Writing made EASIER

There were a number of improved Word Processors at the show. Some were on the Special Needs stands and some were on the mainstream stands.

One example is WriteOnline from Crick Software which can be fully integrated within the school's Moodle.

It incorporates word bars which can be imported or customised, as well as predictive text and text-to-voice features. In addition, it integrates brainstorming (the words or phrases brainstormed can automatically be turned into word bars) and writing frames. The best way to see what is possible is to watch the websites' video here.

The potential for this tool is that students can prepare in class, then access the same information via the school's Moodle, and complete the work online (which is therefore logged).

The text reader is available in English, Spanish and Catalan (for school use), although the file size of Spanish and Catalan is currently too big for internet use.

The pricing structure is currently too expensive, but is open to negotiation. And there are other alternatives on the market; for example:

WordQ - which is just a text predictor with topic list (and text-to-voice if you want to pay more) - there's a video here.