This is the third post in our “Expansion Pilot Update” series, which shares stories from five Easterseals affiliates who are taking monthly virtual classes on using our App Search Tool.
Today’s story is from Angela C. Hernandez and Stephanie Lozano of Easterseals RGV (Rio Grande Valley, south Texas). Angela is a Speech Language Pathologist; Stephanie is a Family Service Coordinator and Early Intervention Specialist.
Also contributing to this post are Mary Alice, an Early Intervention Specialist/Service Coordinator, and two Easterseals RGV clients.
Q: What BridgingApps digital-training sessions have you found most helpful so far?
Angela: The initial session on using the App Search Tool was very helpful for getting started with the vast number of applications in the database. The session on “Early Childhood/Caregiving Apps & Program Integration” provided great apps to incorporate into my daily sessions with the families I serve.
Q: How are you using what you’ve learned to help your clients?
Angela: I am using some of the apps that prompt early language development and vocabulary. I coach families on how to incorporate these applications into interactions with their children, to help expand the children’s receptive/expressive vocabulary. I have also used the ASL [American Sign Language] dictionary apps, as a resource for parents learning ASL to communicate with their deaf/hard-of-hearing children.
Stephanie: The design of the BridgingApps platform has helped me narrow down apps that are beneficial for client families’ specific needs.
Q: What have your clients shared about how digital training has helped them?
Angela: I have received positive feedback from parents who like the interactive component of the apps, which they find more effective than language-promoting videos.
Client (parent of a deaf child): I enjoy the Hand Talk app for its ease of use. It not only shows you the right signs, you can slow the demonstration pace to help yourself understand more clearly how to make a sign.
Hand Talk has been a real game changer, especially for my parents. With easy one-stop access, they now have an easier time finding how to sign specific words, and they use it often. My dad has even gone out of his way to encourage this app for other family members who have deaf students. Great help. Great app.
Stephanie: One family uses the Otter app to record and transcribe notes during tough meetings with their school district. I also had a client who was struggling to follow discussions during meetings with the Local Education Agency (LEA): it was a new field for her. Otter developed a suggested “to-do list” that helped her to have notes prepared and to acknowledge who said what. She told us how she was good with taking notes, but the Otter app has served to make that job easier, and more precise and to the point.
Client: As a mother of children with special needs, I often find myself navigating appointments, evaluations, and important meetings completely on my own. It’s overwhelming at times, trying to listen, remember everything, and make decisions in the moment. Otter has become a lifeline. It records what’s said during meetings and evaluations; provides transcripts; and even distinguishes the speakers so I can clearly follow who said what. But more than that, it gives me the power to pause, reflect, and process everything in my own time. It allows me to do my own research, revisit medical or educational recommendations, and make informed decisions—without the pressure of trying to retain it all in the moment.
When Stephanie first introduced me to Otter, I didn’t realize just how much it would help me, not just practically, but emotionally. It’s given me a sense of strength in a time I really needed it. I no longer feel like I’m walking into meetings blind or walking out with unanswered questions. I feel seen, heard, and empowered like never before.
Q: What are some other favorite apps?
Angela: My Words for language learning.
Mary Alice: Choice Boards, accessible with Android.
Further information on apps mentioned above:
- ASL Dictionary and ASL Dictionary for iPad both translate over 5,200 ASL signs into English.
- Choice Boards allows users to create simple communication boards with pictures and text. It comes with a library that can also download images from websites or photo apps.
- Hand Talk can translate text or spoken language into ASL—or into Brazilian Sign Language. The United Nations has voted it the World’s Best Social App.
- My Words is a language-learning app for children who are up to three years old and have symptoms of verbal disability.
- Otter is a top transcription app that can create searchable notes and AI-generated images.
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