Many students benefit from having digital content read aloud. Whether it is an IEP accommodation or just a tool for students on the go, there are a variety of ways students can access text in an auditory format.
Office 365: Microsoft Immersive Reader
Support reading and writing by using Immersive Reader to customize how word documents appear while you read and edit. Immersive Reader provides options for a comfortable and easy to process experience by allowing you to listen to the text read aloud or adjust how text appears by modifying spacing, color and more. Immersive Reader is built into the Microsoft Office 365 Product Suite and available when using the following products: Microsoft Edge, Outlook, Canvas, Nearpod, Flipgrid, Forms, OneNote, Word Online, Powerpoint Online, Office Lens, OneNote, Sharepoint, Teams, and Whiteboard.
Learn more about the Microsoft Immersive Reader Product Suite.
Microsoft Edge: Have the web read aloud to you
Read Aloud is a simple but powerful tool that reads the text of a web page audibly when using the Microsoft Edge internet browser. With your web page open, select and hold (right-click) anywhere on the page and choose Read Aloud .
A ribbon toolbar will appear at the top of the page. The toolbar includes buttons to play audio, skip to the next or previous paragraph, and adjust voice options. Voice options allow you to change the reader’s voice and slow down or speed up their reading pace.
The keyboard shortcut CTRL + SHIFT + U will also open Read Aloud.
Learn more about Read Aloud in Microsoft Edge.
Microsoft Word
To begin, open your Word document. Select the View tab, then select Immersive Reader. Immersive Reader will launch a full screen experience.
Choose the Read Aloud option.
To adjust the controls, select the Settings icon, then drag the Reading speed control to adjust reading speed. Move to the right to increase speed and to the left to decrease it. Press Play to hear the different speeds. Use the Voice Selection dropdown menu to choose different voices for the reader. Select a voice and then press Play to hear it. Select X to close Read Aloud.
Learn more about Using Immersive Reader in Word.
Read & Write by TextHelp
Read & Write is our new Assistive Technology program. Read & Write is available as an extension on all student laptops. The full toolbar is only available to students through IEP or 504 licensing, however the read aloud options are available to all students for any digitally based content.
There are two Read Aloud options available:
To customize the settings, click the three dots on the right-hand side of the taskbar. This allows you to hide icons that are not being used, change the voice, and change the speed of the read aloud.
For additional information about the Read and Write toolbar, click here.
To download the free teacher version of Read and Write, click here.
Kami
Kami is an all-in-one digital classroom experience that allows educators to transform static documents, PDFs, images, or other learning resources into an interactive experience. When a student opens a document with Kami, there are a variety of accessibility tools at their fingertips, including read aloud options, or text to speech.
Kami’s read aloud tools are able to read PDFs, images, and other uploaded documents that are otherwise inaccessible with screen readers.
Chrome Read Aloud
Chrome Read Aloud is another read aloud tool available as an internet extension. To activate Chrome Read Aloud, click on the puzzle piece to show the drop down list of extensions. Click on the icon that looks like an eye. The extension will now be pinned to your internet browser task bar. When clicked on, Chrome Read Aloud will begin reading from the top of the page.
Chrome Read Aloud can also be used to read aloud highlighted text through a select to speak option. Simply highlight the text you want read aloud, and right click. The Chrome Read Aloud option will pop up in the menu as an option. Select Chrome Read Aloud and listen to the highlighted content.
Most students and teachers will utilize a combination of read aloud tools depending on which educational platform or software is being utilized in the classroom. Still not sure which one is right for you? Please don’t hesitate to reach out. Let’s chat!