Read: OutLoud Universal Access software program by Don Johnston is being provided to school divisions to support all students with IEP's. Read:OutLoud is a digital text reader that supports reading and reading comprehension. The whole-school license will enable school divisions the greatest amount of flexibility in providing reading related accommodations to students at school and at home.
The following are training materials and tutorials that can be used for training purposes.
Read: OutLoud Training script
ReadOutLoud Training Script.doc
Read: OutLoud Quick Start Guide
ReadOutLoud QuickCard.pdfRead: OutLoud Tutorial Checklist
Sample textbook file in a pdf format from Don Johnston
Research related to Read: OutLoud and SOLO
Research related to using text to speech
On-line training videos for Read: OutLoud
What are some ideas for training students to effectively use Read: OutLoud?
- Set up a webquest (or several) to introduce the program and its features
- Schedule time for students to "play" with the program and familiarize themselves with it prior to using it for an assignment
- Make sure that lots of reinforcement and follow-up are provided!
What are some ideas for supporting families as they help students to use Read: OutLoud at home?
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Provide them with information about the kinds of files with which Read: OutLoud will work
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Send home files that are Read: OutLoud compatible (e.g., .rtf instead of .doc)
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Provide the "how-to" training guide (see link above)
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Inform them of the minimum requirements for Read: OutLoud to run on a computer (audio, operating system, etc.)
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Link them to the free training videos (see link above)