Talking+Books

=**Talking Books - Assistive, Adaptive, Rehabilitative**=

**Overview**
 Access to digital education materials and assistive technology tools help﻿ to equal the learning field for students with print disabilities. Rediscovering the world of books and gaining increased independence can give learners a new lease of life. Students with reading disabilities and speech delays can achieve more reading confidence and learning independence. Struggling with decoding and reading comprehension skills can be overwhelming for students with English assignments. Reading books provided in schools are often too high a lexical level for children who require assistive technologies. Access to talking book resources will open up life-long learning for these students who might otherwise be left behind.

====**__Book share__** The world’s largest online library for people with print disabilities. It offers more than 40,000 books and periodicals in accessible formats for reading in Braille, large print, or with digital text to speech audio. Books on this site include educational books, textbooks, teacher-recommended reading, pleasure reading and newspapers and periodicals. The digital books and software are free to qualified students and schools serving students with print disabilities in the US. Special Education Teacher and Learning Strategist, Mr Kurtis Broeg said: “Bookshare provides qualified students a new multi-modal reading and learning experience. Required reading assignments in Junior and Senior High School can be long and difficult for average readers. For struggling readers, it can be nearly impossible to have a successful reading experience. Bookshare has transformed my students’ reading experience and has saved me countless hours of searching and locating required books”.==== ====The Bookshare library becomes a bridge to help students with reading and learning disabilities grow to be successful learners because they feel good about reading the same book as their peers. []====

__**Audible.com**__
====Audio books and publications Recorded books allow users to listen to text and are available in a variety of formats, such as audiocassettes, CDs, and MP3 downloads. Special playback units allow users to and search and bookmark pages and chapters. Subscription services offer extensive electronic library collections.====

media type="youtube" key="X_2f4iZLMLA" height="240" width="298"

Audible in the UK...
====[]====

__**PLAY AWAY**__ ====Like Recorded Books’ CDs and cassettes, the Playaway digital audiobook delivers sound that is crisp and flawless. Plus, using a simple keypad, listeners have the ability to adjust voice speed. Bookmarking is automatic. Finally— technology in its simplest, smartest form. An all-in-one product, Playaway is a lightweight, compact, easy-to-use player that comes with one audiobook already downloaded. This can be found as a free library service in the USA. []====
 * Digital Technology**

media type="youtube" key="bwCU7L20Kag" height="225" width="371"

**__Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic__**
====RFB&D provides assistive technology solutions for schools and universities. Our programs, detailed below, ensure textbooks and printed materials are provided in accessible formats for students who cannot effectively read standard print because of visual impairment, dyslexia or other physical disability====

====If a child or young person has a sight problem or dyslexia and finds it difficult to read print they can join. They can also be a member if they can't read because of a physical disability - for example if they can't hold a book or turn pages. [] []====



**__National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS)__**
====Through a national network of cooperating libraries, NLS administers a free library program of braille and audio materials circulated to eligible borrowers in the United States by postage-free mail. []====


 * __NEWSPAPERS__**

__**ClassMate reader**__
==== In many ways the ClassMate reader is similar to a portable media device but with text-to-speech and could help learners with literacy difficulty such as dyslexia. It is portable, lightweight and provides a range of features such as additional memory, **talking books**, large font and colour highlighting. Watch this link on youtube to find out more. [| http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkHEGmLs57Q&feature=PlayList&p=ADBF064031032696&index=7&playnext=2&playnext_from=PL]====

media type="youtube" key="e6d0ghFDgUg" height="229" width="288"

====__**Microsoft Reader**__ is used to view certain eBooks on your computer. An additional piece of software, ‘Microsoft Reader Text-to-Speech Package’ can be downloaded in order to speak your eBooks to you, giving you access to all manner of novels and non-fiction eBooks without the need to read them from the screen.==== Great for people who want to either: read books but can’t turn pages, read books but struggle to see the text, need some support in reading text (e.g. highlighting) [| http://www.oatsoft.org/Software/MicrosoftReader]

====__**Power Reader**__ A dyslexic text reader/learning tool, a graphical, interactive text reader integrated with computer text-to-speech whose level of focus, complexity, and detail is adjustable according to the user's needs. []====

**__Boardmaker boards__**
====**AdaptedLearning.com** is a free web resource from Mayer-Johnson and DynaVox that combines file sharing, powerful search capabilities, implementation articles, open discussion forums, and community functions. Start finding what you need among thousands of __**Boardmaker boards**__ and sharing what you have created to help others. [] Making stories happen!====

**__ Professional Organisations and useful pages __**
====**The International Dyslexia Association (IDA)** is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping individuals with dyslexia, their families and the communities that support them. []====

====**Technology for students who are visually impaired** NCIP is an extensive library that enables students who are blind or visually impaired to achieve their educational goals. []====

**RNIB (Royal National Institute of Blind People) in UK** - supports blind and partially sighted people. Some of the popular links include;

 * ====[|Work for RNIB]====
 * ====[|Talking Books]====
 * ====[|Braille]====
 * ====[|National Library Service]====
 * ====[|Insight Radio]====
 * ====[|Web accessibility]====
 * ====[|Helen Keller]====
 * ====[|Magazines from RNIB]====