Topologika’s Speaking for Myself PLUS selected by Danish software house

News Release, 2nd January 2007

Topologika Software’s Speaking for Myself PLUS, its best-selling early speech and language pack which was produced in collaboration with the Down’s Syndrome Association, Down’s Ed, Signalong and Mayer-Johnson, is soon to be launched in Denmark. Danish software house Inclusion Software has commissioned Topologika, one of the UK’s leading independent educational software publishers, to localise the software for the Danish market.

Speaking for Myself PLUS develops communication, cognitive and reading skills and is designed for children between the ages of two and nine years, at school or at home. It features 60 on-screen flash cards, 15 stories with just two or three words per page and eight animated nursery rhymes. Clear speech accompanies each of the activities, with Signalong videos and Mayer-Johnson Picture Communication Symbols providing bridges to the written and spoken word. There are also five sets of games and diversions covering counting, colouring, matching, placement and sounds.

“In Denmark there is a great need for computer-based educational software, for children and young people with special educational needs,” explains Inclusion Software’s managing director, Lene Elsig Dalgaard. “Speaking for Myself PLUS is a unique programme for children without the ability to speak, to help them develop a colloquial language. The users get the opportunity to include sign language for the understanding. The programme is based on the principals of learning to read to learn to speak, which is quite new and almost unknown in Denmark.”

Topologika’s managing director Brian Kerslake adds, “Everyone involved in the production of Speaking for Myself PLUS is really excited about this project. We know how much the software is in demand in the UK, but to have the opportunity to bring the software to a completely new market with backing from the Danish Ministry for Education is very rewarding. We are already well into customising the software for Danish mainstream and special education. We very much hope that Lene will come back for Swedish and Norwegian versions too.”

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