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“We found that when creating a story or just responding to pictures, the parent used many words and complex sentence structures while engaging with their child. That level of engagement wasn’t as present when reading books with text,” said Gillam. “These results fall in line with the generally accepted belief that less structured activities, such as playing with toys or creating things with Play-Doh, elicit more productive language interactions between parent and child. These findings in no way diminish the importance of reading printed books, but incorporating interactions with wordless books is a way to build a more solid literacy foundation in children with developmental disabilities.”

Students with learning disabilities (LD) may struggle with schoolwork in many different areas. While most are likely to have trouble with reading, others may have issues with math, memory, organization, or writing. Assistive technology (AT) can be a great way to minimize the extent to which they need to ask for help and to enable them to be more independent learners. Assistive technology (sometimes referred to as "adaptive technology") is a general term that describes the types of tools and devices that assist people to achieve greater independence. For individuals with LD, assistive technology can include such things as scanners and screen reading software, voice recognition software, calculators, highlighting and note-taking programs, electronic/digital organizers, and much more.

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - A CBS News Correspondent opened up to NewsChannel 5 about what he calls his shameful secret. Byron Pitts, correspondent for CBS's "60 Minutes" has interviewed the past 6 presidents, dodged bullets in Afghanistan, and brought home dozens of journalism awards in his 30 years of reporting. But on Sunday, he was in Murfreesboro for a conference about literacy and reading. Pitts was standing as an unlikely poster child of illiteracy. "Nothing about where I come from suggests I should be doing what I am doing right now," said Pitts. For the first 12 years of his life, Pitts admitted he couldn't read.

There are many ways teachers can help children with learning and attention issues succeed in school. Here are some common accommodations and modifications to discuss with the school as possible options for your child.

There are many ways teachers can help children with learning and attention issues succeed in school. Here are some common accommodations and modifications to discuss with the school as possible options for your child.

We’re pleased to share this video blog from Friends of Quinn, an online community that offers resources and support for young adults with LD and the people who love them. This video features Connor, a young web development manager in Colorado who was diagnosed with dyslexia in elementary school. Connor, along with his parents, share how dyslexia affected his ability to read and write as a young child. Despite his challenges, Connor has always worked hard and learned how to cope with his learning disability eventually finding success as a young adult. Watch his inspiring story below.

It seems impossible to many people that a person who is blind can use an iPhone, that a person with a significant physical disability can drive himself to work, or that a person who can’t read can go to college. Impossible, until they see it done. Throughout the years, I’ve spoken with people who are unsure that their child/student/client could achieve a life goal, even with the support of assistive technology (AT). They might think that AT is just for people with physical disabilities or those who are good with computers or for anybody else but themselves.

Brown, 44, of Billings, is a paraplegic, substitute teacher and example for disabled people in the workforce. On this Tuesday, he’s headed to class to read to students about dragonflies and metamorphosis.

When I heard that Steve Jobs had passed away, I was boarding a train from New York to Philadelphia to visit my son. A friend phoned and then text-messaged me the news before I could read it on Twitter. It felt, I said later, as if someone had torn the hair out of my head. When I did tweet, the first semi-coherent thought I was able to write about Jobs was also about my son: I’m on my way to PHL to see my son, who uses a device Steve Jobs invented to help him talk. He will never know. He will never know.

Using data from state reading and mathematics tests, this report takes an in-depth look at the performance of students with disabilities and highlights the problems with the testing data for these students.

Test scores on state assessments for students with disabilities have increased in recent years, according to a new study released today. The Washington-based Center on Education Policy examined state mathematics and reading test results from the 2005-06 school year to the 2007-08 school year. Those state tests are used to determine whether schools and school districts are making adequate yearly progress under the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

What are manners? Years ago, I read a meaningful definition which described manners as “making another person comfortable.” Most of us probably try hard to have good manners, but many of us lose the art of manners when it comes to people with disabilities. While I was presenting the “History of Disabilities” at Idaho Partners in Policymaking, Howard (who is fifty-something) said he wanted to share how individuals had been treated and talked about in the past, based on their disability diagnoses.

Webinar - All About Apps for Education: Just the Apps and Nothing but the Apps Thursday, May 5, 2011, 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Mountain – Web-Based Training, register Discover the wonderful world of apps for education. This webinar will help you navigate and maximize your use of the iPod/iPad. The presenters will take you on an app adventure and share a variety of apps in such categories as early childhood, literacy, autism, communication, organization, and more. Funding for this webinar is made possible by a grant from the Minnesota Department of Education. The source of funding is from federal award, Grants to States-Special Education CFDA 84.027, P.L. 108-446 Individuals With Disabilities Education Act. Basic Vocabulary Organization in PRC Devices Monday, May 16, 2011, 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Mountain – PACER Center, Bloomington, MN, register This free workshop is for parents and professionals to learn more about Unity vocabulary organization included in all Prentke Romich Company PRC Communication or AAC Devices.  Participants will be introduced to the vocabulary options available.  This workshop will be held in the PACER computer lab where participants can bring their own device or use computer emulation software (Vantage Lite PASS software version 5.02).  The training will include hands-on experience to become familiar with how Unity supports creation of spontaneous novel communication, and to teach basic device operations such as customizing messages, changing icons, hiding keys, and backing up the device. The presenter is PRC Regional Consultant Helen Canfield.  The workshop is limited to 20 participants. Classroom Suite Version 4 Foundations Wednesday, May 18, 7:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mountain - PACER Center, register This workshop is designed for educators, SLPs, OTs, AT specialists, paraprofessionals and parents who are new to (or have limited experience with) Classroom Suite V.4. The goal of the Foundation Workshop for Classroom Suite V.4 is to enable educators to use Classroom Suite to teach early concepts, reading, writing, and math to students struggling because of learning difficulties or access issues. This workshop is sponsored by Cambium Learning Technologies. Registration fee $225. Kurzweil 3000 Version 11 Foundations Thursday, May 19, 7:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mountain - PACER Center, register This workshop is designed for educators, SLPs, OTs, AT specialists, paraprofessionals and parents who support students with learning disabilities and are new to (or have limited experience with) Kurzweil 3000. This workshop is sponsored by Cambium Learning Technologies. Registration fee $225.00. Putting LAMP (Language Acquisition through Motor Planning) to Work: AAC Strategies to Promote Communication Friday, May 20, 2011, 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Mountain – PACER Center, Bloomington, MN, register Language Acquisition through Motor Planning (LAMP) is a therapeutic approach based on neurological and motor learning principles.  The goal is to give individuals who are nonverbal or have limited verbal abilities or speech a method to independently and spontaneously express themselves.  This workshop is for parents, professionals, and SLPs and will give an overview of the LAMP treatment approach, discussion of the components of LAMP and how and why children with autism would benefit from using a voice output AAC device, and discussion of features that are beneficial for teaching language to children with autism and other disabilities.  Lunch will not be provided.  A one hour lunch break will be taken and maps to area restaurants will be provided.  This free workshop will offer 0.5 ASHA CEUs.

Click here to download flyer (PDF)What:Language Essentials for Teachers of Reading and Spelling (LETRS) for Early Childhood Educators is a supplemental LETRS module based on a growing body of research that says the more children know about language and literacy before they begin formal schooling, the better equipped they are to succeed in reading. This two session presentation describes the scope and sequence of the module, helping preschool and kindergarten teachers to deepen their understanding of early literacy and enhance their strategies to help young children develop the foundation skills needed for learning to read and write.$75.00 Registration Fee - includes copy of LETRS for Early Childhood Educators (non-refundable payable to: Montana Center on Disabilities).You can register online here!When:Registration is from 8:00 am to 8:30 am January 13, 2012 and March 2, 20128:30 AM - 4:00 PMWhere:MSU-Billings College of Education Building Room 122Billings, MT1500 University DriveContact:Debra Miller Email: dmiler@msubillings.eduPhone: 406-657-2072

Resources in Spanish to Support Early Literacy Skills at Home! Get Ready to Read! now has new resources to assist Spanish-speaking parents in helping their children build skills before kindergarten. Our Spanish Resources (Recursos en Español) are designed to help parents and families talk with teachers and day care providers about questions they have about their child’s development. Visit the new Get Ready to Read! Recursos en Español today!

Get Ready to Read! is designed to support educators, parents, and young children in the development of early literacy skills in the years before kindergarten. Intended for use with all children, the resources and information provided on this site promote skill-building, communication between adults, and ways to address concerns.

What does a parent do when she suspects her child has learning difficulties? How can she advocate for her child when everyone keeps telling her that her child will "just" grow out of it, that he'll learn to read when he's ready? In this article, a mother tells her story about her struggle for success-and how she found the resources to identify her son's reading difficulties, as well as the supports he needed to succeed.

My sixteen-year-old son Haley recently came into my office and announced that he’d finished a six-hundred-page manuscript. I suppose that would be unusual coming from any sixteen-year-old, but given my son’s background, it’s especially stunning. Haley is ADHD and dyslexic. At seven, he hated school. He would hide under the dining room table to avoid reading or doing his homework. My novels about Percy Jackson began as bedtime stories for him – a father’s desperate attempt to keep his son interested in reading. That’s also why I made Percy Jackson ADHD and dyslexic, and made those two conditions indicators of Olympian blood.

When a federal judge this week threw out a copyright infringement lawsuit against universities working on a project with Google to digitize millions of books, he unleashed Google's plans and opened the door to the distribution of these books to people who are blind or have other print disabilities. The National Federation of the Blind on Thursday applauded the ruling, saying it will give blind students and scholars fresh access to the 10 million books placed in the digital library created by Cornell University, Indiana University, University of California, University of Michigan, and the University of Wisconsin.

Founded in 1948 as Recording for the Blind, Learning Ally serves more than 300,000 K-12, college and graduate students, veterans and lifelong learners – all of whom cannot read standard print due to blindness, visual impairment, dyslexia, or other learning disabilities. Learning Ally’s collection of more than 70,000 digitally recorded textbooks and literature titles – downloadable and accessible on mainstream as well as specialized assistive technology devices – is the largest of its kind in the world. More than 6,000 volunteers across the U.S. help to record and process the educational materials, which students rely on to achieve academic and professional success. 

TRENTON - Not everyone gets a state senator to write their excuse for missing school. But Sen. Jeff Van Drew, D-Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic, was happy to accommodate Samantha Ravelli, of Ocean City, and her sister, Roseann, on Thursday when the two missed school to attend a Senate session during which Van Drew's bill to form a statewide Reading Disabilities Task Force was unanimously approved.