Speech Therapy Apps

No doubt you heard all the hype leading up to the recent release of the latest iPad 3, but what does this mean for speech-language pathologists wondering whether it’s time to make the plunge into the world of app facilitated speech therapy? Let’s review why you might still be waiting.

We slogged through a blizzard to attend the Metro SLN Conference in Denver in early February and were impressed with the number of hearty SLPs who made it to the event. We enjoyed talking with folks who were just learning about all the speech therapy apps available for the iPad.

Come see us at the Metro Speech Language Symposium on Friday, February 3rd and Saturday the 4th at the Denver Marriott South at Park Meadows and pick up your list of recommended apps.  Stop by our table and demo some apps made especially for SLPs and learn how we've effectively incorporated speech therapy apps into our daily speech therapy sessions.

The end of the year is such a popular time to get an iPad, either as a gift or as a business equipment investment. And while the purchase options are straightforward for the iPad, the decisions about which apps to buy and use can be pretty overwhelming.

Hi Everyone,
It’s that time of year when speech therapists all over the land start packing their bags for the ASHA Convention. In fact, we just bought new shoes to break-in for the sessions we’ll be attending. We’re extra excited to be going this year since it’s in beautiful San Diego AND we’ll be there with our new iPad app, Minimal Pairs FULL http://goo.gl/aiI6c .

There is a lot of chatter about an October 10, 2011 story in the ASHA Leader (http://goo.gl/zbj2n) concerning the appropriate use of apps in speech therapy. A growing number of parents and therapists are trying all sorts of apps to engage kids and help with speech issues.  Some therapists are concerned apps may distract from or replace existing therapy practices. Some folks have gone so far as to wonder whether apps could substitute for traditional speech therapy. The answer from our experience is a definite yes and no.

One of the amusing contradictions of the emerging mobile platform is the user tolerance of a teeny tiny screen. Cell phones with early web capabilities were fascinating to early adapters, but today these mini-screens label you as a techno-troll. The iPad’s screen size is positively luxurious with its enormous 10” x 8” (roughly) viewing area. The small screen was an easy concession to the life altering, release from one’s laptop and desktop computer, but the screen size imposes a feeling of tunnel vision for anything more than an audience of one. That’s where the underused VGA out port can really come in handy.

You could almost hear a collective “Wow” echo around the techno-sphere when Amazon announced the release of its new set of Kindle e-readers. The devices look nice and present a serious challenge to Apple’s iPad if you believe all the media hype. But what makes the Amazon Fire so promising when other tablets have barely made a dent in the iPad’s popularity? As Jeff Bezos said at the launch, and I’m paraphrasing, it’s the Amazon service.

SLP Minimal Pairs Lite v1.2 is identical to SLP Minimal Pairs Full v1.2 with the exception of not being convertible to the FULL version of SLP Minimal Pairs.

You must purchase SLP Minimal Pairs FULL OR have previously purchased the full in-app version of SLP Minimal Pairs in order to have the fully functional app. There is no longer an option to purchase SLP Minimal Pairs through In-App purchase; it is now only available as a separate app.

It’s coming up on one year since we jumped into the speech therapy app development business. It seems like forever and a short time ago that we decided we could take our years of speech-language experience and convert it into an app for the iPad. After all, how hard could it be? Well, like a lot of journeys this one was easy to start and required discipline and persistence to complete.