News You Can Use

Book: The Jacket
Author: Andrew Clements
Format: PDF: Accessible
Barcode: 50010983

Book: A Whole New Ballgame
Author: Phil Bildner
Format: PDF accessible
Barcode: 50011163

Estimates suggest that 80% of students with learning disabilities receive services for a reading disability. As many as 8 of 10 students with learning disabilities have reading problems so significant that they cannot read and understand grade-level material (Lerner, 2003). One way to help students access grade level material is using Text-to-Speech (TTS).

Low vision affects millions of Americans, including many students attending school. Low vision can impact many areas of a student’s educational experience including reading. There are many ways that students with low vision can access books and be more independent. AIM-VA can help by providing books in large print, audio (text to speech) and digital text.

Research has found that reading just 20 minutes a day exposes children to millions of words a year. Students have a chance to read for 14 days if they take advantage of every day over winter break. At the end of this article you will find a listing of Holiday/Winter books from AIM-VA to help. Also, here are a few ideas that may encourage your students to continue reading over this winter holiday.

As you create or use existing worksheets for your students, you need to think about accessibility. Just because your worksheets are digital it does not mean they are accessible.

Question: What American author of novels for young readers won a Newberry Medal in 1986 for Sarah, Plain and Tall which was later adapted as a TV movie, frequently focuses her stories on the family, and was born in March?

Q: Who dreamed of being a cowgirl, a detective, a spy, an actress or a ballerina but instead became a famous writer and has a birthday in February?

A: Judy Blume, author of Freckles and Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing among others.

Jack London had a very interesting life. He was born in San Francisco on January 12, 1876. He grew up around the docks of San Francisco. He joined a gang of men who illegally caught oysters at night and sold them in the morning. He loved books and read while he practiced his pirate trade.

Henry Winkler is a well-known actor appearing as the Fonz in the series Happy Days, and for his role in films such as Holes and The Waterboy. Winkler is also an award-winning producer and director of children’s programming, as well as an entertainment industry leader committed to children’s welfare.