Check Out The Latest SmartHomes Newsletter

The latest SmartHome newsletter is available online.

Check it out here.

Gerald Goes Out On The Town

This photo came to us in an email from Shannon Bundy, who is the Assistant Site Supervisor at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder. Shannon told us: “This is a photo of Gerald when I was taking him on an outing to have lunch on Pearl Street. He loves the bus! Whenever he gets a chance he loves to have outings by taking the the 204 bus. He wants to take the bus to Denver at some point. We had lunch at Foolish Craig's Cafe and we got to stop by and say hi to the people at the place where he got his wedding rings made.”

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes

Touring the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome today: Colorado State Representative Crisanta Duran. Hope you enjoyed the tour, Rep. Duran!

Technology Tuesday

Residents at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder are testing a new computer-based medication task minder developed by Imagine! staff members that will allow the residents to take more control over their own medication administration. Created in collaboration with Imagine!’s Innovations nursing department, this task minder program helps to train residents by providing self-directed step-by-step instructions for administering their own medications. The program is designed to be flexible enough so that each individual is able to have personalized prompting based on their own skills set. The potential benefits of this training program are many. Individuals who are able to administer their own medications need less costly supervision and are able to live more independent lives.

SmartHome resident Lana is learning to take more control
over her medication administration.

Register For The 2013 ANCOR Technology Summit & Showcase

The 2013 ANCOR Technology Summit & Showcase, scheduled for Oct. 2-3, is an opportunity for you to learn about the technologies and innovations in the world of developmental disabilities and how you can use technology to transform your organization and the services you offer. This event is held in conjunction with The University of Colorado’s Coleman Institute for Cognitive Disabilities annual conference.

Register here.

Imagine! 50 Year Anniversary Video

Earlier this month, Imagine! hosted a 50th Anniversary Celebration party, and at the party a 50 year retrospective video was debuted. Check it out below, you might recognize some smiling SmartHome faces throughout!

 

Can’t see the video? Check it out here.

Chris Likes Motorcycles. However...

This photo came to us from Shannon Bundy, who is a Counselor at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder.

She told us: “Chris (who lives at the home) chose to go to the Cherry Creek Mall in Denver with me and he bought a new watch. He saw this motorcycle on display and wanted me to take a picture of him in front of it.”

Editor's Note: I just called Chris on the telephone to ask him if he'd ever ridden on the back of a motorcycle and he replied, "I've already been there and done that and I don't plan to ever do it again."

Donna Channels Jackson Pollack

This picture is from Imagine! CORE/Labor Source instructor Bridget Carroll’s Sensory Exploration class on Friday mornings. Last week participants mixed plaster of paris, water, and tempera paint to create liquid sidewalk chalk in squirt bottles. Participants and staff together splattered the liquid chalk all over Tom Watson Park in Gunbarrel creating thier own, larger than life, version of a 'Jackson Pollock' painting. SmartHome resident Donna is pictured with her own hue of green, she said "This is great! I love being able to get paint all over". The participants were able to spread paint around the park like they never had before. Working outside with squirt bottles gave participants a different freedom than they have working with materials in the art room.

Technology Tuesday

Welcome to “Technology Tuesday.” Imagine!’s SmartHomes team has moved fully into the second phase of our project, where we are using the SmartHomes technology in unique ways, taking it into other settings, and sharing it with clients beyond just those living in the homes. We want to share those stories with you. We hope these stories will be short and easy to read insights into how technology is changing the lives of everyone served by Imagine!, not just those living in the SmartHomes.

Imagine!’s CORE/Labor Source has started offering a class for clients that uses iPads to study reading, writing, and math. This class has a ratio of one teacher to five students. Using traditional methods, this could be problematic. The students vary greatly in their skill levels, and without the iPads, instruction would be very slow. With the iPads, however, students are able to self-direct their learning and go at their own pace without needing constant assistance from the instructor.

Additionally, in a traditional setting with a similar teacher to student ratio, individuals in the class may have been more likely to engage in inappropriate or attention seeking behaviors while waiting for individualized instruction, making it more difficult for the entire class to progress. The iPad lessons are very effective at keeping students constantly engaged, lowering the frequency of disruptive behavior.

Just as important, the iPad lessons are fun, making the experience more rewarding for everyone involved.

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Scheduled to tour the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder today: representatives from the Denver Urban Renewal Authority.

More Garage Sale Pictures

Some more pictures from last week's garage sale at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome.



Donna spreads the word.



Gerald and Donna work the tables.

Rebecca models for the camera.

Garage Sale Success

The garage sale that was held at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome this past weekend was a big success. Collectively the residents made $322.35! And, they had fun doing it.

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Scheduled to tour Imagine!’s Charles Family SmartHome today: Colorado State Senator Irene Aguilar.

Hope you enjoy the tour, Sen. Aguilar!

Technology Tuesday

Welcome to “Technology Tuesday.” Imagine!’s SmartHomes team has moved fully into the second phase of our project, where we are using the SmartHomes technology in unique ways, taking it into other settings, and sharing it with clients beyond just those living in the homes. We want to share those stories with you. We hope these stories will be short and easy to read insights into how technology is changing the lives of everyone served by Imagine!, not just those living in the SmartHomes.

Here’s a story about what “Jeremy” has been working on in the Cause and Effect class.

In the Cause and Effect class, Imagine! staff members work on the basics of communication by having the participants master pressing a switch to activate a preferred activity. When Jeremy first came into the Cause and Effect Class he wasn’t pressing the switch at all. Staff tried many different reinforcers and many different switch placements. After some time working with Jeremy, staff discovered that he was most successful in pressing a switch if it was placed in his hand. He started to press the switch to turn on a fan. As long as he continued to press the switch the fan would stay on. Staff also worked on having Jeremy press a switch to activate 30 second video clips. Jeremy would press the switch and the video would play and then after 30 seconds it would stop. The computer would prompt Jeremy to press the switch again and he would press it to start another video clip. Finally staff put one switch in each hand. The switch connected to the fan needed to be held down to keep the fan going while the switch connected to the computer needed to be pressed and released to start the videos every 30 seconds or so. Jeremy is now able to keep the fan going while watching videos on the computer! Yay Jeremy and yay adaptive technology!

Happy Anniversary Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome Residents

This August marks the four year anniversary of when residents first moved in to the Bob an Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder. We’ve learned a great deal, and the residents continue to amaze us every day with their commitment to using technology to lead more independent and productive lives. Happy anniversary!

Having Fun at the SmartHome!

 

Chris Is Ready For Some Football!

Last month, residents of the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome had the pleasure of attending a Denver Broncos training camp session. Here’s Chris enjoying some football!

John, Rebecca, Mandy, and Gerald at Broncos Training Camp

Last month, residents of the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome had the pleasure of attending a Denver Broncos training camp session. Here’s John, Rebecca, and Mandy (with Gerald in the background) enjoying some football!

Technology Tuesday

Welcome to “Technology Tuesday.” Imagine!’s SmartHomes team has moved fully into the second phase of our project, where we are using the SmartHomes technology in unique ways, taking it into other settings, and sharing it with clients beyond just those living in the homes. We want to share those stories with you. We hope these stories will be short and easy to read insights into how technology is changing the lives of everyone served by Imagine!, not just those living in the SmartHomes.

This week, Rebecca, who lives in the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome in Boulder, is working on a PowerPoint presentation for her upcoming Individualized Plan (IP) meeting. Inspired by the Innovations Advocacy Council’s “IP Project,” this gives Rebecca the opportunity to present her own goals for the upcoming year. The Innovations Advocacy Council provided Rebecca with a series of questions in order to help her prepare for the IP, explaining that she could use any medium she wanted to use to present. Along with Shannon, the Assistant Site Supervisor, Rebecca decided that creating a PowerPoint presentation would be a lot of fun.

“Not only did this project give Rebecca the opportunity to learn to spell new words that are important in her life, but it also gave her the opportunity to express herself creatively with a new medium,” Shannon explained. “She now has the skills to start a new project, add new slides, add text to slides, find pictures online, and save them to a project.”

“[This project] was really fun,” said Rebecca. “I learned to spell new words like ‘theater’ and I put a picture of a princess in there too.”

Nice job, Rebecca!

Rebecca hard at work, creating her own PowerPoint presentation.

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Scheduled to tour the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome this morning: Ann Turner, Executive Director of Colorado Springs-based Cheyenne Village, which provides a comprehensive array of services for people with developmental disabilities.

Happy Birthday, Anthony!

Wishing the happiest of birthdays to Charles Family SmartHome resident Anthony. Make it a great one, Anthony!

Guess Who's Touring The SmartHomes?

Scheduled to tour the Charles Family SmartHome in Longmont today: Glenn Foard, CEO of Australia’s Melba Support Services, Inc. Another international visitor interested in our work! Hope your tour is a great one, Glenn.

SmartHome Garage Sale Aug. 10-11

Residents at the Bob and Judy Charles SmartHome, located at 1806 Iris Avenue in Boulder, are having a garage sale on Saturday, August 10, and Sunday, August 11. The sale is from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm on both days. The residents have been going through their personal belongings to see what they’d like to sell. Some of the items that will be for sale are: movies, books, furniture, clothes, electronics (TV, VCR, VHS tapes) and home décor. Please try to stop by, and even if you don’t purchase anything, you can pretty much count on being greeted with enthusiasm by the friendly residents of the home.