Assistive Technology for Literacy

As noted on this chart, writing processes include Planning or Prewriting, Drafting, Reviewing, Editing, and (in many cases) Publishing or Sharing the finished work with others.

The image shown above describes phases in the writing process. AT can be used to support each of those phases.

Useful Articles and Websites

Writing

Article: Tips on Writing: Every Writer Needs a Pencil (Pacer Center Article) http://www.pacer.org/parent/php/php-c208.pdf

Article: Handwriting Without Tears. This article provides advice for various disabilities: https://www.hwtears.com/hwt/educators/therapists/special-needs

Learning Ally - Assistive Technology for Students with Dyslexia. http://go.learningally.org/Students

Website: Learning Technologies Lab - Information for Teachers. This site is designed to help teachers provide support, choice and flexibility to students with special needs. It includes research data as well as videos and learning guides on text-to-speech, word prediction, speech recognition, visual thinking tools. Many resources are free, although some are fee-based. http://www.learningtechnologiesab.com/

Website: Reading Rockets. This site includes many excellent links and resources to assist struggling readers and writers. https://www.readingrockets.org/ http://www.readingrockets.org/article/assistive-technology-tools-writing

Website: Understood.org - Assistive Technology. This is another useful starting point in your exploration of assistive technology to support and promote the reading and/or writing process. It was specifically developed for students with learning and attention difficulties: https://www.understood.org/en/school-learning/assistive-technology/assistive-technologies-basics/assistive-technology-for-writing

https://www.understood.org/en/school-learning/assistive-technology/assistive-technologies-basics/assistive-technology-for-reading

Website: National Writing Project. http://www.nwp.org/

Reading

Website: American Printing House for the Blind

Website: Bookshare

Website: The National Center on Accessible Educational Materials (AEM) stores NIMAS compliant Source materials.

Website: National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC)

Website: ReadWriteThink. This is a Project of the International Reading Association, National Council of Teachers of English(NCTE), and Verizon Foundation. http://www.readwritethink.org/

Assistive Technology Tools

Graphic Organizers

Canva for Print-based Graphic Organizers (teacher creates/prints for students)

Inspiration, Kidspiration, Webspiration http://www.inspiration.com/

Many graphic organizers are available - they are AT for some but would be barriers for others

Word Prediction

ClaroSpeak App https://www.claro-apps.com/

CoWriter and CoWriter iOS (iPad) http://donjohnston.com/cowriterapp/#.U9rM_ajY0vAiWordQ

WordQ and iWordQ http://www.goqsoftware.com/

WriteOnline and WriteOnline app http://www.cricksoft.com/us/products/writeonline/default.aspx

Read&Write https://www.texthelp.com/en-us/

Notetaking

LiveScribe Pen

(also digital recorders and mobile apps like Recordium)

Speech to Text (dictate)

Dragon Naturally Speaking (software and apps) http://www.nuance.com/dragon/index.htm

Text to Speech

TextAloud - Text to speech software (can also be used for writing review) http://nextup.com/

Resources for Writing & Reading

Reading and writing are gateways to knowledge and expression and remain essential in the 21st Century. Whether it is writing complete sentences or planning and producing a full paper or report, students need to write to succeed in school and beyond. Assistive technology for reading and writing can be used to support various needs ranging from physical to cognitive needs.

In the area of literacy, students with special needs can have challenges ranging from the motor skills that support simple turning of a page or physical production of legible words and letters to comprehending or organizing ideas.

Assistive Technology tools at varying levels of complexity can be used to support students with special needs.

For example, in the area of writing. some of the best books in the world were written by people using AT to overcome the challenges of disability.

Bookshare

AIM on the Importance of Reading

Text to Speech Software

Using AT to Brainstorm and Organize Ideas

There are various tools that merge text-to-speech with word processing so that emergent writers can have what they wrote read out loud to them. Please view the video from Crick's Clicker Docs (for iPad)

From the Pacer Center, here is a personal look at a child who is using Co-Writer and the Live Scribe Smart Pen to support his success as a writer

Pictello is a powerful and popular tool for storytellilng.

Clicker Connect is available for the iPad and it enables struggling writers to develop their skills.

The Clicker Sentences App is another tool that is developed to support early literacy.

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