lack of vision’ thing.

This year Mac has joined his ‘first ever’ footy tipping competition with his Dad and some other Dads’n lads.  Great practice for AAC (either with auditory or visual scanning) and we have found some time for him to select his tips at school.  This has a couple of benefits… it helps the other kids see him doing the same stuff (or cooler stuff) than them and it saves me one job at home.  It does help that his Learning Support person this year is an AFL supporter (although there’s no explaining him being a Richmond supporter).

At the moment we have each of the rounds set up on the computer for visual scanning, but might (time permitting), load them into a Dynavox share page for easy updating each year.

I am looking forward to seeing how Mac fares in his first ever tipping comp… ‘carn the Swannies!

kenken: no-brainer for differentiated instruction?

You’ve probably seen these puzzles appearing in your newspapers over the last few years.  Looking a bit like a weird Sudoku puzzle they are worth a second glance.

click the image to learn about the inventor

KenKen puzzles have built in differentiation, potential for collaborative learning and are readily available as free resource.   Is that not the ultimate in universal design in learning?

For an auditory or visual scanner they are great because you have a small number of answer options compared to other puzzles.  For a 4×4 puzzle you only have to enter 1, 2, 3 or 4 in each square – much less tedious for a scanner.

Kenken puzzles can contain all maths operations but, just as easily, can be simplified to only include ‘addition’ operations for someone not yet able to cope with division or multiplication (and don’t look any different – which can be important to some learners).

Here’s two examples of different puzzles, one simple – the other more complex.  Using colour is another way you could differentiate for learners – for example someone still learning their colours and number identification may work alongside others to complete all the “purple squares”, or groups can work together each on their own colour based on individual competencies.

The basic instructions are:

The numbers in each heavily outlined set of squares, called cages, must combine (in any order) to produce the target number in the top corner of the cage using the mathematical operation indicated.

Cages with just one box should be filled in with the target number in the top corner.

A number can be repeated within a cage as long as it is not in the same row or column.

A solved 3 x 3 (addition only) puzzle looks like this:

The KenKen website is a great resource.  Educators can sign up for the KenKen® Classroom program, where they will supply KenKen puzzles to you every week.   Parents are most likely able to apply too – they gave me a subscription and my next step is to start setting the puzzles up on Mac’s computer for him.

interested educators simply click the image

classroom friendly wireless keyboard/mouse

The Lenovo Mini Wireless Keyboard has a built in trackball mouse.   It comes with a USB dongle and works wirelessly from a distance of up to ten meters, it is compatible with Windows 7, XP and Vista (does anyone still use Vista?)

Mac’s aide this year is a Gen “Y”er and awesome when it comes to thumb typing.  This little keyboard/mouse is fantastic for maneuvering around the screen without having to be in touching distance of the computer or communication device.  We primarily use this with Mac’s Dynavox V (open device) and do have lots of macros set up in toolbars so much of the everyday stuff is just a click of an icon..

These little keyboards would also work really well for group time when you have the entire class sitting around the whiteboard.  Just because most kids can clamber up and use the interactive whiteboard doesn’t always mean the need to.

I am sure you can waste a lot of time waiting for kids to stand up, step over other kids, do their stuff and sit back down again.  Some days it might be easier and novel to hand the wireless keyboard around the group.  It’s a new level of dexterity required, it’s less disruptive on those days where you just need to keep things calm and it’s great for kids in class who may not have the physical ability to get up and access the whiteboard – or might just find standing up in front of everyone a bit too much pressure.

We got ours off eBay and so far it has got a five star rating from both Mac’s aide and myself.

(We did try a bluetooth keyboard/mouse combo but found it wasn’t reliable enough with its pairing on the Dynavox.  Not sure if that was a Dynavox issue or that Keyboard’s issue.)

a mysterious excursion

Mac had a school excursion.  It was to the local animal park on one of our coldest days this year.  For some perspective… our animal park is not a big, fancy ‘zoo’.  It is a small wildlife park in a regional town – there’s some interesting animals there – but it’s pretty modest.

When he got home from the excursion we discussed his day using his yes/no switches.  He was completely over excited and ready for a whole lot of silly.

Here’s the upshot of what I managed to find out, that is… “the day according to Mac”  and an example of how we get to this kind of information – although I won’t subject you to the entire convo, it went on for some time.

Never let the truth stand in the way of a good story… eh Mac?

more specifically… which reindeer?

We were at a disability equipment expo.  Mac (in his mostly ‘home made’ wheelchair) and I were mooching around looking at what’s new, innovative, desirable and, of course, a pipe dream.  We were also lamenting most of what we really want isn’t yet invented.

There weren’t many other kids there – it was a school day afterall.  But one young girl and her parents made a bee line for us.

They wanted to know where we had got Mac’s spoke protectors from – they hadn’t seen any like that.  Mac had his aboriginal art covers on – made from wrapping paper and clear contact.  I explained how we made them to the Mum.

Then I spoke to Miss H (who had a neat little wheelchair with butterflies and flowers on her spoke protectors) and explained to her how she and her mum could easily change covers really regularly, she could think up great designs for different themed events  (yep,her mum was semi-glaring at me, slightly bemused and probably wishing they never introduced themselves).

I told her about Mac’s Xmas chair when he was “little” and how it had two reindeer on the front & flashing lights.  Mac was grinning at her and looking slightly ‘self-important’.

She checked a couple of facts – did the lights have batteries? how did the reindeer attach to the chair? and then “which reindeer where they?

Heh, I didn’t actually know which reindeer they were…

“We’ll have to ask Mac about that” I told her as I grabbed his yes/no switches.

“He’ll have to use his feet to answer yes & no”, I explained.

Mum:       Mac, Miss H wants to know which reindeer were on your chair – do you know?

Mac:          YES

Miss H:    Was one Comet?

Mac:           NO

Miss H:     What about Dasher?

Mac:            YES

Miss H:      Um, Dancer?

Mac:           NO

Miss H:     (with her Dad’s suggestion) Or Prancer?

Mac:           NO

Mum:        Oh, we forgot Rudolph? was the other one Rudolph?

Mac:          YES

Miss H:     Oh, so Dasher and Rudolph, huh cool.

It still amazes me what is important to kids.   I had NEVER considered what the names of those two toy reindeer were.  I also love the fact that had Mac not previously determined which reindeer they actually were he is able to just ‘makes stuff up’ like all kids do to suit the situation.

With that, we parted ways and Mac and I continued collating our mental wish list of equipment we may want/need/covet now and in the future.

I do look forward to the day Mac doesn’t need me to hold his foot switches, a day when he can be an independent communicator.

But, for now I enjoy that pretty much everyone accepts his method of communicating particularly when the conversation is natural and normal.  Sure I maneuver the convo around to get it in a format Mac can contribute, but then Miss H just naturally asked Yes/No questions without missing a beat.  It’s not that hard really.

the NEWELL network

One of the pre-conference  workshops I attended at AGOSCI 2011 was all about telecommunications.  I was interested in this topic as I would love Mac to be able to ring his Grandparents and thank them if they have looked after him, or tell them something cool he did at school.  I would love to be able to have more meaningful conversations with him when I am away (I am sure his Dad is the same).  Among many of the great ideas and options including the National Relay Service, Skype, large button phones, switch adapted phones there was one VERY new concept we were introduced to.

The launch of the following website…

Fresh out of the box is a new website for people with complex communication needs (CCN) (& supporters/helpers) who find it hard to use the phone independently.

So what is it?

CLICK IMAGE TO VISIT WEBSITE

.

The Newell Network will help you:

• find out about telecommunications resources.
• ask questions, and talk with others who can help you.
• share your experience and knowledge.
• discuss and try to solve problems.

As with all these information sharing websites they are much better if populated with lots of questions, ideas and ‘big picture dreams’ so try to use it  – you never know what solution someone might find.

If you had one telecommunications idea you thought was ‘too crazy’ to ever be invented what would it be?