What a fun way to learn reading and writing skills, all online and with very little to no need for teacher intervention. I was thrilled to get a chance to review the Autism Spectrum Disorder ASD Reading from Reading Kingdom.
What is ASD Reading from Reading Kingdom?
phonics (sounds) sequencing writing meaning grammar and comprehension
The idea behind the ASD Reading includes:
Read more about Dr. Blank's philosophy and work and other research done with Autistic children in regards to learning to read and write with this article from the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
The first thing you see when you log on are your child's progress in easy-to-read charts.
Read more about Dr. Blank's philosophy and work and other research done with Autistic children in regards to learning to read and write with this article from the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
The first thing you see when you log on are your child's progress in easy-to-read charts.
Your child sees this:
As your child progresses, he or she earns stars to add to their online Passport:
The lessons progress and build upon themselves, but keep some of the main characters and styles of learning activities which consist of matching letter sounds to words, finding words that are missing letters, selecting words that the child hears in order, reading on-screen stories, and typing in letters that eventually lead to typing in missing punctuation:
The activities progress as the child completes each new lesson:
How Did We Use It?
I was chosen to use this product because I have a child who has exhibited traits of borderline Asperger's. I will note that the child who reviewed the program with me has not been clinically diagnosed. I was asked to use it with one student with access for a year, at least 3 times a week. So, we logged on and got to work.
The first thing that the program has you do is take an on-screen placement test so your child begins work at his or her level. When the test is complete, assignments are generated. From that point, the child logs on and continues through the sessions.
The first thing that the program has you do is take an on-screen placement test so your child begins work at his or her level. When the test is complete, assignments are generated. From that point, the child logs on and continues through the sessions.
The sessions of lessons are fun, colorful, easy-to-understand, and interactive. For instance, my child completed exercises such as clicking on a picture to match the word given and then filling in missing letters to make up the word that matched the picture. It re-iterates each new sound several times in a way that builds on itself from easy picture matching up to finding the word, which is missing letters, that could form the word at the top of the screen.
Along the way, there are encouraging sounds and phrases to keep the child engaged and desiring to continue. Each session seemed to only take about 15 minutes, if that.
The program paces the student, so they are learning the cadence of writing and typing as they learn letter sounds and words. Sometimes my daughter would type something too quickly and would have to slow down.
The program paces the student, so they are learning the cadence of writing and typing as they learn letter sounds and words. Sometimes my daughter would type something too quickly and would have to slow down.
What Did We Think?
I really liked how easy this was to use. The practice tests emphasize how important it is to sit with your child during testing but not to offer any help with answering the questions. My child has experience with online learning and using many different electronic devices, so she required no help whatsoever from me once the program was logged into.
Another aspect I loved is how it builds on itself yet keeps the repetition of style, so the child isn't in for some shock when they move to the next level of learning. It slowly adds in commas, and question marks and other punctuation as the child proceeds through each lesson but uses the same cartoon characters, fill-in-the-blanks, find the words, etc. so the child knows exactly what to do. If they get it wrong, I appreciated that it instructed what to do with several hints and didn't frustrate the child by counting it wrong.
Another aspect I loved is how it builds on itself yet keeps the repetition of style, so the child isn't in for some shock when they move to the next level of learning. It slowly adds in commas, and question marks and other punctuation as the child proceeds through each lesson but uses the same cartoon characters, fill-in-the-blanks, find the words, etc. so the child knows exactly what to do. If they get it wrong, I appreciated that it instructed what to do with several hints and didn't frustrate the child by counting it wrong.
Read what other members of the TOS Review Crew thought by clicking on the picture below:
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