Category Archives: Cool Apps for Autism

Cool apps, technology, websites, etc. that are beneficial to autistic children and their families.

Cool Apps for Autism: Color Dots

This is another really nifty little app that does one thing very well.  After using the Touch Trainer app to teach our son how to interact with a touch screen, this is the app we moved to next.  It starts with one little dot moving around the screen.  The child is supposed to pop the dot by touching it with an index finger.  Each screen then progresses to include more moving dots.  It’s really cool for encouraging little ones to use a touch screen properly, and it also is great for eye-hand coordination.  It can also be used to practice turn taking and joint attention.  Our son loves this app, and it has proven a lifesaver when out in public in a waiting situation.

I opened this app in his therapist’s waiting room one afternoon.  Suddenly, I had the attention from a little boy who had been all the way across the room.  Though I don’t know his diagnosis, he was clearly on the spectrum as well and non-verbal.  He walked right up and began joining in with my son popping the bubbles.

This is a great little app at just 99 cents.

Cool Apps for Autism – Autism Apps

This isn’t an app for autistic children so much as an app for parents,teachers, and therapists of autistic and other special-needs children.  Quite simply, it is an app that is a searchable database of other autism apps – broken into categories such as behavior, choice-making, art, ABA, books, cause and effect, sensory, math, reading, writing, and much more.  The range of apps in terms of age, skill, and level of communication is impressive.  They also have featured apps by recent release for those parents in the know app-wise.  A must have for autism app users and FREE.

Cool Apps for Autism: Touch Trainer

Touch Trainer is a great app.  It was the very first app I chose for our son after making the choice to try an iPad with him.  Touch Trainer does one thing – it trains someone lacking in communication and fine motor skills how to properly touch and make a choice on a touch screen.  Prior to using this app, our 2 year old autistic son swiped, slapped, and scratched at the iPad.  Without being able to point (a common developmental delay for autistic children and a Red Flag), Callum would not be able to use many of the nifty apps designed for him.  I started the app and – cue the violins – Callum was mesmerized.  I had to show him the first couple of times what would happen when he correctly touched the large square image on the screen.  (It began dancing all over the screen to music.)  Callum then began to pull my hand toward the iPad to see more of this dancing square.  I used hand over hand to make him choose the image for a couple of minutes.  I was soon able to pull my hand back to touch his wrist, and then elbow, until he was finally able to do it on his own.  (Amusingly, he spent several minutes insisting I touch his other arm, innocently believing that he couldn’t do it without that particular form of assistance.)  Within 15 minutes, Callum was able to use a touch screen to achieve a desired result.  That is rudimentary communication, folks.  Yep, I teared up on the spot.  Highly recommended.

Touch Trainer is $6.99 in the App store.  You can get it here: