Group items tagged

People with learning disabilities (LD) are at the top of every field—and literature is no exception. Many of our favorite authors have overcome the adversity of LD to write books that entertain and inspire us. If you want to find out more about writers with LD or if you just want to find a quality summer read for yourself or your child, check out these books.

MISSOULA - A new software at the University of Montana and affiliated campuses will make a big difference for students with learning disabilities this spring. The Read and Write Gold software will allow students and employees to have whatever is on the computer screen read to them out loud. The Disability Services for Students department originally wanted it for students with learning disabilities and barriers to print - but found it all UM students could benefit from the program.

Click here to read the article (PDF) The FFA motto is simple but challenging: Learning to Do, Doing to Learn, Earning to Live, Living to Serve. More than a half million agricultural education students in nearly 7,500 FFA chapters across the U.S. and its territories have accepted the challenge to live out that motto. This article showcases a few examples of how AgrAbility interfaces with FFA, how FFA provides bridges to new levels of learning for rural youth with and without disabilities, and how some chapters are serving people with disabilities in their communities.

On Thursday, February 17, 2011, USICD Executive Director David Morrissey joined Judith Heumann, Special Advisor for International Disability Rights for the U.S. State Department a "Conversation with America," on International Disability Rights.  The discussion was moderated by Cheryl Benton, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Public Affairs and streamed live on DipNote, the Department of State's official blog.  You can view video of the discussion at: http://www.state.gov/video/?videoid=795316932001 And read a transcript of the conversation at: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/plrmo/cwa/156916.htm

Please take part in the IDEA National Survey, a survey of whether the rights of students with disabilities and their parents are protected.  The IDEA National Survey Project is sponsored by the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD), National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS), Autism Society of America (ASA), Autism National Committee (AutCom), and The Advocacy Institute (AI). The survey is at http://www.ideasurvey.org The survey looks at whether parents are treated as equal partners in their children’s education. Topics include whether the rights of students with disabilities and their parents protected throughout the special education process, including IEP meetings and IEP issues, eligibility (Child Find), Due Process hearings (impartial hearings), and other education issues.  All members of the community are welcome: parents; attorneys, advocates, other professionals; and self-advocates (people with disabilities).  We also welcome all disabilities, not just those our organizations focus on.  You can take the survey and read more about it at http://www.ideasurvey.org The survey will run March-May 2011.  The results will be compiled into a report about experiences under the IDEA that will be published this summer.   For more information, contact Jessica Butler, Coordinator, IDEA National Survey Project, at jessica@jnba.net

The report, commissioned by the Campaign for Grade-Level Reading and the Emily Hall Tremaine Foundation, offers a number of recommendations for policymakers and educators. They include: high expectations for all learners with accountability measures that indicate how individual students are doing; early-childhood programs that prepare children for reading and identify young children at risk of having reading problems; curricula, instructional practices and tools, and assessments that are science-based and accessible to all students; and teacher training and ongoing professional development that incorporate findings from neuroscience as well as best practices for how to teach reading.

Click here to download the The Learning Options’ Spring Newsletter (PDF) What: The Seminar introduces findings of recent research about and effective methods available to correct learning disabilities involving reading, writing, math and attention focus skills.  Pre-registration is required and can be made by calling Learning Options at 406-282-7416 or emailing elsie@thelearningoptions.com. Seminars are free of charge (Pre-registration is required). Seminar Dates: Bozeman Public Library Tuesday, May 3, 2011 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. Great Falls Public Library Tuesday, May 10, 2011 12–2 pm and 6:00—8:00 p.m. The Summit in Kalispell Thursday, May 19, 2011 1– 3 pm and 6:30—8:30 p.m. For more info or to register: Email elsie@thelearningoptions.com or call 406-282-7416.

The use of optical character recognition (OCR) systems combined with speech synthesis (computer-generated speech) has become increasingly accepted as a means of compensating for reading disabilities. These OCR systems, or reading machines, convert printed text to spoken language so the user can hear and see written words. These technologies are now marketed internationally (for example, WYNN®, Kurzweil 3000®), commonly found in assistive technology centers serving individuals with learning disabilities, frequently exhibited at LD conferences, generally considered in assistive technology evaluations for students with LD, and regularly discussed in publications on LD and assistive technology.

Bookshare has announced that it is launching two new additions to its product line, the Bookshare Web Reader and Bookshelf, as part of its continuing effort to help kids with print disabilities connect with books. The company made the announcement at the 2013 Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA) conference this week. Bookshare Web Reader allows readers to directly open books with a browser without requiring them to download the book or utilize separate software, while Bookshelf allows readers (or their teachers) to organize selections by any system they choose.

“Nobody Is Too ‘Anything’ to Read, Write or Communicate” The late news broadcaster Walter Cronkite catalogued the ills of the world every night for television viewers. But through the cataract of daily despair he always glimpsed a reason to hope, to be joyful about the possibilities of the moment and beyond. For the tens of millions of viewers who watched his coverage of the first lunar landing 40 years ago that enthusiasm reached out from their TV sets, when, at the moment of human touchdown on the surface of the moon, Cronkite shed his cloak of objectivity and exuberantly exclaimed, “Oh, boy!”

Despite the many daily challenges that confront them in their sphere, members of school district assistive technology teams nationwide share Cronkite’s enthusiasm for the vast potential of technology to change the lives of individuals with disabilities. Sure, the struggles AT team members face are daunting: lack of time and money; too many pre-service and in-service teachers without sufficient AT training; funding-strapped districts that are sometimes reluctant to approve teams’ AT recommendations for individual students; the reluctance of some districts to accept AT’s viability, and a continuing belief in a few education quarters that some children with disabilities may never learn to read and write. Fortunately, among district AT team members – speech-language pathologists (SLP’s), occupational therapists (OT’s) and others – the technology flame burns brighter than ever. Their enthusiasm still bubbles. Their thirst for information about the latest technology developments that may aid their district’s children is unquenched. And their conviction that no child is too disabled to read or write remains not only ironclad but often translates into a hard-won happy reality for the children with whom they work.

A limited budget doesn’t have to stop you or your child from getting some of the best assistive technology available to help people with LD. These free resources will help you stretch your dollar while getting geared up for the new school year. Better yet, some of them may already be in your pocket—we’ve included features built into common devices like the iPhone and iPad that can be helpful for people who struggle with reading, math, organization and more.

Assistive technology (AT) is available to help individuals with many types of disabilities — from cognitive problems to physical impairment. This article will focus specifically on AT for individuals with learning disabilities (LD).

Date: January 18, 2011, Tuesday Time: 7:00 – 9:00 pm Description: Dyslexia and Other Learning Differences Deciphered Event Type: Public Lecture Presenter: Elsie Johnson Location: Bozeman, MT Sponsor: Learning Options LLC Email:  elsie@thelearningoptions.com Contact: Elsie Johnson Telephone: 406-282-7416 Website: www.thelearningoptions.com Additional Information:  A free seminar entitled:  Dyslexia and Other Learning Differences Deciphered will be held at the Bozeman Public Library, 626 East Main Street in the small conference room on Tuesday, the 11th of January 2011 from 7:00 – 9:00 pm. This seminar will introduce the finding of recent research on learning, and effective methods available to correct learning disabilities involving reading, writing, math, and attention focus skills.  This seminar is intended for parents of learning disabled children, adults who currently or in the past  struggle with learning differences, or anyone who wants to better understand the root cause of learning disabilities. Pre-registration required. Call or email to reserve seating and materials.

New gadgets and mobile apps introduced in the past few years are making reading, writing and math more accessible to students with learning disabilities.