As students get older there are expectations they will produce a written document using each part of the writing process, prewriting, drafting, reviewing, editing, and publishing. Writing is no different from any other subject in assistive technology. There are tons of assistive technology resources to help students with disabilities. Even when providing students with assistive technology, practice and best practiced teaching strategies are necessary.
Prewriting: Graphic organizers allow students to gather and organize their thoughts on a topic. Inspiration software is a great tool for students to use. It allows students to easily create maps and diagrams with words and pictures to better organize their ideas.
Drafting: After a student gathers and organizes their thoughts they are now ready to put it all together. For students with disabilities the actual physical motor skill of writing can be difficult. Using a computer, adapted keyboards, and word prediction dictionaries can assist students with the task.
Editing and Reviewing: Before publishing a document the student must edit their work. Grammar checkers, text corrections, and thesaurus’ are great ways to help students rethink and review their work.
Publishing: Students can use blogs, Prezi, or a PowerPoint presentation instead of actually writing a physical paper or a document filled with words.
I love the use of Inspiration software as part of the writing process. I think it would make the writing assignment much more enjoyable for the student. It is also something that could be used for all the students to use if it was available on all of the computers. This is such a great software program especially for visual students. I remember hated doing a prewrite as a student and I would definitely would have enjoyed writing more if I were using Inspiration.
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