Autism Language Program

Technology

Given the usually strong interest in computers with children with autism, we look for ways to use the computer and media to improve your child's performance in communication, understanding, and learning. This can be helping to teach them to imitate, how to perform tasks, or how to more appropriately socially interact.

The ALP has a long history of using technology to help children communicate and learn. In our evaluations we try to connect a child's needs with available and appropriate technology. When such technology does not exist, we make every effort to develop it.

The following software applications for children with autism are currently in development:

Puddingstone Community: the next version of our successful interactive virtual environment software for children with autism. This interactive software allows a child to leave Puddingstone Place and enter its interactive town, Puddingstone Community.

Animation Bookmarker (aka Talk On!): a software application that complements the animated characters in children's popular commercial videos. Given the extensive computer and video interest, the application, simply running behind the video, would allow characters in commercial videos to teach children how to perform certain behaviors that are difficult for children on the autism spectrum to acquire.

Sign Language Bookmarker: a software application that provides real-time sign language captioning as a helpful accommodation to popular children's commercial videos. The application runs behind the video and the signing appears in a separate window.

For a comprehensive look at our technology development in the ALP, please visit our Research & Development Timeline.