Orientation & Mobility Apps
Submitted by Linda Mamer on Aug 18, 2014
There are many apps (applications) available to support the development of Orientation and Mobility skills for children and youth who are blind or visually impaired, as well as those who are deafblind. I compiled a list of some of my favorites in various categories. Please let us know if you try any of these or have others to add to the list!
- Sound Identification
- Navigation
- Safety
- Traffic Concepts / Games
- Communication
- Writing Board
- Miscellaneous
- Visual Skills
Apps for Sound Identification
 I Hear Ewe |
When user taps on an icon of an animal or vehicle, the game will verbally announce what type of animal or vehicle it is and play a recording of its real sound. |
 Sound Touch Lite |
Tap a picture, and a real life photo of the item pops open, accompanied by the sound it makes. |
| Learn the names of animals and hear the sounds they make with this app. | |
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This app focuses on helping kids learn to recognize familiar sounds and match the sounds to the picture. |
Apps for Navigation
| Turns iOS device into a compass. | |
| Shows you live, up-to-the-minute bus locations on the TransLink network. It also gives you quick access to estimated next bus times. | |
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Pocket Map lets you create folders called "pockets", so you can easily drag and drop your bookmarks into categories.
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Autour is an eyes-free mobile system designed to give blind users a better sense of their surroundings. Places around you are read to you from a map as you walk. |
Safety Apps
| User-friendly, educational, entertaining and appropriate app teaching safety to children. | |
| This app combines the effectiveness of picture cards with the power and interactivity of the iPad. |
Traffic Apps - Concepts / Games
| 3D game in which the user is responsible for keeping the flow of traffic and avoiding car crashes. | |
| A simple to use timer in the form of a traffic light. Set whether you want it to run red-amber-green or green-amber-red, set the times in minutes and seconds and then off it goes! |
Communication Apps
| This app creates customizable choice boards for the unique needs of individuals with communication challenges. | |
| Verbally is an easy-to-use, comprehensive Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) app for the iPad that brings speech to those without and enables real conversation. |
Writing Board Apps
| Turns iPad into a recordable whiteboard with voice recording, realistic digital ink, photos and text, and simple sharing. |
Miscellaneous Apps
| An interactive game that develops language, discrimination, and reasoning skills in students. | |
| Collection of educational apps. | |
| This app provides parents with a practical and fun way to help teach children about the concepts and value of money. | |
| A matching game app that helps improve visual perception & develop fine motor skills. | |
| The app displays colorful quizzes, flashcards, puzzles and games while offering positive reinforcement and fun rewards. | |
| The first app for iPad and iPhone created specifically for children with cortical visual impairment (CVI)! The simple cause and effect app will also appeal to children without CVI. | |
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This is a set of 3 activities designed to teach spatial reasoning skills through fun, challenging, interactive activities. |
Visual Skills Apps
| Game: Using glow lights to highlight the hockey game, easy to play, hard to master. | |
| Game where users learn about animals and feed/take care of them. | |
| Solve puzzles by connecting matching colors with pipe to create a flow. |
Please note that you may need to check whether the app has been updated or whether it only works with certain operating systems. This page was updated on January 31, 2022, but we know that apps come and go on a regular basis. Please let us know if you have any information to share about any of the apps on this page.
