Hot New and Updated Apps for 2018!
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PSN Team 
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New and Updated Apps for the New Year
We get excited around here by innovative and creative technologies that help children with disabilities develop, become more independent and succeed in life. Keeping up with the thousands of apps that come to market every day is no small feat (and we do not claim to do it), but to start off 2018, we have compiled some new apps that have certainly caught our attention. We hope that you find an app or two that will become your new favorite as you begin the year!
GroupMe
By Skype Communications S.a.r.l.
GroupMe is a free messaging app available for iOS, Android, and also through web browser on the computer. It lets users send direct messages and group messages from mobile devices without fees or message limits. It is a comprehensive app that is helpful with its calendar and gallery for photos and documents that have been shared. The app is designed to help multi-person chats, although you can send a direct message to anyone in your contacts by simply adding them to your GroupMe address book. In the app, create personalized groups that you can invite others to join.
Price: FREE | Offers In-App Purchases
Time Timer
By Time Timer LLC
This app is a great tool for anyone who may benefit from a visual representation of the abstract concept of increments of time. The app includes three different kinds of timers: the original timer, a custom timer, which creates a full circle visual out of any increment of time you set, or a clock-based timer, which shows your desired increment of time on a real-time clock-face.
Price: FREE | Offers In-App Purchases
Brili Routines
By Brili GmbH
Brili helps with the chaos of daily routines with kids. Simply set up a routine for mornings, bedtimes, and any other time of the day. Brili’s timers, visual and audible activity prompts and motivating rewards quickly teach your child to stay on task and on time. They are able to learn and develop time management skills, better pace themselves, and lessen the off-task distractions.
Price: FREE | Offers In-App Purchases
Make a Choice AAC
By pkclSoft
This app is ideal for young children or beginning communicators and easy for parents or facilitators to program. Facilitators are able to create an unlimited number of pages with either two or four buttons. Add text or pictures from your iPad or iPhone and your own audio recording using a very simple and intuitive editor. Create ‘favorite’ pages to find more easily and use the ‘pick a choice board’ feature to navigate between pages.
Price: $4.99 | Offers In-App Purchases
Draw and Tell
By Duck Duck Moose LLC
Draw and Tell by Duck Duck Moose is a fun, engaging and meaningful learning app that gets children excited about writing, using their imagination, reading their stories. This app is not only a great motivational tool for writing and storytelling, but also helps build fine motor skills and provides opportunities for learners to use drawing as a medium for communication.
Price: FREE
See.Touch.Learn
By Brain Parade
Visual Instruction for Autism and Special Needs. Replace all of your flash cards with the 4,400 pictures and 2,200 exercises developed by professionals.
Price: FREE | Offers In-App Purchases
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Toca Life: Pets
By Toca Boca AB
An educational app for all ages and abilities that helps develop pre-reading, language, creativity and fine motor skills in a fun, pet-themed and self-paced virtual world. Meet 23 new characters and play with and care for 124 real and fantasy animals). Explore and create stories at the veterinary clinic, pet park, pet store, pet hotel and breeder’s bungalow.
Price: $3.99
Toca Boca World
By Toca Boca AB
Toca Boca World encourages everyone to be whoever they want to be through tools that let them play, create & self-express in infinite ways like unlocking hundreds of secrets, staying in a 5 star hotel, spending a day at the beach with friends, directing a sitcom, designing a restaurant or running a dog daycare center! And more, so, so much more.
Price: FREE | Offers In-App Purchases
If you are interested in searching for more apps, creating your own list of apps and sharing them, please go to BridgingApps.org. BridgingApps, a program of Easter Seals Greater Houston, is a community of parents, therapists, doctors and teachers who share information about using mobile devices with people who have special needs.
Cristen Reat is co-founder of BridgingApps and a mother who found success when using a mobile device with her children who have special needs.
Amy Barry is the Content Manager and Editor at BridgingApps and mother of five children.
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This post originally appeared on our January/February 2018 Magazine
