nacd apraxia app review
This was one of the first speech apps for apraxia that I bought. It was enticing because it was a good price and the description looked much like a digital version of the Word FLIPS book I was using in therapy.
It starts with a screen that allows you to pick a CV consonant/vowel group, seen below.
For the purposes of this review, I chose the top group BPM. You then have your choice of levels. Level 1 is really just to learn the pictures, so each picture is presented one time. In Level 2, there are three required productions of the same word. By Level 3 (see above), there are five pictures of the same word.
By the time the you choose Level 8, the pictures change to have three different pictures depicting different words in alternating fashion. (see below).
You can choose to have the sound on, in which a verbal model is presented when you touch the picture; or you can mute the sound so a verbal model is not given when you press the button.
There is a also a “tracking” feature to tally correct/incorrect productions for data collecting purposes.
What I love
This app is great because of it’s simplicity. It’s more fun for kids to practice these skills on the iPad then it is to use the flip book. They are just more motivated by digital versions of everything these days! Also, therapy for Childhood Apraxia of Speech requires A LOT of practice and repetition, and this app lends itself to multiple chances for repetitions in either blocked or randomized fashion (elements essential when treating motor based speech disorders).
In addition, most of the kids I treat with apraxia like it. You can get a quick “warmup” in using this app while getting a lot of repetition right off the bat.
What it’s missing
I would probably use this app more, or longer during therapy sessions if it had some sort of reward or fun reinforcement. However, since I only use it as a supplement to therapy, it’s still a nice app to have. Also, just recently my daughter was confusing her t/k and d/g, so I went back to this app and we practiced using these pictures alternating between the two sound patterns.
The other thing that is missing is a voice record option.
Overall impressions:
I love this app for it’s simplicity, price, and ability to get A LOT of practice in a short amount of time. Most of the kids I treat with apraxia, and my own daughter with apraxia, have used this app successfully and enjoy tapping, repeating, and swiping the iPad. I would highly recommend this app to parents and SLP’s as a supplement to therapy for Childhood Apraxia of Speech.