The Family Center on Technology and Disability
Assistive Technology Works
The Inclusive Class
The Inclusive Class is a website created by Nicole Eredics, an educator from British Columbia who has devoted her life to finding ways to make inclusion successful for children with special needs. The website includes a blog, podcasts, archives that link to 154 posts, and links to Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. Nicole shares her collection of resources for teachers and parents using a tool called LiveBinder. She also has a ...
Published: 2013 by Nicole Eredics , Reviewed: June 12, 2013
Voice Dream Reader
The Voice Dream Reader app reads a range of formatted files including PDF, ePub, Text, Word, PowerPoint, Pages, Keynote, RTF, and HTML. The default voice for Voice Dream Reader is the Acapella Speech Engine installed with Heather. Additional voices can be added for $1.99 each from within Dream Reader. The app is very easy to use. To read text, simply click on the play button on the bottom of the ...
Published: 2013 by Voice Dream LLC , Reviewed: April 25, 2013
Magnifying Glass with Light-digital magnifier with flashlight
This free magnifying app may be very useful for kids (or adults) with low vision when print is too small or the room is just too dark. Just point the iPhone/iPad camera at whatever you need to magnify, move the on-screen slider, and the full screen display will enlarge whatever you are looking at up to 5X. If it is dim or dark, the iPhone/iPad LED light can be turned ...
Published: 2013 by Falcon in Motion LLC , Reviewed: May 15, 2013
Ian Bean - Downloads
This website is the work of Ian Bean who worked at Priory Woods School in the UK and then at Inclusive Design, using and developing software to help students with disabilities learn with technology. All of the downloads at this website are free to download and use and exploring the website reveals an incredible array of resources to help you design free switch-based or touch screen activities to use with ...
Published: 2013 by Ian Bean , Reviewed: April 26, 2013
iTransition
iTransition from PepNet is a tool that can be used by school counselors, deaf education teachers, parents, and students to explore the idea of transitioning from high school to college, training programs, or the world of work. Designed for use with high school students from the age of 14, the tool addresses three areas related to transition: Career Interests and Education Choices, First Year College Success, and Essential Skills for ...
Published: 2012 by PepNet2 , Reviewed: February 01, 2013
Youth on the Move
Youth on the Move is a website created by the University of Massachusetts to address all aspects of transition. It is a comprehensive website that looks at services starting in high school and continuing through graduation and the "move" into life after the IEP. Some of the services are specific to Massachusetts but many of the ideas presented are relevant to individuals in other states. There are sections on developing ...
Published: 2012 by University of Massachusetts Boston , Reviewed: January 17, 2013
Panther Writer
We all type differently, and the traditional QWERTY keyboard has little logic in today's world other than being the "default" for those typing with 10 fingers. Others have been designed to be far more efficient but have never caught on. With Panther Writer, Panther Technology has rethought the keyboard and come up with an initial offering of four keyboards that provide increased access to a wide range of individuals who ...
Published: 2012 by Panther Technology , Reviewed: February 01, 2013
Think College
ThinkCollege is a website designed for students moving from middle school to high school. Its purpose is to introduce the idea of attending college to students with cognitive and developmental disabilities. There are sections that discuss the importance of going to college, ways of finding an appropriate college program, means of paying for college, and techniques for being successful in transitioning to college. There are links for parents and for ...
Published: 2012 by Institute for Community Inclusion/University of Massachusetts Boston , Reviewed: January 17, 2013
Camera Mouse
The Camera Mouse program was developed by Professor James Gips (Boston College) and Professor Margrit Betke (formerly of Boston College and now with Boston University) to allow people with disabilities to operate the computer with their head movements. It was developed and then marketed commercially. When its commercial startup company failed, the program was taken back by Boston College, improved and now is available as a free download from this ...
Published: 2012 by Boston College , Reviewed: May 23, 2013
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Providing Access to Common Core Language Arts Standards to Students Who Use ...
Written for the Connecticut State Education Resource Center, this report outlines the core curriculum standards for language arts, describes the significance of communication and access to a strong language arts curriculum for students with communication needs, and gives several examples to help educators apply these standards when teaching students who use AAC. The report is short, about 18 pages, and benefits from excellent charts and precise examples of common communication ...
Published: 2012 by Smita Worah, Ph.D. & Janet Zarchen , Reviewed: November 13, 2012
Magic Ear Kids
Magic Ear Kids is a blog by the mother of a child with a mild to moderate hearing loss. Also an aide in special education, she offers a unique perspective on issues related to hearing loss, both that of her daughter and of other children and adults. Her perspective is very down-to-earth, as she deals with day-to-day issues, including battery management, effective advocacy in school and swim class, the depiction ...
Published: 2012 by Joey L. Resciniti , Reviewed: September 26, 2012
Hearing Like Me
Hearing Like Me is a website designed to provide information to individuals who are hard of hearing/hearing impaired, their families, peers and educators. It is created by Phonak, a major manufacturer of hearing devices, and includes information on their equipment. However it also has a lot of excellent and very well organized content under the titles of Living, Raising, Supporting, Learning, The Facts, and Forums. All are available to any ...
Published: 2012 by Phonak , Reviewed: November 28, 2012
Accessibility Guide for Educators
This site, developed by Microsoft, has information useful for educators who want to learn about technology and making classroom technology accessible. There are two classroom accessibility guides that you can download for free. One has information for Windows XP users and the other information for Vista and Windows 7 users. The guides are also available in Spanish. The guide for Vista and Windows 7 has three chapters and a resource ...
Published: 2012 by Microsoft , Reviewed: December 03, 2012
Navigating College
The Navigating College Handbook and the free site at www.navigatingcollege.org are projects of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN). Navigating College is written for students with ASD who are transitioning to college life. Unlike many transition guides and advocacy handouts, Navigating College is written by individuals who have "been there, done that" -- from the first word to the last punctuation mark, and from the first day of college onward ...
Published: 2012 by Autistic Self Advocacy Network , Reviewed: August 13, 2012
Start-to-Finish Online Accessible Library
So much information is going to the ‘Cloud’ including Don Johnston’s Start to Finish books which have previously only been available on CD. This now makes them accessible to those who use Web-enabled mobile devices, iPads or computers. The collection is built on the same principles as the original Start to Finish collection where books are narrated by trained readers and are edited by speech language pathologists. The books are ...
Published: 2012 by Don Johnston, Inc. , Reviewed: September 24, 2012
The Right of Students with Disabilities Who Need Accessible Instructional ...
This information guide for parents, educators and advocates includes the definition of accessible instructional materials and describes how IDEA 2004 and ADA (Section 504 and Title II) reinforce the right of all students with disabilities to access those materials. By explaining the legal supports for accessible instructional materials, this guide helps families, advocates and educators better understand their rights and how to defend those rights if a school does not ...
Published: 2012 by Joanne Karger , Reviewed: June 21, 2012
Texthelp Web Apps
This is the home page of the cloud-based products developed for the TextHelp Suite of webapps. Four products are available for use in browsers on mobile devices or computers. The products work on Mac or Windows operating systems. The products available are Read and Write Webreader, eBook Reader, Dictionary App, and a Speech App. Read and Write Webreader has a tool bar that interacts with content in your browser providing ...
Published: 2012 by Texthelp , Reviewed: August 13, 2012
Protocol for Accommodations in Reading (PAR)
"PAR provides you with all you need to systematize your procedures for making data-based reading accommodation recommendations for students who are not reading at grade level or have physical disabilities that keep them from utilizing printed texts." PAR is a free, downloadable manual that includes a protocol for collecting data to compare independent reading, reading with a human reader, and reading with a text-to-speech reader to determine what works best ...
Published: 2012 by Denise DeCoste and Linda Bastiani Wilson , Reviewed: May 10, 2012
Welcome to the Office of Disability Services Assistive Technology web resource
The Keene State College Office of Disability Services (ODS) has an extremely well-organized and comprehensive website on assistive technology and transition. The home page defines assistive technology and then provides critical information on preparedness for transition. It emphasizes that the students who negotiate transition successfully tend to be those who are on top of their technology needs and tools before they arrive on campus. It then goes on to offer ...
Published: 2012 by Keene State College , Reviewed: April 25, 2013
Unus Tactus
Unus Tactus is an app available from the Itunes store that is compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation) and iPad. It requires iOS 4.2 or later to work. It was developed to help people with cognitive and motor problems to be able to use a cell phone. It allows users to dial the phone by touching a picture from the ...
Published: 2012 by Ashley Alliano , Reviewed: April 05, 2012