Off To Camp

I posted this on Junior's regular blog last week so thought I would post it here to share where we will be next week.
Junior spiked a fever this past Saturday and was sick much of the week(the reason we have been MIA on this blog). He is much better now so we have the all clear to still head to camp on Monday. Santa Cruz here we come. Our next post will be next Weekend when we arrive home.

Junior's Got Mail

Our camp packet came this week and inside was a special book just for Junior to tell him all about camp.
It has pictures and symbols(the same as he uses on his ipad) along with the words so he can read it himself. He was so excited to see it and find out about all the neat things we will be doing.
Here are the first few pages from his camp book(there are about 20 pages so I am not posting them all). I am very impressed, this really lets him know exactly what will be happening. It will help avoid stress over a new situation and new people and allow him to be able to relax and have a wonderful time.
The "cabins" are more like hotel rooms so Junior will have plenty or room for all his machines and other things he needs.
We can not express how thankful we are to Mellisa's sister in law for making this trip possible(thank you Carol). She not only raised the funds for it but is volunteering at camp so Junior will have a camp buddy that he knows(and who is aware of his medical needs).
Each child has a buddy that stays with them throughout the camp and helps with the activities. Much of the day is spent in family activities but a few hours each day there are activities for the kids and then separate things for the parents. It will be good for him to feel a little bit of independence(and I will only be a shout away if there are any issues) and get to do something just like other kids his age.

I am of course concerned about his asthma and medical issues while we are at camp but I know how important it is to let him get out and enjoy life. Somethings are worth the risk.

Chilling Out With His Solar System and Ipad

Hanging out in the bed this morning doing a little extra bipap time to try and keep that asthma away. The weather is changing soooo fast.
Nothing like a solar system and story on the ipad for distraction.
Just showing how the ipad arm is attached to his bed.

So Many Uses

While the Ipad is mainly a communication device for Junior during times like this it is a wonderful way to keep him entertained. His asthma has been giving him fits lately and he has been to several doctors appts.
Using the ipad at therapy
While at the doctors(he usually has it on the stand attached to his chair so it is at eye level but he wanted it in his lap this day)
Watching his shows while on the go.
and of course during school time


When I am behind on this blog you can always jump over and visit his regular blog to see what is going on. There will likely be a lack of regular post for the coming 2-3 weeks. On June 13th we will head to camp for a week. This is our first time ever and a once in a life time chance. We will be attending the Joni and Friends Family Camp and are so excited. It is a camp especially for families with a disabled family member and all activities are adapted so everyone can take part.

I Want a Different Story Please

Yesterday Junior wanted to listen to a story on his ipad. I put the ipad on the stand so he could see it and then gave him his head switch attached to his Super Talker so he could tell me when he needed a new story. As soon as the story started he started hitting the switch. I would change the story and he would hit the switch to ask for a different one, again, and again, and again.

I finally got what he was wanting(he wanted a tv show instead of a story) and turned it on for him.
A couple minutes into the show I hear him ask for different one
I had turned on the show he wanted but had the wrong episode
Thinking he is very smart.
Finally the episode I want

Adding the switch with certain activities really helps Junior avoid frustration. If he is watching a show or listening to a story he can hit the switch to tell me he needs a new one instead of having to holler or get upset to get my attention. It is also helping him get used to using his switch along with the ipad. That will be very helpful when he gets his switch adapter and starts using his head switch on the ipad. The school district has ordered it and we can't wait for it to arrive.

Planting

I have been trying to put some posts up for several days now but blogger wasn't letting me sign in. Finally got it figured out so I can catch up on some posts.

This week Junior was planting some seeds
Ready to get started(I didn't take pics of each step)
Telling me what we need to do
Put in the dirt
Put a hole in the dirt
Sprinkle on some water
Showing off his plants

Junior loves to color with his markers, especially now that he has the arm slings to help.
His ipad is set up next to him with color choices.

Apps For Special Needs

I recently found this great website as well as face book page for special needs apps. They review an app each day and even have videos showing the apps in action. Coming up in June they are having an app party on face book so be sure to check it out.

The sun has finally arrived and Junior's asthma is calming down. He spent some time outside yesterday playing basketball and loved it.
He also had fun playing the piano on his ipad. There are several piano apps available but his favorite is kidskeys. It is very hard for Junior to touch the screen and lean over to see it at the same time. I raised his stander tray higher then usual and put the ipad at a tilt which allowed him to play for a short period(he can handle this a max of 10 minutes and that is with some breaks, hard on his airway so it takes a lot of energy for him to breath and focus on what he is doing). Junior can't move his hands but can do this app because any change in the pressure he applies will play the notes.
It was time for a different app but I clearly didn't pull up the one he wanted.
Nope thats not the one I want either.(this app is called Moozart and I thought it was so cute. Junior took one look and told me "NO", I am quite sure he thought it looked too babyish. From the look he gave me he took it as a total insult that I put it on for him.
Finally got the one he wanted. Angry Birds Rio, even though he needs help to play, this game is one of his favorites.

Reading Comprehension

Junior has been using boards I made with boardmaker for reading comprehension. It takes a lot of time to create the boards(create, then laminate, add velcro, etc.) so he has been using the same ones for awhile and can answer the questions without even hearing the story.
I decided to try using his ipad and the proloquo2go app to make him some new ones. It was so easy and only took a few minutes. I plan to get out the books we will be reading over the next few weeks and make comprehension question sets for each. I will also do sets of questions for each couple chapters as we read through chapter books(then just change them as we go so I don't have tons of question sets).
Yesterday he listened to the MegaMind story on the ipad and then answered 6 questions about the story.
Listening to the story
Then we went to his board with his story choices and touched the MegaMind box.
I linked that box so when we touch it, it automatically goes to the first question. One of the few things in proloquo2go that I would like to see changed is the ability to make a specific box larger. For now when you set the size it is for all boxes so you don't have a choice to adjust just one.
Touching the question box verbally asks the question and takes us to the next board with the answer choices. Touching the correct answer takes you to the next question until you reach the last one.
I didn't take pics of each question and answers but here are a few of them.
You will notice in this question I have a space between Met and ro in Metro man. The program was unable to correctly pronounce the word without the space. That would be the one other things I would love for proloquo2go to add, the option to record my own voice with the symbols.
the question preceding this set of answers was: What did Megamind try to do to Metro Man?
So proud of himself after answering the last question.
(the last question was: What did Megamind become at the end of the story?)

Junior also used his ipad yesterday while painting with his head brush. He could then easily tell me what color he wanted.
And the ipad during his school work. His I would rather be playing a game face, but at least he was focused and answering the questions.