
Ask HN: Best iOS apps for speechless child? - levleontiev
I am the father of a speechless son, 9yo, he was diagnosed autism several years ago.<p>He can communicate with pictograms, showing &quot;I want ice cream&quot; or &quot;I want to drive a bicycle&quot;.<p>I imagine that there should be a simple application, where a child constructs a sentence and then presses the &quot;play&quot; button, and the application pronounces it. I think that this will help a speechless child to learn literacy.<p>Had anyone ever came across such app?
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mjmasn
There are plenty of apps that can do pictograms to speech - I think the term
you want to search for is "aac apps" (Augmentative and Alternative
Communication). I'll see if my partner (an adult speech therapist) has any
recommendations and get back to you.

~~~
mjmasn
Here's two recommendations, neither are cheap I'm afraid:

* [https://thinksmartbox.com/product/grid-for-ipad/](https://thinksmartbox.com/product/grid-for-ipad/) (there's grid player as well which is free but I think requires purchasing a desktop app)

* [https://www.assistiveware.com/products/proloquo2go](https://www.assistiveware.com/products/proloquo2go)

Depending on your country / financial situation / medical insurance you may be
able to get help with these. In the UK the NHS should provide a suitable
solution. Either way if at all possible speak to a qualified speech therapist
and they'll be able to help with your specific situation.

~~~
levleontiev
Thanks!

I am probably not clear enough: he already uses some kind of this app, thank
god it's covered by medical insurance in our country.

What I am searching for is something with chars to teach him literacy. I want
him to type "I-C-E-C-R-E-A-M" instead of choosing "icecream" pictogram and
make ipad pronounce it.

