IntelliPics

by Kelly Peterson and Ellie Stack

IntelliPics is a multimedia-authoring tool by IntelliTools that allows the teacher or student to create and use learning activities for students of all ages and disabilities. Activities can range from cause and effect to more advanced multimedia presentations.

IntelliPics comes with three activities ready to use that can be easily adapted to fit individual student and class needs. All of the items and palettes are available within these activities including: picture items, modifier items, number palette, size palette, and color palette. The person customizing has the option to show and hide any combination of palettes in order to adapt these activities, or start from the beginning with a new activity. There is a built-in quiz feature that may be utilized as well.

Words may be spoken by the computer or recorded by a teacher or peer and picture items can be made to animate. Along with the hundreds of graphics that come with the program, images can easily be brought in from a variety of other sources including digital pictures. Movies and sounds can be downloaded from the Internet and inserted into the program as well. All of these multimedia features add interest that makes learning fun.

Activities may be used with a mouse or with an IntelliKeys (adaptable keyboard). By using Overlay Maker an overlay can be made that corresponds to the activity. The overlay is then placed on the IntelliKeys and students who do not use the mouse can run the activity independently.

Activities that have been made by teachers and therapists from around the world are posted on the IntelliTools web site at http://www.intellitools.com. You do not need to buy the software to use these activities. Simply download the IntelliPics Player from their web site then browse through and download activities of interest. Overlay Printer is another free utility that may also be downloaded. It enables the user to print overlays without owning Overlay Maker.

If you work for Fairfax County Public Schools, you can also visit the Intranet site to download a variety of activities that have been developed by Fairfax County teachers. http://fcpsnet.fcps.k12.va.us/SSSE/its/howtos/projects.htm. Once at the web site, scroll down to IntelliPics activities. You will find activities that support the curriculum for preschool classrooms as well as secondary low incidence classrooms.

A session dedicated to the IntelliTools web site and downloading activities will be offered during the 2nd RATE Conference on November 17. Hope to see you there!

This is a new multimedia authoring program from the IntelliTools company that can be utilized by teachers and students to create classroom activities. It incorporates aspects of HyperStudio, KidPix, and the original IntelliPics. It was designed for the “diverse” classroom and provides alternative access for students with special needs to the draw, paint, slide show, and quiz modes. Animation can be easily created using an animation strip and by dragging objects across the screen. This program is scheduled to be released in mid-November 2001.

IntelliMathics is a new math program from IntelliTools that not only allows students to access a broad range of math activities from basic sorting to fractions and geometry, but also allows teachers to create activities to match their curriculum. IntelliMathics uses simple on-screen manipulatives that create a "hands-on" environment that is accessible to all students including those with cognitive and physical disabilities. All activities can be set up for access with the mouse, IntelliKeys, or a switch in scanning mode. Through the use of a gear menu, teachers can quickly add sorting bins, Venn hoops, counting boxes, attribute blocks, fraction bars, base ten blocks, a decimal grid, geoboards, coins, dice, and spinners to a blank screen to create endless games and activities for students. IntelliMathics also comes with a picture library that can be used to add manipulatives to the screen. Pictures can also be imported from other sources. Once a teacher creates an activity in IntelliMathics, the information can then be sent to Overlay Maker so that an IntelliKeys overlay can be created quickly. IntelliMathics is an amazingly versatile math tool that is appropriate for use in a wide variety of academic settings. Be sure to sign up for the IntelliMathics session at the 2nd RATE conference on November 17th and visit the IntelliTools website at www.intellitools.com to find out more about this incredible math tool!