Parrot Software
Parrot Software is a web-based set of 94 interactive programs for speech, language, memory, and cognitive rehabilitation, designed for adults recovering from stroke, traumatic brain injury, and other neurological conditions. It has been in continuous development since 1981 and has been used by hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and speech-language pathologists, including Veterans Administration hospitals, Kaiser Permanente, Johns Hopkins, the National Rehabilitation Hospital, and the University of Michigan.
Programs address auditory comprehension, naming and word retrieval, reading, writing, functional communication, attention, memory, and reasoning. Each one gives immediate feedback and records performance, so a person can practice independently between therapy sessions while a clinician or care partner can see what was completed.
Three features are particularly relevant to aphasia:
1. Speech recognition adapted for impaired speech, so spoken responses are scored rather than rejected outright.
2. Lessons built from the user’s own photographs – family members, pets, familiar objects – so word-retrieval practice uses personally meaningful vocabulary rather than generic stimuli.
3. Conversation practice with on-screen avatars.
The programs run in a web browser on a computer or tablet, with nothing to install. A sample lesson is available without creating an account, so a person can try it before deciding. Individual subscriptions are $24.95 per month.
The purpose is to make structured, repeatable practice available at home, at the user’s own pace, as a supplement to clinician-delivered therapy rather than a replacement for it.
