Kildare Social Inclusion Week is coming to a close now, but don’t forget that your local library has plenty of helpful resources available all year round which help make reading more accessible for all. Keep reading to find out more!
You can also learn more about Kildare Social Inclusion Week by clicking here.
Easy Reads/Barrington Stoke
These books are super-readable, dyslexia-friendly fiction to help everyone become a reader. They publish books for children, young people and adults. The books are specially designed to be accessible for anyone who struggles with reading.
The shorter stories are more manageable if you get distracted or tire easily. The unique, dyslexia-friendly font was designed by specialists to encourage a smooth and easier read. The chapters are short. The books have an accessible layout and spacing to stop the page from becoming overcrowded. Paper is off-white or tinted and heavier to help reduce visual stress.
Great stories for everyone!
Clarity Large Print Books
These large print books are novels suitable for adults with visual impairment. They are also designed to be super-readable for adults with dyslexia. They published a range of books including contemporary fiction, classics and crime fiction. They use a dyslexia-friendly font. The books have an accessible layout and spacing so the pages are not overcrowded. The paper is off-white to help reduce visual stress.
Excellent books to choose from!
The Fact Factory Magazine
The Fact Factory magazine is an accessible and inclusive STEM Magazine series for children aged 7+. It is suitable for children with print disabilities, young gifted & talented readers, English-language learners and reluctant readers.
The magazine is an audio and print magazine. Children can use the G-Talk 3 pen to unlock audio files embedded on every page. Children can read and listen! It is designed, written and recorded with the needs of developing readers in mind. The Fact Factory magazine delivers an engaging mix of fun facts to cater for all interests and reading levels.
There are also some activity packs available for some of the magazines here.
Reader Pens
The reader pens are available to borrow or use in the library. The reader pens read words and full lines of text aloud which promotes reading independence. They have a built-in dictionary, along with a built-in speaker and an earphone jack. They are rechargeable and easy to use.
The reader pens help with reading, pronunciation and language learning. They are helpful for anyone with dyslexia and are also suitable for people with visual impairment.
Adult Literacy Materials
Our adult literacy aids are a range of books designed for adult learners. We offer a wide range of books that cater to various reading levels and interests. They are suitable for adults with lower literacy levels and for ESOL learners. Publishers in this collection include books by:
Gatehouse Books – designed for new readers. A collection of reading books developed for literacy in teenagers and adults
Quick Reads – a series of short books by bestselling authors and celebrities. With no more than 128 pages, they are designed to encourage adults who do not read often, or find reading difficult, to discover the joy of books.
The Open Door series published by New Island – an adult literacy series of novellas by well-known Irish authors available in English and some in Irish.
Penguin Graded ELT Readers – the best contemporary fiction, essential non-fiction and popular classics.
Pearson English Readers – cover fiction and non-fiction topics to motivate and inspire teenage and adult learners.
Cambridge English Readers – an award-winning series of original fiction readers for adult learners, offering exciting reading from Starter to Advanced levels.
Barrington Stoke publishes super-readable, dyslexia-friendly fiction and non-fiction for young adults. They are also suitable for adults with dyslexia and adult learners. The books are printed on cream paper to reduce glare and language-edited to increase readability.
Audiobooks
Why listen to audiobooks? Is listening to a book the same as reading it? Absolutely, YES.
The benefits of audiobooks:
- Audiobooks are great for students with learning difficulties, struggling readers or non-readers.
- They are really accessible, suitable for those with visual impairments, dyslexia or other conditions.
- They can enhance your engagement with the story when narrated by skilled voice actors.
- The auditory dimension can add layers of emotion, tone, and emphasis that text alone can’t convey.
- For those who like to multi-task, audiobooks allow you to get on with manual tasks while you listen.
- Audiobooks improve memory retention for some people.
- Audiobooks can be an helpful tool for children’s linguistic and cognitive development. The combination of hearing vocabulary while simultaneously engaging the imagination helps children to acquire new words, understand syntax, and develop critical thinking skills.
- They are a great way to practice language skills. Listening to books in the language you are learning can improve comprehension, enhance vocabulary, and provide valuable exposure to different accents and dialects.
- Time away from a screen!
The library service has three different types of audiobooks available:
- E-audiobooks (digital audiobooks) which we will talk about as part of Borrowbox
- CD audiobooks
- Playaway (MP3 player) audiobooks
Playaways are individual MP3 players which have only one book on them. They are great if you want time away from a screen or you want your child to have time away from a screen. They are lightweight so great for a walk. They only need earphones and AA batteries, so you don’t need to remember to recharge them. They are really simple to use. We have a great selection of children’s books as well as adult titles available on Playaway.
CD Audiobooks – If you are old school and still have a CD player at home or in your car, CD audiobooks are a great option. We have a great selection of fiction and non-fiction available on CD.Â
Borrowbox
BorrowBox is an app for tablets and smartphones which allows borrowing of digital and audiobooks from your local library. In BorrowBox, you are able to change the font size, zoom, navigate the website using just a keyboard, navigate the website using speech recognition software, and navigate the website using a screen reader (including the most recent versions of JAWS, NVDA and VoiceOver).
BorrowBox utilises the built-in screen reader to provide meaningful auditory descriptions of each on-screen element. This also includes an optimised eBook experience for the visually impaired. The e-book option includes themes to change the background including paper and sepia. There are multiple font options including a dyslexia-friendly font. You can change the font size, text alignment, page margins and the line spacing. The e-audiobook has playback-speed options so you can enjoy eAudiobooks at your own pace.
Language learning materials
All our libraries have a selection of language learning materials available in the libraries including grammar books, CD audio language sets and dictionaries.
Transparent Language Online offers language learning materials in 100+ languages, including English as a Second Language (ESL). Transparent Language Online is available in the web browser or in a mobile app on any Internet-connected device – computer, tablet, or phone.
If your local library doesn’t physically have an item that you are looking for, you can request it to be delivered to your local library.
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