Link of the Week

I currently have 12 children on my caseload who are on the autistic spectrum, so I'm always looking for new fun resources to keep them engaged. While searching through a ton of pages trying to find some fun stuff to do with my 4 today I came across zacbrowser.com, and I must say was very impressed.

Zac Browser is highlighted as the "zone for autistic children" and is a web browser designed particularly for children and teens with autistic spectrum disorders. It makes the standard browsing experience a lot less complicated and is very aesthetically pleasing. It also works on all operating systems.

I downloaded the executable file to my usb and tried it out, which means I spent hours playing games, listening to songs, enjoying the interactive cause and effect activities, and listening to stories (research of course). Along with this there's a drawing pad which can also be quite entertaining. The browser links you directly to suggested sites for each category (music,games, stories etc) and gives a nice widescreen view (no explorer bars). It caters to a variety of ages and levels of functioning.

I used it with four of mine on the spectrum today and they loved it. The highlight was the "If you're happy and you know it" song with the actions. I encourage parents and professionals to try it out. I plan to use it with all of the children I see, not just those on the spectrum, as the activities would engage and provide a great learning experience for them all.

Here's a link to the youtube video giving some information on it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJGncJatGUg&feature=player_embedded

and here is the official site: http://www.zacbrowser.com/

Let me know your thoughts on it :)