7 Best Apps Teachers Use to Help Students With Autism

Unlock Learning for Students with Autism

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) affects individuals in diverse ways, presenting educators with the unique challenge of tailoring their approach to each student’s specific needs.

Fortunately, recent years have witnessed the rise of technology as a powerful supporter in the learning and development of children with ASD.

Innovative apps designed for students on the spectrum have increased, offering a range of features and functionalities to empower educators and enrich the learning experience for students with ASD.

In this blog post, we’ll discuss the seven best apps teachers can utilize to support students with ASD.

Let’s dive in.

Pictello

1. Pictello

Pictello, a powerful and innovative tool, offers comprehensive features designed to support individuals with ASD in communication and learning.

This app caters to the diverse needs of individuals on the spectrum by providing tools for:

• Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC): It enables individuals with limited or no verbal ability to communicate effectively using symbols, pictures, and text-to-speech (TTS) technology.
• Social Stories: The app allows you to create visual stories that help individuals understand and navigate social situations.
• Schedules and Routines: It provides visual schedules and routines that offer individuals with ASD the structure and predictability they need to feel secure and manage their daily activities independently.

Pictello goes beyond communication and delves into learning and education.

It offers a range of features that make learning fun, engaging, and effective for individuals with ASD:

• Interactive Activities
• Personalized Learning
• Visual Supports
• Improved Communication Skills
• Enhanced Social-Emotional Learning
• Increased Independence
• Boosted Motivation and Engagement

It is a valuable asset for educators, therapists, and families of individuals with ASD.

Download: App Store

First-Then Visual Schedule

2. First-Then Visual Schedule

The “First-Then Visual Schedule” app is a tool designed to support individuals, particularly those with autism, in understanding and following daily routines.

Its core functionality is creating visual schedules, allowing special education teachers or caregivers to build step-by-step plans using pictures or symbols representing different activities.

The app’s distinctive “First-Then” structure sequentially presents tasks, helping users anticipate what comes first and what follows.

The structure is especially beneficial for individuals who may struggle with transitions or changes in routine, providing a visual roadmap for their daily activities.

The app leverages visual reinforcement to enhance communication and comprehension, particularly for autistic individuals.

Its portability on mobile devices makes it accessible in various settings, promoting consistent communication and reinforcement of routines in classrooms, homes, and community environments.

Download: App Store

Touch & Learn- Emotions

3. Touch and Learn- Emotions

Children with ASD may find it challenging to understand and express emotions.

The app for students with autism provides a fun and engaging way to help children learn about and identify different emotions.

The app is valuable for parents, educators, and therapists working with children with autism.

Here’s what makes Touch and Learn — Emotions a valuable tool for children with ASD:

• Interactive and Engaging: The app provides interactive activities and games about emotions, including matching facial expressions, identifying emotions in pictures, and creating emotional stories.
• Visually Appealing: It uses colorful graphics and animations to grab children’s attention and keep them engaged while learning.
• Customizable: It allows parents and educators to customize the difficulty level and content to meet each child’s individual needs.
• Multi-Sensory: The mobile app engages children with autism through touch, sound, and visuals, catering to their multi-sensory learning style.

Benefits of using Touch and Learn — Emotions:

• Improved emotional awareness and understanding: The app helps children recognize and understand different emotions in themselves and others.
• Enhanced communication skills: Teachers can use this app to help children learn to express their emotions more effectively, verbally and nonverbally.
• Reduced anxiety and stress: Children can learn to manage their emotions through this app.
• Improved social skills: It empowers children to explore their own emotions and those of others. Children learn to read faces, understand cues, and communicate effectively, leading to confident interactions and meaningful relationships.
• Increased self-esteem: The app equips children with the tools to identify and express their emotions confidently. It also fosters a sense of self-worth and increased self-esteem, allowing them to navigate life with greater confidence and self-assurance.

Download: App Store

iCreate: Social Stories

4. iCreate: Social Stories

This innovative app serves as a powerful tool that empowers users to understand and navigate social interactions confidently.

Educators and parents can create personalized social stories using a rich combination of images, symbols, text, and audio through its intuitive interface.

This visual and auditory approach not only fosters learning but also helps reduce anxiety and improve communication skills.

One of the best apps for students with autism, it provides a comprehensive library of pre-made social stories covering various scenarios, from school interactions to playdates and family gatherings.

These resources offer instant support while inspiring custom stories tailored to each individual’s needs.

Here are a few reasons why you might choose to use an app like iCreate: Social Stories for a student with ASD:

Improved Social-Emotional Learning:

• The app creates personalized social stories for diverse situations.
• It fosters students’ understanding of social cues, emotions, and behavior, leading to better social-emotional learning.

Enhanced Communication Skills:

• It helps students with autism express themselves better through multi-modal storytelling.
• The app provides safe spaces for role-playing, further enhancing student growth.

Increased Independence and Self-Awareness:

• The app helps students on the spectrum become active agents in their social-emotional learning journey.
• It also crafts personalized stories; they delve deeper into their emotions, triggers, and coping mechanisms.

Personalized Learning and Differentiation:

• Educators can personalize learning for each student’s unique needs and learning styles.
• Each student receives optimal support and challenges by tailoring the app experience and difficulty level, ensuring they thrive.

Collaboration and Data-Driven Insights:

• It allows you to share student-created stories with parents, therapists, and other professionals.
• It also provides data-driven insights into student progress, allowing teachers to track their development and make informed decisions about their learning plans.

Download: App Store

AbleSpace

5. AbleSpace

AbleSpace is cutting-edge software (available both as a mobile and a web-based app) specifically designed to help teachers monitor and improve special education programs.

AbleSpace helps teachers streamline the tracking of Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals, caseload management, and report generation.

Here are the main reasons why special education teachers use AbleSpace:

1. Time-Saving Automation: AbleSpace automates numerous tasks related to IEP goal tracking, such as data collection and reporting, enabling professionals to reclaim valuable time.
2. Enhanced Data Accuracy: It offers a centralized repository for all IEP goal data; AbleSpace contributes to the precision and reliability of the information at your disposal.
3. Effective Collaboration: The software facilitates seamless professional collaboration by providing a secure HIPAA-compliant platform
4. Progress Tracking: AbleSpace assists in monitoring student progress by generating visually appealing graphs and reports.

School-based special ed teachers use AbleSpace for efficient and reliable caseload management. It helps teachers keep track of various learning approaches and modifications introduced to assist students with special needs.

Download: Google Play Store, Apple Store

Sesame Street & Autism

6. Sesame Street and Autism

A valuable resource for parents and caregivers of children with ASD, the app provides a comprehensive and engaging way to help children learn about social cues, emotions, and appropriate behavior in different situations.

Here are some features that can help students with Autism:

• Social stories: These stories, narrated by familiar Sesame Street characters like Elmo and Julia, introduce everyday social situations and provide helpful strategies for navigating them.
• Video clips: Short videos showcase children with ASD interacting with their peers and model positive social interactions.
• Games and activities: Fun and engaging games help children practice social and emotional skills in a safe and controlled environment.
• Tips and resources: The app provides parents and caregivers with valuable information about ASD, including strategies for supporting their children’s development and tips for communicating with educators and other professionals.

Benefits of the app for students with autism:

• Improved social skills: It helps children with ASD learn about social cues, emotions, and appropriate behavior, leading to improved social interactions and reduced social anxiety.
• Increased self-awareness: Children understand their own emotions and behavior, which can lead to increased self-awareness and self-confidence.
• Reduced anxiety: The app provides a safe and predictable environment for children to practice social skills, which can help reduce anxiety in social situations.
• Enhanced communication: The app provides parents and caregivers with tools and strategies for communicating effectively with children.
• Greater understanding: Parents and caregivers better understand ASD and how to support their children’s development.

Download: Google Play Store, Apple Store

Math Tango

7. Math Tango

Math Tango is a unique and engaging app designed to help children with ASD develop their math skills in a fun way.

It combines gamification principles with a personalized learning approach to create an enjoyable and rewarding experience for children while offering valuable data and insights for parents and teachers.

The app’s personalized approach, engaging activities, and data-driven insights make it an effective and rewarding way to help children learn math and gain confidence in their abilities.

Let’s discuss some benefits of using Math Tango for students with Autism:

• Improved Math Skills: The app helps children with autism develop strong foundational skills and build a solid understanding of concepts.
• Increased Confidence: The personalized and gamified approach helps children build confidence in their mathematical skills.
• Enhanced Learning: The multisensory approach and variety of activities help children learn in a way that is most effective for them, leading to better understanding and retention.
• Improved Communication: Math Tango empowers children with ASD to actively communicate their needs and understanding of math concepts, fostering more vital collaboration with parents and teachers.

Download: Google Play Store, Apple Store