New iPad 3-A Touch Screen you can FEEL

In about a year Seneg and Apple will be putting a tool out there where you will be able to feel pictures and graphics on a flat screen iPad. Where schools are switching to using iBooks and etext, this could mean the chance for blind/low vision children to interact with the graphics in the text book. If you would like to read more about this incredible upcoming tool, go to:

Rumor: New haptic feedback touchscreen bound for the iPad 3
and another View of the Retinal Display

Evolution of Braille

Anyone interested in reading about the evolution of Braille and the importance of this medium is invited to read all about it at the Braille Authority: February 2012: BANA releases complete article on the Evolution of Braille

Braille Touch to text on a phone

Georgia Tech iPhone App Could Help Blind Users Text

Watch the full video from the link above on how anyone can learn how to quickly braille text for messages on a phone and only on a phone.

Don't just Graduate, but LEARN along the way

This situation comes up more often than is good for the blind/low vision population. Having parents who want their child to graduate so badly, but do not really care if they learn along the way. Or, somehow they believe that when they get to that graduation stage all the things they did not learn will somehow miraculous appear through osmosis, escorted by a para of course because the child failed to learn how to walk around on their own. Along the way, the parents insisted a para do the work with minimal effort from the child and when the child went home, the parents pushed the lessons to completion, only to have her do poorly on tests. Parents getting angry because of the low scores, they have the student's work reduced even more. She does not learn the same content as her peers, which will harm her in the future.

The parents do not realize that all their efforts in getting the child's workload reduced and having a para glued to the child's side all day will have a very negative effect on the child's life, her confidence, self-esteem and how she views what or rather what  a blind person cannot do because she was never given the chance to prove herself. They essentially are telling the child: "You cannot do it on your own. You need help all the time. You will fail without help."

The solution--backup. Don't push through, but increase blind skills learning so the classes that are being taken, the student can do on their own. Instead of taking 5 general education classes, reduce that to 3 or 4 (depending on how low the child's skills are--maybe even think about a School for the Blind) and The Teacher of the Blind gives instruction on how to complete the assignments without help from a para or parent. The child's esteem grows as they realize they can do the work on their own, take a bus, go and do what they want.

Yes, this most likely will take longer than 4 years in High School. That is OK...they have a life time to now go out and achieve their goals with their own skills.

If you find you were one of those students...don't lose hope. There are great training centers for the blind around the country. One great one to check in to is Louisiana Training Center for the Blind

iPhone is so easy to use with voice over, anyone can send a message

♥   HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Easy lessons at: Mac/iTools

Come see Presentation on technology in action in ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO

I will be giving a presentation on all the different types of technology that help blind/low vision students achieve success in school, on February 23-24. On the 23rd, I will speak on the what and when of technology at 1:30-2:45 and on the 24th will be speaking with a panel on the different types of technology used throughout schooling.

If you are in the area, please do come by and join the conversation of success in school.

2012 NEW MEXICO AER CONFERENCE FEBRUARY 23-24, 2012

SHERATON ALBUQUERQUE UPTOWN HOTEL

ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO

Making a Promethean Board flipcharts (smart board) accessible to blind students

How many out there are in school districts where a smart board or  Promethean board with flipcharts are used? These are graphic pictures that anyone with sight can easily see, but to a blind student, it is empty space. Many paraeducators have to take the pictures and turn them into text or braille for the blind student to read. There is the long way to do this, typing one character at a time ( as you cannot copy the images)  or a fast way.

Here is the fast way. You can download a personal  viewer from the company to load on your machine. Open the viewer then the flipchart, go to file, then to print. When the print box opens, you will see the "export as PDF" so save it as such. Place a folder on the desktop with these PDF files, so they are easy to find, especially if you are going to teach the blind student how to do this, and after all, that is what we want. Open Openbook or Kurzweil and go to open file. Go find the file on your desktop and have your OCR program open it. After it opens, go to launch it into word and it opens in Word. All the great text is there. Now be aware, all those pictures will not translate...they will turn out as a list of letters and symbols, so just go through and delete out what was meant for a picture. Now, all that needs to be done is those pictures are created 3-D by the para to go with this work.
One huge advantage I have discovered is on test day, the students can use their notes. If the flipcharts are in text format, then the blind student can do a quick "find" command on their computer and jump to the theorem they need ....actually faster than a sighted student pouring through their notes visually. Once they have the theorem, they alt+tab back to the exam and continue on answering all the problems.
Now this is just 1 way, but where there is a will there is a way to make the world more accessible.

Watch Video: Dr Robinson teaches-Making a Promethean Board flipcharts (smart board) accessible to blind students

iPhone, iPod Touch-VoiceOver, using Notes and the refreshabraille

Many students were fortunate and acquired an iPhone or IPod Touch for Christmas. Frustration soon turns to success with a few lessons. Learning how to use features in Notes makes these students successful any where else on their iTool. Once they can learn how to Turn contractions on and off, use auto correct features, use the rotor, move around with characters, words, lines,  edit, copy, paste, delete, move and undo mistakes, then Email note to whomever they desire their frustration turns to joy, then they stretch their wings and begin exploring other parts of their iTool.

Lesson at: iPhone, iPod Touch-VoiceOver, using Notes and the refreshabraille

Speech Recognition and Word-using numbers and words-audio/visual

Learn how to start using Speech Recognition, which is already built into Windows 7. You will go into word and begin to learn how to speak numbers and words and then how to correct any problems. Move around easily, copy and paste items you need.
Train your voice first and get set up on Speech recognition, as the more you train the better the outcome when you speak your commands at this lesson-just click to learn: Speech Recognition and Word-using numbers and words-audio/visual

Using a Braille display in WORD

Many students want to just use their adapted laptop or refreshabraille display to braille in content and move around. Click on this link: WORD and BRAILLE DISPLAY to see lessons to help you and your students learn how to
Go in and out of typing mode or braille mode
Using contracted and uncontracted mode
Navigating your pages
Moving around characters, words, sentences
Selecting and unselecting characters, words, sentences
Save, open and print
Moving around the ribbon and inserting a picture

Speech Recognition-give your computer verbal commands to make it move

Speech Recognition has come a long way. If for any reason you cannot use your hands or fingers, giving verbal commands to make your computer do what you want it to do if just a matter of learning the commands. If you are blind and need the same benefits. J-SAY provides both speech recognition and verbal feedback.
This is a quick demonstration of the power of speech recognition. This program is already built into Windows 7 already, so get going.

Watch  video at : Dr. Robinson teaches Speech Recognition

Keystroke Lessons at yourtechvision.com

For lessons on using only keystrokes, go to yourtechvision.com

If you want to advance in your computer skills and do it the fastest way possible through keystrokes, then this site is for you: yourtechvision.com shows you fast access to everything on your computer

At yourtechvision.com hundreds of lessons are ready to download, on Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint and Word, other lessons on Braille Note and other blind technology under Blind tools TAB and Mac-iTools for for Mac -iPad- iPhone users-skills to learn yourself or teach a student. All lessons are compatible with Jaws talking software or Window Eyes too.

If you are low vision, there are dozens of lessons to see your computer better too. yourtechvision.com under the Low Vision Tab

If the lesson is not there that you need, make a request and it will be written up for you and added to the site

With any purchased lesson, you can go to contact page and request a private free lesson to get you up and running and answer your questions.

Braille Note-Learn how to use this adapted laptop for the blind

The Braille Note is an incredibly easy technology tool for the blind. Light, fast on and off; create file, folders, recordings with quick keystrokes. you can do math calculations and insert the problem with answer write into a document. The new Apex has a fast connection so you can answer all your emails directly from it as well as surf the Internet.

If you would like multiple lessons to get you going on how to do these skills, then here is the lesson for you: Braille Note Lessons to take you through the Basics to more advanced skills

How to teach touch typing to students or yourself using a Braille Display

Using simple methods, a student learns the keyboard quickly within 5 hours over 5 days. By the next week, they will be in their classroom typing their lessons...slowly at first, but you will see the speed pick up quickly as they do their work everyday on the computer. Before you know it, they will be typing faster than everyone else. It is daily typing that makes the difference.
Watch video at: How to teach touch typing to students or yourself using a Braille Display

Digital Handwriting -change to Text on a computer with a Tablet and handwriting software

One of the greatest problems for blind students in school is how to get handwritten notes as the teacher writes them in the front of the room. Now they can get those notes on a digimemo and can translate them into text that their talking software will read INDEPENDENTLY. They just hand the writing tablet to a sighted student who is taking notes for themselves anyway. They finish the notes, take their copy and hand the pad back to the blind student. The blind student takes the pad and uses a computer to translate the handwritten notes into text for themselves.
Yes, a para educator can do all this, but it will not make the student independent and the para educator is not going to graduate and do all this when for them in college or at their job. Using the DigiMemo and the handwriting software now gives a blind person the opportunity to get the information they need and translate the handwriting by themselves using a computer. This works with Mac also.

Watch Video: Digital Handwriting -change to Text on a computer with a Tablet and handwriting software

Biology, Chemistry-The Sciences for the Blind

Starting in the education field of the blind over 20 years ago, I depended on wikki sticks, beans, marshmallows, and any other type of object to put together to represent a cell or chemical bond for a blind student to touch and try and understand what was going on in the microscope that the sighted student stared into and went "Ah ha".
How do we give our blind students that "AH HA" moment? We can now.
A Japanese plastics company has created all types of plastic shapes, so all the student has to do is put them together to make the model that is requested by the teacher, to understand what is going on. Or if they are really young, a para educator or teacher can do the same for them, hand it to the child and explain all the parts as the child feels the model. Just so many more options now.
HGS HINOMOTO PLASTICS CO., LTD. has all types of models and shapes to aide in the creation and design of simple to very extensive models for blind children to see. Actually, sighted children find these models very helpful also. What helps one child, always seems to help the other too.

If you need need ideas on how to take notes and data independently, go to Independence Science and see the vast ways of possibility.

How to find a picture and save it from Internet Explorer 9 using JAWS

Take control of JAWS and GO  find pictures on the Internet using IE9--Internet Explorer 9 is a more accessible browser than others  to use these tricks--- save them and use them in your working documents---or just save as a beautiful background on your desktop
Step by Step instructions on how to access those graphics, routing cursor using the right click on the numpad, then saving the picture. Open Word, find the picture and insert it into a document.
This is an -audio/visual lesson for those who want to see and hear instruction. You can find the lesson at: Take control of Jaws in IE9- save pictures from Internet-audio/visual lesson

How does a Blind person understand how to use a flat surface tool like an iPad?

Blind people that are technology literate do not ask this question. Unfortunately, there are a great deal of blind people (sighted too) that are NOT techie and have a difficult time understanding how to use something like an iPad.

All their lives, they have touched something tactile to give them feedback and now they are trying to wrap their mind around using something with a flat surface.

Enter the solution. By hooking a braille display or external keyboard and teaching them the keystrokes, the light bulb of understanding goes on quickly. They begin to see where icons are and how to activate what they want. Then you move them to the Voice Over finger movements and they truly start to understand how to move around this tool and other flat surface tools like it.

Though I have seen this more in adults than children, some children have the same difficultly and once you connect the braille display or external keyboard, (I always teach both), they catch on VERY quickly.

To help your students or if you are blind and are having a difficult time grasping what to do with this flat surface, you can download lessons at: Mac/iTools

Attach a LARGE monitor to display iPad for Low Vision Students-See how to use the iPad for School

The iPad can store textbooks, books, music, and thousands of types of apps for our students for school and pleasure. For low vision students, you can attach an external monitor to the iPad to enlarge everything so viewing is incredibly easy. Those inaccessible sites are no longer visually taxing as the child can see everything they need too depending on the size of the monitor the iPad is connected to.
For blind students, hook a braille display so they can read any accessible text available. No, they still cannot see the images that will be in the textbooks or web, but they will be able to hear what is going on.
YouTube Video: The textbook. Reinvented for iPad.
For lesson on how to attach a monitor to the iPad, go to: How to project to an external monitor from your iPad
For lessons on how to use the iPad with braille display or external keyboard, go to: Mac/iTools

Take Control of Jaws in Word-Learn the secrets to enable JAWS to speak everything-audio/visual lesson

If you have struggled in any way while using Office 2010 it is because you are not using compatibility mode. If your talking software is refusing to do what you want him to do, this lesson will help you take control. Using this mode permanently will enable you to do what you could not before with ease.

This audio/visual lesson will get you going. This FREE download will get you on your way to understanding more clearly how to control your talking software.

Take Control of Jaws in Word-Learn the secrets to enable JAWS to speak everything-audio/visual lesson