Aiden Thober, 4 1/2, of Maumee uses an iPad to learn at Mercy Autism Services. With him are his mom, Alicia Cramer, left, and Michelle Nagle, clinic coordinator and speech and language therapist. THE BLADE/JETTA FRASER Enlarge Loading… Published: 10/16/2011 - Updated: 13 hours ago BY JULIE M. MCKINNONBLADE STAFF WRITER
A few months ago, 4 1/2-year-old Aiden Thober couldn't say his colors.
But with the help of an Apple iPad, the autistic Maumee boy with severe language and speech delay is able to name them while using an app featuring a friendly face that changes colors. Aiden also can name some farm animals or mimic their sounds after he "knocks" on a barn door appearing on the touch screen. He solves jigsaw puzzles on another app, eliciting praise from both the gadget and his mother, Alicia Cramer.
Anything to do with animals or food is Aiden's biggest learning motivator -- plus, the boy loves puzzles -- and someday such technology may be what Aiden uses to "talk" with strangers, Ms. Cramer said.
"We don't know where Aiden's going to be years from now," she said of his development. "He might need something like this to communicate with the outside world."
Aiden is one of a dozen students in Mercy Autism Services' most intensive therapy program daily using iPads, devices that delight youngsters, therapists, and parents alike.
Some of the apps used by therapists with the students are designed for autistic or other special-needs children, said Michelle Nagle, clinic coordinator and lead speech/language pathologist.
"There are all kinds of apps," Ms. Nagle said. "We really try to match the apps with a particular child."
Studies are under way nationally to determine the educational benefits of iPads, including some aimed specifically at autism, Ms. Nagle said.
Anecdotal evidence of benefits with autistic children, meanwhile, is mounting locally.
Brooke Olson of Perrysburg noticed a couple of years ago how her now-6-year-old son, Amick, was able to expand his speech from five words to complete sentences after playing with her iPhone. She found a flash-card app to build his vocabulary, and Amick moved on to other apps and devices, and now he can do some spelling, reading, and math, she said.
"The iPad was fun," said Mrs. Olson, whose son also benefitted from Mercy's intensive program at the time and is quick to say the Apple devices cannot replace intervention. "He thought he was playing a game, but he was learning."
She added: "His language all of a sudden just meant something to him."
Now Mrs. Olson is heading a nonprofit foundation, iTaalk, that raises funds to award Apple devices to autistic children through its Web site, itaalk.org, and offers training sessions to families and professionals.
Last week, iTaalk received a $10,000 donation from the Great Lakes Collaborative for Autism to award devices to needy families in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan.
Bittersweet Farms near Whitehouse, which works with autistic adults, has one client who recently started working with an iPad, and there is a lot of interest in using them, said Jan Cline, Bittersweet's training and consultation director.
"It's part of the future, I believe, for people who need communication support," Ms. Cline said.
At Mercy Autism Services, iPads also are used to teach students social skills, such as taking turns. With board games, students often do not pay attention unless it is their turn, but they carefully watch and sometimes comment on classmates' moves when sharing an iPad, behavior consultant Heidi Bleyer said.
iPad apps also help the students with finger isolation, hand/eye coordination, understanding cause and effect, and other skills on one compact device, Ms. Bleyer said.
Ms. Cramer said she has applied to get an iPad through iTaalk or another source, but until then she occasionally works at home with Aiden on a device borrowed from a relative. Aiden has shown an incredible aptitude for doing puzzles, which helps with his fine motor skills, critical thinking, and other abilities, but he can get frustrated with fitting three-dimensional pieces together, she said.
A sliding finger or two is all it takes for Aiden to move a puzzle piece into place on an iPad.
"It shows that he has the ability to learn great things," Ms. Cramer said. "It shows he has the power for great things, and being able to unlock those things really is the key."
Contact Julie M. McKinnon at: jmckinnon@theblade.com or 419-724-6087.
