Many people associate the beginning of a new year with a time of renewal, starting fresh, and setting new goals or resolutions. We at BridgingApps like to take time to think about the new apps and technologies that were new or had big updates in the previous year and the possible impact those could have on the lives of people with disabilities.
With this in mind, we thought it might be helpful to have a list of apps that made a splash in 2023 and are worth keeping an eye on in 2024, maybe even trying out for yourself or with a family member.
Apps for Children and Teens
Some of them have been around for a while- Need tools to help your nonverbal family member communicate? AsstiveWare – maker of Proloquo2GO, has been a leader in communication for years and introduced two new apps in 2023, Proloquo [1] and Proloquo Coach [2], that have taken off! They were even recognized as a “Cultural Impact Winner” in Apple’s best games and apps of 2023! [3]
Maybe you or your child want to learn a new language. How about Duolingo [4]? One of our team’s favorites and another app that was recognized by Apple in their Apple’s Top iPhone App of the Year finalists! [5]
Mango Nutrition [6] is a new app specifically created with users with Down Syndrome and other intellectual disabilities in mind. We know that apps designed for this population are often helpful for many other people too! Maybe you have an older relative who was recently diagnosed with diabetes or has been told they need to eat healthier for other reasons, but they often meet up with friends in restaurants. Or perhaps your teen or young adult child is starting a new job and will be eating away from home more often and you want to encourage them to make healthy choices? This app may be a good start.
Mango Nutrition was designed to help people select healthier options when eating at fast food restaurants using an easy-to-understand traffic light system. At the time of this writing, there is a limited number of restaurants in the app, however they are working to add more. The app allows goal setting, and users can even add what their reward will be (complete with a picture!). The colorful layout and the overall simplicity of the layout of the app offer a game-like, low-pressure atmosphere for learning about nutrition. We are very excited about the possibilities for this easy-to-use tool!
Apps for Caregivers
Want to start teaching your child how to manage money? Greenlight Kids and Teen Banking [7], first launched in 2017 as Greenlight, is a good option. Greenlight Kids and Teen Banking allows you the opportunity to get your child or teen a debit card and oversee their spending using the app. This is a great option for parents who want to start teaching their children about money management in a controlled environment. The app allows parents to choose places where their child can spend money without asking and places where they need parent permission first. An app you may want to try to help you track your budget, finances, and more all in one place that is completely FREE is NerdWallet [7]. This is an easy way for families who want to get a better grasp of their finances or create a budget as well as for that teen or young adult with a first job and first-time regular expenses.
Reading Tools for Everyone
Do you or a family member enjoy reading but find it difficult to read traditional physical books either because of a reading disability such as dyslexia, a vision impairment, or even a physical disability that makes holding a physical book and turning pages difficult? There are a couple of newly released and updated apps that can help users who relate to these scenarios.
We previously shared Learning Ally Audiobooks [8] (July/August 2023) as FREE option for people who have been diagnosed with a reading disability. The format of these audiobooks is one that is a bit different from a book who may download from Audible or other audiobook platforms. The reason is that Learning Ally combines the audiobook and e-book format that has been shown to be effective in allowing people with reading disabilities to fully experience a book by listening to the expertly narrated text while seeing a handy highlighter moves from word to word as it is read. The only drawback to Learning Ally is that you have to qualify with a print disability to access it. Read on to learn about a newly released app that provides this format for anyone through either a monthly or yearly subscription or a pay-per-book model.
Speechify Books [9], was designed by the same people who created Speechify Text to Speech Audio, an app that we have shared here before to scan text and have it read aloud to you quickly. Speechify Books offers not only traditional audiobooks with human narration, but also a format that is a combination of these audiobooks + e-books. This is a format that has long been used in platforms meant for people with print disabilities and is now available to anyone through this app.
Bookshare [10] has been a great option available to people who have a qualifying print disability for many years now. They recently released a new app, Bookshare Reader, as an easy way to access their books on a mobile device without downloading them to a 3rd party app or other device. As of the time of this writing, the human narrated audiobooks offered by Bookshare are not available on the Bookshare Reader [11] app, however their library of text-to-speech audio books is available on the app. To see if you or your loved one qualifies to access their unlimited audiobooks for free, visit their sign-in page [12].
We hope that you find at least one of these tools helpful for your family in the coming year!
Apps for Children and Teens
[13]
Proloquo
By: AssistiveWare
Proloquo is AssistiveWare’s newest communication app and is designed to be an intuitive and easy-to-use AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) app for people who have the ability to use an iPad independently. It is also capable of supporting the user from childhood into adulthood by building on communication as they grow.
Free • Offers In-App Purchases
Apple App Store [14]
[15]
Proloquo Coach
By: AssistiveWare
Proloquo Coach is a companion app for AssistiveWare’s Proloquo. It is designed to guide and support parents just getting started with using Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) to help their child communicate. It includes easy step-by-step activities and articles to help parents build their skills and knowledge and become more confident with the AAC platform.
Free • Offers In-App Purchases.
Apple App Store [16]
[17]
Duolingo- Language Lessons
By: Duolingo
Duolingo is a free, interactive app that teaches new languages. Users can learn French, Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin and many more on their mobile device. This app is fun and motivating and appropriate for a variety of users. We love that it can be used at the learner’s pace and in the privacy of their own home; great for people with social anxiety or learners who just need repeated lessons or a slower pace.
Free • Offers In-App Purchases
Apple App Store [18]
Google Play Store [19]
[20]
MANGO Nutrition
By: Dan Anthony
MANGO is designed to help users select healthier meals using an easy-to-understand traffic light labeling system. It was specifically designed for users with Down Syndrome and other intellectual and developmental disabilities. This is a great app to help anyone who needs a little help making good decisions around nutrition.
Free
Apple App Store [21]
Apps for Caregivers
[22]
Greenlight Kids & Teen Banking
By: Greenlight Financial Technology, Inc.
Greenlight is a banking app that is the perfect bridge for those just starting on the path to financial independence. The app enables caregivers to monitor and control their child’s spending, while still offering them choices in their spending. Parents manage spending by putting money into two different categories- money that can be spent anywhere and that which can only be spent at parent-approved stores. Parents get real-time alerts when funds are low and can turn stores on and off at any time, as well as add or delete funds. This is a great option for young children or for older teens who need help making decisions about how to spend their money.
Free • Offers In-App Purchases
Apple App Store [23]
Google Play Store [24]
[25]
NerdWallet: Manage Your Money
By: NerdWallet
NerdWallet can help you track your budget, finances, and credit all in one place. The best part? It is completely FREE!! This is a great app for families who want to get a better grasp of their actual income and outcome each month, either to start saving for a big purchase, or just to create a realistic budget and stick to it. The app uses simple graphs and charts to give the user detailed spending insights, see top spending categories, and more. This app could be helpful for young adults just beginning to earn an income and have financial responsibilities on a regular basis.
Free
BridgingApps Review [26]
Apple App Store [27]
Google Play Store [28]
Reading Tools for Everyone
[29]
Speechify Books: Read & Listen
By: Speechify Inc.
Speechify Books is a new app from Speechify Inc. (creators of a handy text-to-speech app that we also love!) The app is free to download and currently offers a subscription model that includes options to pay monthly or yearly, as well as a per-book price. Many of the books are available in Audiobook + E-book format, while others are Audiobook only. The great thing about the Audiobook + E-book format is that, while it is admittedly usually more expensive, it is a great way for people with learning disabilities such as Dyslexia to read and take in information. The combined format means that while hearing the audiobook, the reader also sees the text, with each word being highlighted as it is read. Speechify Books might not be the best option for someone who needs to have all of their printed text in this format because of cost, but it is definitely a good tool to access as needed.
Free • Offers In-App Purchases
Apple App Store [30]
[31]
Bookshare Reader
By: Benetech
Bookshare Reader is a simple app for accessing books from the Bookshare website and service. Bookshare is a library for people with qualifying print disabilities that make it difficult to read a printed book. In order to join, you must qualify for one of the free membership plans or pay for an annual subscription. Although Bookshare offers many human narrated books, those are not currently available on Bookshare Reader, however the human narrated books can be enjoyed via the website or by downloading to devices that support Bookshare.
Free • Offers In-App Purchases.
BridgingApps Review [11]
Apple App Store [32]
Google Play Store [33]
Check out BridgingApps App Search Tool [34] to search for apps, create lists and even share them.
BridgingApps, a program of Easter Seals Greater Houston, is a community of parents, therapists, doctors and teachers who share information about using mobile devices with people who have special needs.
Amy Fuchs is the Program Manager at BridgingApps and a former special education teacher. Amy Barry is the Digital Marketing Lead at BridgingApps and mother of five children.
Cristen Reat is co-founder of BridgingApps and a mother who found success when using a mobile device with her younger son who has multiple disabilities. We share a passion for using mobile technology to enhance the lives of people of all ages with disabilities.