Those of us lucky enough to own an iPad know how useful they can be in day-to-day life – we use them for electronic medical records, keeping track of literature, organizing notes, scheduling appointments, paying bills…playing Angry Birds.
However, the iPad isn’t just revolutionizing the way we interact with our apps, it’s revolutionizing the way some kids interact with their world. Educational apps are common place in tech-saavy families with young children, but a children’s hospital in Oklahoma has taken apps for kids one step further by incorporating them into their patient’s therapy routines.
The Children’s Hospital of Bethany is allowing kids with a variety of difficulties – from congenital defects to traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries – to expand their ability to learn and communicate with the use of educational and interactive iPad apps.
A recent article by Sonya Colberg on NewsOK describes the hospital’s use of iPads for the advancement of their children with various difficulties, saying it gives them more independence and opportunity.
Abbagale [a 3 year old with spinal muscle atrophy] gazed at a pink circle on the screen and her scribbles on the iPad turned pink. Seconds later, she chose a new color to draw with by gazing at a purple circle.
“I like that big smile,” [special education teacher Mindy] Cash told Abbagale.
“This [iPad] is allowing her to be independent…to give her communication,” [Cash] said. “It’s so engaging. It just captivates them.”
The possibilities of technology like the iPad helping children and adults with physical and mental disabilities are endless. We are certainly at an exciting time in the world of technology with so much potential right on the horizon.
What amazing and innovating uses have you seen for education, therapy, and rehabilitation with technology like the iPad?
