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I Speak Dragon

Thanks for your interest in the I Speak Dragon contest! Our 2012 contest is now closed to new entries. As a reminder, three winners will be chosen by a panel of judges, but you can also help to choose our Fan Favorite! Please visit our Facebook page to vote for your favorite story. Stay tuned for winners to be announced in early July!

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Independence - Thanks to Dragon!!!

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Michael Campisi Posted: 05-22-2012 4:09 PM
I was born prematurely at 26 weeks.  I am now 19 years old but my life has been an extremely medically challenged one.  I have had 15 surgeries to date, and the trauma of my birth left me with cerebral palsy and hydrocephalus.  It was always an exhausting battle trying to reach the normal milestones of childhood.  School proved to be extremely difficult as well.  My fine motor skills are severely delayed due to the cerebral palsy and brain bleed when I was born.  I could not keep up with any of the classes that required lengthy written assignments.  I would often cut short my thoughts and ideas in class because I knew I could not scribe quickly enough to keep up with the class.  I could never put on paper what I was really thinking on any class subject.  As a result, my grades slipped.  By the third grade, my mom called an IEP meeting to have an aid by my side all day to do all of my handwritten assignments.  This system worked like a charm.  My aid was a treasure and she was by my side all the way to eighth grade.  We grew to be very close. 
 
By the end of eighth grade, I was at a crossroads in my life going into high school.  As much as I loved and depended on my precious aid, I was becoming a young man and I did not want to go into high school with this sweet little elderly lady by my side all day long.  How would I socialize?  How would I ask a girl to the prom?  How will I be able to handle the taunting and teasing that was sure to come?  How am I going to tell her?  I was totally distraught. 
 
My mom went on the internet and found that there wasa software program that would actually be able to scribe for me by voice recognition.  It sounded too good to be true.  So we called an IEP meeting and sure enough, with the help  of the IEP team, we discovered Dragon Naturally Speaking.  It took some convincing for the school district to agree to it but mom wouldn't give up.  Finally, the school gave me the software, Dragon Naturally Speaking, for use in school and at home.  It has was the answer to my prayers.  I can be totally independent and still keep up with the rest of the class.  That was three years ago and since then there are at least a dozen other students at my high school that also use Dragon for various reasons. 
 
I will be a senior in high school next year and I plan to take Dragon with me straight on to college. I still keep in touch with my dear friend, Betty, the aid who got me through my school years until I met, THE DRAGON!!!!
 
Michael Campisi
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Three grand prize winners, selected by a panel of judges, will receive a third generation iPad and free Dragon updates for three years. Not only that, but one story will also be selected as a “Fan Favorite” on Facebook. Once you submit your story here, head over to our Facebook page to like us, (and, hey, like your own story as well!). Encourage your friends to like your story too – the entry with the highest number of likes at the conclusion of the contest will be the Fan Favorite, and the winner will receive a new iPad!

Contest Details

Grand Prizes
You can win an iPad, and Dragon!
Three winning stories will be selected by a panel of judges, and the winning entrants will each receive an iPad as well as Dragon upgrades for three years.

Fan Favorite
Submitted stories will be posted to our Facebook page for our Dragon community to read, enjoy and “like.” One story will be selected as a fan favorite on Facebook based on the number of likes each story receives. Once you submit your story here , head over to our Facebook page to like us, (and, hey, like your own story as well!). Encourage your friends to like your story too – the entry with the highest number of likes at the conclusion of the contest will be the Fan Favorite, and the winner will receive a new iPad!

I Speak Dragon 2012

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