Digital media and the special needs child

In my work in special education, I have noticed that many children who can be overwhelmed (or underwhelmed!) by standard teaching methods can learn concepts, language, and social skills via a variety of digital media. A child who can’t sit still and listen to a book will beg for a chance to see the exact same book presented on the computer. Children who rarely imitate my words will echo them and begin to use them spontaneously if they hear them in a power point presentation.

Many special needs children enjoy watching videos and doing computer games. While there are commercially made materials which are educational and even some which are specifically geared to special needs children, a child responds best to individualized instruction that takes into account his or her learning style, interests and needs. This is why we create individual education plans for special needs children – why should the educational media be any different?
One service Media Mamas will offer is personalized consulting and for parents of special needs children to produce strong visual and audio presentations which feature the child and her peers and target individual learning needs.

By Christine