Useful sources of FREE information, FREE* Assistive Technology
(*for the most part)

Sources for accessible books:

Bookshare.org - https://www.bookshare.org/

• Thanks to a government grant, students with disabilities can subscribe for free digital books on Bookshare. San Juan BOCES also has an organizational membership that allows teachers to download on behalf of a student.  You can get a sponsor account set up so you can download for students by contacting me (rkellogg@sjboces.org). This is a repository of scanned and proofread book text ready to download and capable of being read by a text reader such as Kurzweil or through one of their free players you can download from their site.  They have access to most text books as well as numerous fiction books.  They are usually plain text but they are increasing their collection of books that include pictures. They also have an iPad/iPhone app available for $20.

Swift -http://www.durangopubliclibrary.org/screens/ill.html

• Get a Public Library card and ask the reference desk to set up Swift services for you.  You can then use the website to locate audio versions of books.  This is a statewide collection and I have always been able to find the book I’m looking for.  If you can’t find a book on the list that you know has an auditory version available, ask the library for help.  They can search nationally to find things.  Be aware, this is not always speedy, plan ahead.

Downloadables - http://www.durangopubliclibrary.org/screens/downloadables.html

• You need a library card to access this free resource through the Public Library. You may also need to make one visit to the library to get set up initially.  This is a great source for digital or audio fiction books that you can download directly to your computer or mp3 player.  They expire after a specified period of time.   These collections are growing fast so keep checking for your book.

                                                            
Textbooks- http://nimas.cast.org/about/resources/accessible_textbooks.html

• This website has a wealth of information regarding accessible text law and tips for tracking down text from textbooks in Braille, audio formats, e-text and large print.  Be aware, not all resources on this website are free.

Learning Ally (formerly Reading for the Blind and Dyslexic – RFB&D)- http://www.learningally.org/

• Offers paid individual memberships for students for $99 a year or school memberships for up to 12 kids that allow you to download 25 books for $400.  Their books are read by human volunteers.  They are audio files only, no text.  Several items can be downloaded for immediate access.  They also provide player software (that is currently free but won’t be for long,) as well as an iPad/iPhone app for $20. 

Free Online Resources:

Spectronics - http://www.spectronicsinoz.com/

• I LOVE spectronics.  This website based out of New Zealand is the first place I go when I am looking for AT information.  They have excellent blogs and device comparisons. They have good current iPad/iPod information.

Bubbl.us - https://bubbl.us/

• This is a free web-based mind mapping software.  It is easy to use and can be shared with others for collaborative projects.

Optical Character Recognition - http://www.free-ocr.com/

• OCR stands for Optical Character Recognition.  OCR software usually comes with any scanner.  This website allows you to upload a file and they will capture text and provide it to you in a format that you can paste into Microsoft Word or other formats.  From there it can be read by any text reading software such as Kurzweil, Write:Outloud or the free ReadPlease software.

ReadPlease- http://www.readplease.com/english/downloads/#rp2003

• This free software reads pasted in text.  The voices are somewhat “computery” making it best for quick reads.

Natural Reader- http://www.naturalreaders.com/download.htm

• The free version is similar to ReadPlease, it can read text files.  Paid versions of this program can convert these files into MP3 sound files.

Text Aloud - http://www.nextup.com/TextAloud/index.html

• There is a free 15 day trial of this program at their website.  It can convert text to speech and also into MP3 files. 

Firefox- http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/

• This free web browser has many great plugin capabilities to support Internet use for kids with disabilities. Some districts may already be using it.  If not, ask your local IT person if it is ok to download to your computer.

Firefox Text to speech Add-ons –

• https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/text-to-voice/
• https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/speechutil/
• https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/foxvox/.

Dictionary Tool Tips-  http://www.rjonna.com/ext/dictionarytip.php

• This Firefox plugin is an online dictionary/encyclopedia for use with Firefox. Click on any word to see it’s definition

Scrapbook - http://amb.vis.ne.jp/mozilla/scrapbook/

• This Firefox plugin captures text, images and sounds from any web page and saves it on your computer. 

InterNote- http://internote.sourceforge.net/

• This Firefox plugin enables you to take notes that look like a sticky note on the computer screen.

Google Docs- http://docs.google.com/

• This is an online word processor that works like Microsoft Word but is a web page. This enables you to use it on any computer without downloading software. Students can collaborate on work and the program will keep a complete revision history by time.  This also supports spread sheets and PowerPoint as well as surveys.

Vendors:

Don Johnston - http://www.donjohnston.com/downloads/topic_dictionaries/ae/stf

• They are the makers of Co:Writer and Write:Outloud.  This link will take you to their download page where you will find a list of topic dictionaries for Co:Writer.  These are mostly dictionaries for books your students might be reading.  Remember, these will only be available on the computer you download them to, the software is not networked (in other words, teach the kids how to do it to save time). Please also remember that our unlimited license allows copies of Co:Writer and Write:Outloud to go home with students.  If you need a disk to make copies of, let me know.

Kurzweil – http://www.kurzweiledu.com/res_teachers.aspx

• This is the scan and read software available at the high schools, junior highs and middle schools.   This link will take you to a page with several useful links for teachers.  Up at the top under support & training there is a link for checking your scanner compatibility with Kurzweil, crucial if you are considering buying a new scanner or dusting off an old one.

Inspiration/Kidspiration - http://www.inspiration.com/edresources/index.cfm

• This is graphic organizer software available in all Durango schools.  Students in Durango can also request a free copy to take home from the 9-R tech department.  This link will take you to a page designed for educators.  It had useful links and a link to a free trial download for those of you that do not have the software.  There is information about a free program that is similar to this in the Free AT Resources portion of this document.

Intellitools – http://aex.intellitools.com/

• For users of Intellitools, this is a link to their activity exchange.  Here you can find thousands of free activities created by teachers around the world to use with your students.  If you do not have an account, you will need sign up for one.  There are a few steps in the process, but it’s not too bad in exchange for all the free activities!

Ablenet - http://store.ablenetinc.com/wiz.asp

• This is a link to Ablenet’s “the Wiz.”  Here you can put in information about the age of your students, an activity theme, skills you would like to work on and Ablenet equipment you have, and the program will generate an activity lesson plan for you!

Claro and Texthelp - www.clarosoftware.com | www.texthelp.com

• These are scan and read programs out of the United Kingdom.  Both of the websites have free trials of their programs which are similar to Kurzweil

Read Please - http://www.readplease.com/

• Read please offers free software (described in the Free AT Resources part of this document) and also has available for purchase ReadPlease Plus and the ReadingBar 2 for Internet Explorer.  ReadPlease it text reading software similar to Write:Outloud or Kurzweil.  ReadingBar 2 reads websites shown in Internet Explorer. 

State Resources:

SWAAAC - http://www.swaaac.com/

• This is the Colorado state assistive technology support agency.  They support all AT teams state wide.  They offer a variety of free and low cost trainings and open labs in Denver and at their Grand Junction site.  You can check their webpage for frequently update training information.  Members of the San Juan BOCES AT team often attend trainings and host SWAAAC sponsored videoconferences, so if you are interested in attending something, let me know, someone else might be going too.  If you miss a training you are interested in, I am often able to check out a video of the training from the SWAAAC loan bank. 

SWAAAC loan bank - http://www.swaaac.com/Catalog/default.asp

• I have to actually check the items out so tell me if you want something and I will do my best to get it.  Remember, these items are used state wide and checked out for a month at a time so the waiting lists can be long for certain items, but it never hurts to ask.

Your Friendly Local AT coordinator

As always, you can contact me any time, any day for anything AT related.  My email is Rkellogg@sjboces.org and my cell is 970.769.0397 I will do my best to help or put you in touch with those who can.

To get AT loan forms, go to: http://www.sjbocs.org/at.htm