My Top Choices of Accessibility Tools for the Classroom 

This week, I have searched through numerous tools that can help support learning in many classrooms and many age ranges. Not all students learn the same way at the same speed, and it is important to provide all students with an equal learning experience. The tools below are the ones I believe to be most helpful and easy to use in any classroom situation.

1. Google Docs Voice Typing-This tool allows students to speak instead of typing. Voice typing helps students who struggle with spelling, dyslexia, or whose brains can not process their thoughts fast enough typing but easier with speaking.

2. NaturalRead-A read out loud tool for students who struggle with reading or focusing. This allows the students to hear the words while seeing them, keeping the focus of the students, especially with long stories.

3. Grammarly- This is a good tool for grammar.  Grammarly helps correct spelling and gives suggestions to improve your work. It helps students use proper wordage in their writing and builds confidence for students who are not so great with writing.

 

4. Microsoft Immersive Reader- This is a tool I have never used but am excited about after I took a tutorial on it. This tool lets you adjust how text looks, which I thought was really great for kids who strain to see, because you can change text size and even color.  I also thought it was great for students who can not focus, since you can play around with how the text looks I thought it would grasp attention for those students.

5. Closed Captioned- This can be turned on during many videos, which I explored on YouTube during the rocket launch; it was hard to hear with NASA talking and the astronauts talking, so it was pretty cool to be able to listen and read what I was missing during this experience. This tool would be extremely helpful for students who are hearing impaired.

6. Google Translate- Another favorite tool of mine.  In our school district, we have a lot of students learning to speak English, and since I do not speak other languages, I heavily rely on this tool. This tool makes it so much easier for the students' confidence in learning a new language and for me to keep the students on level as English-speaking students.

7. NVDA- This is another I have never used, but intrigued to use.  This is for the visually impaired. This tool reads everything on the screen out loud, allowing students to use any type of technology available to access learning.

There are so many accessibility tools out there; these were just a few that had grabbed my attention. These tools are not only helpful for equal student learning but also for teachers who need to provide an inclusive learning experience.