Have you noticed any of the following happening with your student?
- S/he is having trouble keeping up in class
- School is over whelming because s/he is having trouble focusing on the what the teacher is saying
- S/he has trouble taking notes and doesn’t seem to take very good notes…or any notes… in class
- S/he can’t remember what the teacher said was for homework?
- Does your child have or possibly have ADHD, Dysgraphia, Memory Retrieval Issues or other learning disabilities?
If you have answered yes to any of these question’s than you are experiencing something similar to what I’ve noticed with my first son, Hunter. Hunter has always been a very bright, smart, sweet loving child. As the first of three children, I have always been very over protective of him, as all mothers are.
It is hard to understand but when something is happening with your child the mother instincts go into overdrive and no matter what anyone says, including:
“you’re crazy he is fine” or
“he will grow out of it”
This just doesn’t sit well with me. At a young age I knew in my heart that Hunter had hearing problems and he was very hyper. Hunter was diagnosed ADHD and started medication. All through school from kindergarten to 5th grade homework and classwork have been a all-out-war to small battles in many different ways, despite being on medication and receiving extra help at school.
From long nights trying to get his homework done, to him saying, “I can’t remember,” to “I forgot my homework,” Hunter was having trouble taking notes and having great difficulty at school. He often forgot what he was supposed to finish and studying for tests was another issue because he wasn’t taking complete notes due to the fact he was overwhelmed and just couldn’t focus on more than one task at a time.
Each year we did make steps in the right direction but in my heart I knew we were missing something and again I was faced with:
“Hunter is fine he just doesn’t like to write” or
“Hunter is just being lazy”
But I knew in my heart there was more to this story, so I didn’t give up. The school we were at stated that Hunter had met almost all of his goals and he was no longer eligible to be on an Individualized Education Program (IEP). I fought this, I knew there is something else that we are missing, and pleaded with them to help us, but we were denied.
So I decided to transfer Hunter to a new school within the same district hoping things would be better and I could get him the help he needed. Hunter began 6th grade and the writing demands, note-taking, and essays were just to much for him to keep up. I kept researching, knowing I would again have to find what was wrong on my own, until one day I discovered it… Hunter has Dysgraphia. “Wow,” was all I could say through the tears in my eyes ” I found it!”
My heart knew this was the one of the missing pieces to Hunter’s puzzle. So my new journey began requesting new testing which has led us to finding out Hunter that has long-term memory retrieval and processing issues on top of what we already know. Time to start looking for Assistive Technology to help my son since I wasn’t getting the support and backing from the school and district.
“In the meantime I became his personal scribe and his world of written expression started to bloom little by little.”
One night, my searching led me to the livescribe Echo Smartpen! Incredible! God has led me to something else that could possibly help my son, could this be one of the things that could help him?
The answer to that question is YES, it has been of great help to Hunter.
The Echo pen is a physical pen that works with livescribe Dot Paper that, after a small learning curve, allows you to record a person talking, such as a teacher, while you’re taking notes. It even copies your notes and diagrams to transfer, along with the audio recording, to your PC, where you can search for words within your notes. Or simply tap on different areas of your notes to replay that section of your notes, straight from the pen!
No More Trouble Taking Notes
Hunter has able to keep up with notes (after a small learning curve), lectures, and is able to dictate his homework assignments as he reads them from the board to play back later at home.
All you have to do is write your bullet points on the paper and it will attach the verbal lecture to your key words. When you are at home, trying to remember what was the most important part of chapter three, you can go your keyword touch it on the paper, and wow there it is playing just that part back for you. Once you are done you can also upload the recording to your desktop and the software will organize and store your notes for easy retrieval.
Features:
- 2 GB of memory and applications already loaded
- Desktop software included
- Free 500 MB online storage
- Starter Dot Paper included
- Uses a standard USB Cable for easy charging
- includes 2 ink cartridges and caps
What you will need:
- Intel based Mac with Mac OS X 10.5.5 or later, including 10.6
- Windows XP with SP or Windows Vista or Windows 7
- 600 MHz CPU or higher
- 300 MB Free Space
- USB 2.0 port
- Internet connection for software download
Pros:
- Very easy set-up
- Takes notes without recording if you want (which transfers to your computer for a digital version of your notes)
- Prints Dot Paper and if you run out you can print more from your desktop
- The volume is adjustable
- Share notes with your friends
- Converts your written notes into text
- 2 GB is enough to hold over 200 hours of audio (varies by recording) or 32,000 pages of notes
Cons:
- It takes a little practice for a younger child to get used to taking bullet point notes but once they get the hang of it they are off an running
- Is a little pricey
for $117.57 with free shipping.
A Mom’s Perspective
The livescribe Echo Smartpen can help you whether you’re a school-age or college student, even if you don’t have trouble taking notes. It is very easy-to-use, all you have to do is charge the pen, conduct an easy setup, and you are on your way. You or your child can focus on what is going on in class and let the live scribe take the verbal notes for you.
Perhaps you know what is going on with your son or daughter’s challenges in school…or perhaps you don’t. Nonetheless, good note-taking is essential to good study habits and it only increases as your child gets older.
The Echo Smartpen has dramatically changed Hunter’s trouble taking notes and increased his study habits. Oh my gosh I don’t have to hear “Mom I wasn’t able to write it all down and I can’t remember” any longer. All Hunter has to do is play it back and the stress and anxiety for him (as well as me) is gone and we can move forward to get the homework done.
I now see a child whose eyes light up again. Hunter gets excited about school and I do not have to worry about what he may or may not forget from school because he has this awesome tool to help him achieve his goals.
To learn more about how other students are using livescribe products to enhance their learning disabilities, see livescribe’s blog.
* I was given a livescribe Echo Smartpen to test out and review. All opinions and learning’s are my own.
Are you an over scheduled mom with little time to figure out technology? Or are you a technology guru who loves sharing tips with others?
We cover different ways to make technology work for you without spending hours researching & learning how to do it on your own.
Speak Your Mind