Learning, Cognition, and Development

The REACH Sound-It-Out Phonetic Keyboard is an on-screen keyboard and word prediction program designed for use by individuals with upper extremity, learning, or severe physical disabilities. This program enables the user to type phonetically. This software enables the user to find and type the desired word by selecting the sounds in that word (e.g., the phonemes) rather than the letters in that word. For example, the user points at the “ch” key and it says “ch … chair” on the kid’s phonetic keyboard or “ch” on the adult’s keyboard. Select the “ch” key and the most frequently used words beginning with the “ch” sound are displayed in the word prediction windows. The individual can find out what those words are by pointing at them with the mouse to have them read aloud. Smart Phonemes (similar to AHF’s Smart Keys; see entry) removes those sounds that do not follow an initial “ch” sound for those words in the current phonetic dictionary. Select the “air” sound next, and words beginning with the “chair” sounds are listed. The word “chair” is the first listed and presented with a yellow background to let you know this word is now completed. Homophones are identified by color and brief phrases are added to help the user distinguish among them (e.g., new or knew). Manufacturer: Applied Human Factors Inc
Demonstration: Yes
Loan: Yes

This interactive program introduces and reinforces the vocabulary English Language Learners Ð and all children with limited vocabularies Ð need to know and use every day. Just slide a Smart Talk card onto Smart Talk and it ÒmagicallyÓ recognizes the card and sets the learning in motion! In minutes, students will be practicing and mastering hundreds of words, including home and school words, verbs, opposites, position words, science vocabulary, including the human body and animals, and much more. ItÕs the perfect learning center activity. Just plug in headphones and students can begin working with their personal language tutor. For Pre-K and up.Manufacturer: Educational Resources
Demonstration: Yes
Loan: Yes

A product from Nuance Communications, Inc. is a voice input and voice output program designed for use by individuals with spinal cord injury or upper extremity, vision, or learning disabilities. The program also permits hands-free mouse operation using MouseGrid technology. Users can create, move, edit, and format text by voice command in virtually all Windows applications, including word processors, spreadsheets, web browsers, and more. The program is integrated with Microsoft Word, WordPerfect, Microsoft Outlook, and Lotus Notes, allowing spoken text to appear immediately in a document. Select-and-Say editing permits editing by voice. Corrections can be made by voice or by keyboard, and corrections can be made immediately or delayed to a later time. The program also offers dictation playback, enabling the user to hear what he or she has written before editing. Text-to-speech capability also enables users to have their own documents or other files such as e-mail read aloud. The program supports multiple users and each user “trains” the system as it is being used; the system learns accents, dialects, and individual pronunciations automatically. The program has a 230,000-word vocabulary, with a 30,000-word plus active vocabulary. The vocabulary includes spelling, pronunciation, punctuation, usage, and context recognition information. Manufacturer: Nuance Communications, Inc.
Demonstration: Yes
Loan: limited to inhouse trial

Snap&Read is an accessible toolbar that reads any text on-screen as it floats over any application. The simple one-button interface reads both accessible and inaccessible text aloud from Flash websites, Word docs, PDFs, web-based tests, images, and even dialog boxes. Manufacturer: Don Johnston Incorporated
Demonstration: Yes
Loan: No

Speaking Merriam Webster Dictionary / Thesaurus for anyone challenged by blindness, visual or speech impairments, learning disabilities, or dyslexia. Orientation keys and audible cues for the visually impaired, Adjustable voice speed, Type, save and play back text-to-speech messages, Augmentative speech, Includes AC adaptor, press-on locator dots, carrying case, instructional CD.Manufacturer: Franklin.com
Demonstration: Yes
Loan: Yes

SOLO 6 is a literacy suite of the most popular assistive technology accommodations, including a text reader, graphic organizer talking word processor, and word prediction. It includes the following Read:OutLoud is a text reading-to-learn tool. With Read: Out loud, students can pull information using proven study strategies, record text, PDFs and other e-text material easily and effective.
Co:Writer interprets phonetic and intensive spelling delivering astonishingly accurate word into any writing application, even online.
Write:OutLoud is an easy-to-use word processor that gives immediate speech feedback as students type words, sentences and photographs.
Draft:Builder is an application that helps students through the planning, elaboration and draft writing process in a systematic way.

Manufacturer: http://donjohnston.com/shop/access/solo-literacy-suite/#.VCEHwhYkSSA
Demonstration:
Loan: