Playful Primer and A Starting Place
Playful Primer was initially designed for the students of A Starting Place,
a preschool program for children with special needs. Many of the unique features
of this program are based on the advice and experience of the teaching staff at
the school. Here are some fundamental ways that Playful Primer supports children
with specific learning styles.
Playful Primer and Autism/Aspergers
Children with language disorders are highly visual learners with weak auditory
processing skills. Playful Primer capitalizes on their visual ability
by providing full screen graphics and strong visual cues with minimal language
prompts. These activities are designed to stimulate expressive language in a non-direct
way to help reduce frustration and build self esteem.
Playful Primer and ADD/ADHD
Children with anxiety disorders are highly distractible and need frequent refocusing cues and positive reinforcements to help maintain their concentration. Playful Primer presents a variety of media rich, safe error activities that share the same image libraries. All activities are designed to be played in short sittings, and the simple menu screen prompts children to switch from activity to activity as often as they like.
Playful Primer and Downs Syndrome
Children with developmental delays have poor short term memories and learn best from simple rote exercises that present plenty of concrete examples. All Playful Primer activities share an extensive image library of everyday objects including clothes, foods, household items, playthings, letters, numbers, and shapes. These activities are carefully leveled to build visual memory, auditory recall, and language skills step by step.
Playful Primer and ESL
Bilingual learners are slower to develop language skills because they are challenged
with learning two languages at once. These children need language reinforcement
for both their native language and English as early as possible to prepare
them for school. Playful Primer is specifically designed to promote language development
and basic early learning skills in very young children. All children
are encouraged to play these activities in either language English or Spanish.
This program is a simple and enjoyable way to provide your children independent
language enrichment at home.
“The true hallmark of this program is that it eliminates the need for children to integrate language and auditory processing skills to learn a new concept. Auditory processing is often the weakest area for children with ADD/ADHD, ASBERGERS, DOWN SYNDROME, and AUTISM.”
Marie Beauchemin - Special Education Teacher