Advance Behavior and Learning is located in Maitland, Florida and a divison of Advance Behavior and Learning Academy. The organization serves families that have concerns regarding their child’s development, language, behavior, and/or learning.
Children range from those with formal diagnoses to those with no “labels”, which may just be experiencing some challenges that require additional support. Therapists work closely with families to create individualized programs that promote effective learning and maximum progress for each child. Therapy programs are based on Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to help children learn new skills and reduce problem behaviors. http://advancebehavior.com
“I’m a behavior analyst managing a clinical company that provides in home, in school, and clinic based behavior analytic services throughout Central Florida. I have been working in the field for almost 10 years and started as a behavior technician providing 1:1 direct therapy.
In my opinion, I think the Bluebee Pals are a fun affordable assistive technology tool for early learners who enjoy playing with plush toys and engage them to target various goals within verbal behavior. Bluebees are used within our clinical practice in a variety of ways. Some include as a reinforcer or preferred item the child can earn to play with or as a teaching tool to make learning more interactive and engaging.”
What goals/objectives are being targeted when using Bluebee Pals? Pragmatic/Social Language (turn-taking, joint attention, greeting, conversational skills etc.)Expressive Language (labeling vocabulary, sentence formulation, semantic concepts etc.) Emily Munoz, M.S. BCBA
My name is Daisy M. Duran. I am a Pre-K ESE teacher at Village Oaks Elementary in Immokalee, Florida. We are very grateful to have Bluebee Pals assistive technology tools as a leading technology device in our preschool classroom. As you can see in this photo, we created a separate technology area so students can focus their attention on learning with Bluebee Pals. In my opinion, my students have greatly benefited from using Bluebee Pals with the Bluebee Pal App and other third party educational apps.
The majority of students are language impaired in my classroom. I am so impressed how their communication and learning skills have improved by listening and watching their favorite Bluebee Pal. Bluebee Pals encourage engagement and motivate my students to participate in a variety of academic and social/emotional activities. The students are eager to complete the activities when they interact with their favorite Bluebee Pal tech companion.
Apps we are you using with Bluebee Pals
Bluebee Pal app for life skills and educational games
Smarty Ants for foundational reading skills such as letter identification and letter sounds
Super Duper Following Directions App for following direction with preposition concepts
My favorite moments are watching the happy expressions on my students faces when interacting with our Bluebee Pals. They are fascinated with the movements, the actions and sounds coming out of what they think is a stuffed bear or lion.
Bluebee Pals & Social Emotional Learning
Social and emotional learning (SEL) is the process through which children and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills needed to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.
Self-aware. They are able to recognize their emotions, describe their interests and values, and accurately assess their strengths.
Regulate their emotions. They are able to manage stress, control impulses, and persevere in overcoming obstacles.
Socially aware. They are able to take the perspective of and empathize with others and recognize and appreciate individual and group similarities and differences.
Good relationship skills. They can establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships based on cooperation. They resist inappropriate social pressure; constructively prevent, manage, and resolve interpersonal conflict; and seek and provide help when needed.
Demonstrate responsible decision-making at school, at home, and in the community. In making decisions, they consider ethical standards, safety concerns, appropriate social norms, respect for others, and the likely consequences of various courses of action.
We have included Bluebee Pals in our grammar skills. Last week, Sammy the bear helped my students practice their prepositional phrases. My students took turns hiding Sammy behind, under, in, and on various items in the classroom. Using a free text to speech app, Sammy would call out “Hey, where am I?” When found, my students would use our “location words” to describe where Sammy was hidden. Once a student correctly identified the location, he/she would give him a hug and Sammy would say, “I love you, _______!” They were SO motivated, and Sammy got a lot of hugs!
Text: Text to Speech! 4+Create Natural Sounding Speech Gwyn Durbridge
Using Bluebee Pals has helped me to personalize my student’s learning! I have students with autism that find it difficult to attend to their peers in conversation. My Bluebee pal is a very patient listener, and a persistent communicator who never gets mad or frustrated! It’s a great step towards conversational skills! It’s awesome to have a communication partner who you can rely on to have an interest in any topic!
The soft snuggle factor of a Bluebee Pal cannot be ignored! Pairing a Bluebee pal with Raz Kids or a book being read on YouTube, and my students love cuddling up to listen to stories!
I brought in some of my son’s old baby clothes and Sammy the bear practiced getting dressed to go outside in different weather conditions. After using a writing chart, we then created a book for Sammy to read to us!My AAC users have also shown great interest in sharing their voices with a Bluebee Pal! Anything that motivates students to communicate more is a win in my book!
Recently I had the opportunity to work with Laura Jienke, founder of the brilliant Bluebee Pals in a preschool in Naples, FL – we had a blast! The teacher had been celebrating Dr. Suess’s Bday & NEA’s Read Across America the nationwide reading celebration that takes place the whole month of March. When Laura asked me to read a Dr. Suess book I was more than happy to since there had been some talk that his first book, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, was not politically correct. (That book was written in 1937 and the world was a different place, use it as an opportunity to share some history – don’t ban the book…) Bluebee Pals Celebrate with Creativity her at the Methodist School Day School!
The classroom looked like it was straight out of a Martha Stewart magazine!
The lead teacher made us feel right at home, the classroom not only had a Suess theme it was crawling with Bluebee Pals and cool creative projects like this graph. The teacher graciously gave the circle time over to myself and Riley the Zebra to share one of the masters famous books ~ One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, the children helped to read the book and eagerly engaged in a counting activity. We also shared the Bluebee Pal dedicated app and got the kids off their bottoms and actively taking turns with the screen. I don’t know who had more fun, Laura and I or the children!
Methodist Day school (Naples, FL) offers preschool classes for students 2 years old through 5 years old. Their program is set up so that each year students continue to build on the learning blocks of the previous year until reaching Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten, which is a government-funded program to help prepare students for kindergarten. Methodist Day School was founded in 1961 under the auspices of First United Methodist Church, having the unique distinction of being the oldest preschool in Collier County.
2 Year Old Class Program: Fine motor skills, Gross motor skills, Eye/Hand coordination, Reinforcement of colors and shapes, Introduction to numbers & ABC’s,Table manners, Continuation of verbal skills. Students will participate in art, dance, and group activities to help encourage learning of age-appropriate skills.
3 Year Old Class Program: Pre-writing skills, Number and letter recognition, Cutting skills, Gluing skills, Language skills, Communication Skills, Cognitive Skills. Personal/Social skills such as dressing, using bathroom, and washing hands independently or with minimal assistance. Students will participate in creative play, music, art, exercise, and games to aid in learning the skills needed at this age.
VPK ~ Kindergarten Prep Program: Uses Creative Curriculum which includes: Math skills, Pre-reading skills with sight words, Beginning writing, Cognitive concepts, Comprehension, Communication skills, Dramatic play and Creative movement.
Bluebee Pals Affordable Assistive Technology Tool
This school welcomes technology as a positive re-enforement for enhancing early childhood learning. Bluebee Pals assistive technology tools acts a the teacher’s helper in engaging children in life skills and academic lessons.
In these photos, Bluebee Pal Riley the Zebra is reading the Dr. Suess App as the teacher participants by asking specific questions. In the other photos, Bluebee is representing the Bluebee Pals Educational/Life Skills App focusing on learning goals.Literacy * Daily Living Skills * Learning Actions * Expand Vocabulary *Sequencing * Making Choices * Categories. Bluebee brings joy and fun when singing to a variety of educational music apps. https://youtu.be/dRdxflMv15M
These soft huggable tactile companions offer endless education and diverse learning methods by allowing teachers to think outside the box. Engaging and motivating children to learn in a fun and low pressure setting; Bluebee’s are an wonderful affordable educational tool compatible to hundreds of apps with a narrative from inexpensive free apps to more technical speech therapy apps.
Pathways Strategic Teaching Center is a comprehensive education and treatment program servicing children with autism and related disorders. Founded in 1998 through a collaborative effort between Trudeau and local parents of children with autism, Pathways is committed to utilizing scientifically validated teaching strategies to improve the lives of children with autism and their families. Our organization is Pathways Strategic Teaching Center, a division of The Trudeau Center. They are a school for students with special needs, aged 3-22, who are diagnosed with Autism and other related disorders. Our students are instructed based upon the principles of Applied Behavioral Analysis, and receive speech/language therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, adapted physical education, and other support services as needed. https://trudeaucenter.org/pathways-strategic-teaching-center/
Bluebee Pal Project
The founder of Bluebee Pals, Laura Jiencke met Megan Broz (Assistive Technology Professional) at the November Boston ASHA Conference and discussed Pathways Strategic Teaching Centers participating in the Bluebee Pals Project. Ms. Broz works with children with Autism in preschool classrooms and requested the opportunity for her staff to utilize Bluebee Pals as an assistive technology tool in a variety of speech/language and occupational therapy programs.
As a school for children with Autism and developmental delays, we are always seeking new and motivating ways to engage our students. During classroom groups facilitated by speech pathology and occupational therapy, our students were all introduced to Bluebee pals – and it was a hit! Students were following directions given by Lily the Lamb, dressing her for the season, and interacting with both her and others in the classroom. Some students requested to have more time with Lily and enjoyed exploring ways to “play” with her.
Students of all ages found ways to interact with Bluebee pals, many demonstrating increased motivation in and attention to the activities. Bluebee was not a replacement for the people involved, just a support to the human interactions that were already occurring. It was great, and we are continuing to develop activities to use with Bluebee pals! We are also really excited to explore the Bluebee Pal App! https://www.bluebeepals.com/tutorials/
We have included Bluebee Pals in our grammar skills. Last week, Sammy the bear helped my students practice their prepositional phrases. My students took turns hiding Sammy behind, under, in, and on various items in the classroom. Using a free text to speech app, Sammy would call out “Hey, where am I?” When found, my students would use our “location words” to describe where Sammy was hidden. Once a student correctly identified the location, he/she would give him a hug and Sammy would say, “I love you, _______!” They were SO motivated, and Sammy got a lot of hugs!
Recently I had the opportunity to work with Laura Jienke, founder of the brilliant Bluebee Pals in a preschool in Naples, FL – we had a blast! The teacher had been celebrating Dr. Suess’s Bday & NEA’s Read Across America the nationwide reading celebration that takes place the whole month of March. When Laura asked me to read a Dr. Suess book I was more than happy to since there had been some talk that his first book, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, was not politically correct. (That book was written in 1937 and the world was a different place, use it as an opportunity to share some history – don’t ban the book…) Bluebee Pals Celebrate with Creativity her at the Methodist School Day School!
The founder of Bluebee Pals, Laura Jiencke met Megan Broz (Assistive Technology Professional) at the November Boston ASHA Conference and discussed Pathways Strategic Teaching Centers participating in the Bluebee Pals Project. Ms. Broz works with children with Autism in preschool classrooms and requested the opportunity for her staff to utilize Bluebee Pals as an assistive technology tool in a variety of speech/language and occupational therapy programs.
