Category Archives: Accessibility

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Goodbye Tar Heel Reader….. and hello Monarch Reader

Sep 4, 20248 Comments

Today was a day with a sad ending – for me and many others. It also has a new beginning – but I will get to that later on…. The sad ending that happened today is that Tar Heel Reader, an incredible resource for many of us who work with beginning readers of all ages,

Tools for Writing 2024 Style: A suggestion and selection guide

Jun 22, 20241 Comment

Learning to write can be really challenging – and teaching it can be really challenging too! When I started implementing Comprehensive Literacy Instruction, it was the area that I struggled most to implement. Some of the students I was working with weren’t able to hold a traditional pen or pencil – and some of them

Personal Voice – creating truly custom voices in iOS17

Sep 24, 2023

Ever since I heard about Personal Voice being added to iOS17, I have been really excited. I couldn’t wait to get hold of it and start using it! It seemed to me that this was a dream come true! And this weekend I finally got to use it. If you haven’t heard about it yet,

Assistive Access – new iOS Accessibility feature that ROCKS!!

Sep 23, 20232 Comments

As many of you will know, iOS17 was released yesterday to coincide with the release of the latest iPhone models. One of the new accessibility features in iOS17 is going to be game changer for me. I am frequently in classrooms working with a number of students. Many of the students I work with have

Communication Access for ALL Students – RICAA 2023

Jun 11, 2023

Communication Access means that “everyone can get their message across, no matter how they communicate.” (SCOPE, Australia) In 1948 the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights recognised communication as a fundamental right and freedom for all of us. Communication Access is an important follow-on from this declaration. By aiming for communication accessibility, we recognise that

Tar Heel Gameplay – accessible video games!

Jun 8, 20164 Comments

I’m very excited to say that there is a new option in the Tar Heel family – Tar Heel Gameplay! Tar Heel Gameplay lets you create a timed switch version of most videos. You can link to a video on YouTube and create a switch, touchscreen, keyboard or mouse accessible version of the video in

Keedogo & Keedogo Plus: Custom Keyboards for the iPad

Oct 26, 20145 Comments

Recently Apple released iOS8 – and once again there were a number of accessibility features added with this update. For a round up of accessibility changes and additions check out the excellent summary from AbleNet – iOS8 Accessibility. One of the new features is the ability for developers to create their own onscreen keyboards for

ISAAC 2014 Handouts

Aug 6, 2014

The ISAAC 2014 Conference in Lisbon was fabulous! Big congratulations to the Conference Co-Chairs, Luis Azevedo, Margarida Nunes da Ponte, Pedro Encarnação and Isabel Amaral. Also a big thanks and congratulations to ISAAC, the organisers and everyone involved, including the amazing volunteers who were such good hosts. For those of you who attended my sessions

Brain Computer Interface at ISAAC 2014

Jul 29, 20142 Comments

Last week I was very fortunate to attend the ISAAC Conference in Portugal. One of the highlights for me was learning more about Brain Computer Interfaces (BCIs) and even getting to try one. Dr Melanie Fried-Oken, who is a really fabulous and practical researcher in the area of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) presented about

How do I use a switch with an iPad? iOS 7 Overview

Sep 29, 201375 Comments

The latest operating system for the iPad/iPhone/iPod touch, iOS 7, has introduced some major changes to the accessibility of these devices. In particular, switch access is now built right into the accessibility options, providing operating system level alternative access to these tablet devices for the first time – and this update is the main purpose