Cool Speech Therapy Tool: Little Printer available in 2012!



Little Printer by Berg Cloud

 I know everyone wants to get info about Apps, but I just had to shift gears for a minute because I saw this and I really thought it was cool! Then, the more I thought about it, the more my mind raced with how I could use this really cool gadget to help kids with special needs!  Well, maybe indirectly, but humor me for a moment.

Little Printer is a pint sized, thermal printer that uses similar technology to a receipt printer you might see at a retail store. The Berg Cloud company have integrated this technology with formatting software so that you can print different news articles, blog posts, and more in a visually appealing, pint-sized printout!  This product isn’t available for initial use until 2012 (L) so full exploration of its application in educational and therapeutic settings isn’t quite possible at the moment. However, I had a few brainstorming ideas that I hope to see through when I get my Little Printer (hopefully in early 2012)!

I love using my iPad and other mobile technology in therapy sessions, classroom lessons, and training sessions with parents and colleagues.  BUT, sometimes I really need something in print! 

• Wouldn't it be amazing to be able to link a parent to an online resource for information on a clinical topic and then print out the website, article etc... right there in your session? 
• How about locating an evidenced based research article on a technique you are trying in your session for the first time and being able to print the abstract for your client's parent to review as you implement the technique in session?
• What about loading data and progress stats from your favorite Apps like ArticPix and being able to send a quick, printed progress note home to mom straight from your mobile device?
• And wouldn't it be cool to create little "mini handouts" at the end of your session where you can capture what you've discussed with mom and dad and provide bulleted tips in print for them to hang on the fridge? Or even integrate photos from your mobile device's photo library (of oral-motor exercise examples or products you'd like them to try etc...) to provide a visual to go along with your verbal home practice suggestions!

I can only hope that Little Printer is just the start of this cool technology and that more companies bring similar, cost effective and useful resources to the therapeutic arena.  I hope to be able to try out many of the ideas above when I get my hands on a Little Printer-I'll let you all know the CAN's and CANNOT's of this cool little gadget as soon as I try it!