Author Archives: chris.bugaj

Increasing the Readability of a Webpage

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Not all web pages are created equally. Some provide information in a clear and concise manner. Others are cluttered including extensive text, numerous graphics that might or might not add to the understanding of the content, or advertisements that detract from the content. This can be frustrating for any user, but especially so to those who are working on limiting distractions, focusing on goals around decoding and comprehension of text, and people with certain visual impairments.

TextHelp’s Read&Write for Google Chrome extension is available to all LCPS staff and students and has a tool that can help alleviate these issues called Simplify Page. It reduces visual clutter from Chrome web pages, simplifies the text on the page, and has features to make the web page even more visually accessible.

When on a Chrome web page, select the purple puzzle piece icon Read&Write Purple Puzzle Piece on the menu bar to open the Read&Write for Google Chrome toolbar.

Read&Write for Google Chrome Toolbar

Then, select the Simplify Page Simplify Tool tool. A new tab will open showing a simplified version of the page and the available features.

Simplify Page Toolbar

Simplify: The amount of text displayed on the page can be summarized or shortened by selecting the minus (–) icon. If you’ve decreased the text too much, you can select the plus (+) icon.

Discover: This feature underlines key words in purple. When the words are selected, a brief description or graphic appears, similar to a dictionary.

The visual contrast can be modified by changing the text and background color. Choices include Black on White, White on Black, Blue on Yellow, and Yellow on Blue.

The font size and style can be changed, including the Open Dyslexic font.

The spacing between the lines can be also changed to Single, 1.5, or Double.

Check out this video for more information and enjoy exploring this amazing tool!

Using the iOS Notes App to Scan Documents

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Sometimes individuals encounter hard copies of documents, such as a paper-based form, that need to be scanned and converted into a digital format. Some individuals might need or prefer to annotate a digital version of that document.

If the individual has an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch running iOS version 10.0 or late, the iOS Notes app can be used to scan documents. Here’s how:

  1. Open the Notes app
  2. Select the camera icon at the bottom of the screen.
  3. In the menu that appears, select Scan Documents.
  4. Position the document in view and select the white shutter button to scan the document.
  5. You can choose to Retake or Keep Scan. Drag the corners to crop the scan if needed.
  6. If you choose to keep the scan, a prompt will appear saying Ready for next scan. If it’s only a one-page document, select Save. If it has multiple pages, repeat steps 4 and 5 for each page.
  7. You will see thumbnails of your scanned pages at the bottom of the screen. When you have scanned all of the pages, select Save. Then, select Done.
  8. When you look at your Notes, you will see your scanned document, which is automatically saved as a PDF file. You can Send a Copy via email, text message, or AirDrop. Your copy can then be uploaded to Google Drive or Schoology. Another option is to Save to Files, including your iCloud account.

LCPS staff and students have access to TextHelp’s OrbitNote Chrome extension. If your scanned PDF is uploaded to Google Drive or Schoology, you can use OrbitNote to edit the document by adding text, drawings, and more.

Check out the following videos for more information on using the Notes app for scanning, including some advanced features.

Happy scanning!

A K-12 Inclusive Practice Guide from the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE)

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The Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) maintains a website on Inclusive Practices which provides an overview of inclusion along with an K-12 Inclusive Practices Guide available in both Microsoft Word and PDF. This guide provides information on the definition of inclusion, benefits of inclusive practices, the role of the IEP Team, common characteristics of inclusive environments, a quality standards inclusive school self-assessment tool, and much more.

Screenshot of the cover the VDOE K-12 Inclusive Practices Guide

Virginia Department of Education K-12 Inclusive Practices Guide

Indicating Which Words To Model During Shared Reading Experiences

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A strategy to help individuals learn language using augmentative/alternative communication (AAC) is to provide Partner Augmented Input (also known as Aided Language Stimulation). This means the communication partners model language by using the same form of AAC as the student with whom they are communicating. This short video explains the idea. 

When participating in literacy experiences, like reading a book together, it can be difficult to model every word in the story. Focusing the modeling on words which are used most frequently is a way to target meaningful vocabulary. However, for a communication partner who is just learning about AAC, it can still be difficult to know which words to model.

The free webtool UpGoer6 invites users to input text which is then colorized based on how frequently the word is used. Bright green text indicates the word is used frequently. Dark red indicates the word is rarely used. Clicking on a word provides a numerical ranking of how frequently the word is used. Educators can copy and paste the colorized text into adapted books to provide communication partners reading with the student a visual cue of which words are the priority to model. Strategies like these make it easier for someone who is new to modeling on AAC know which words to prioritize when modeling.

Screenshot of the website UpGoer Six with call out pointing to where to type text, where one can select a word to see how frequently it is used, and to model the words in green.

Screenshot of the Up-Goer Six Text Editor

Syllable Markers in Immersive Reader

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Immersive Reader is a literacy support tool from Microsoft. One of its many features is the ability to break words into syllables which can help a user decode, recognize, and pronounce the individual word. This video titled Improving Your Reading With Immersive Reader shows how to activate this feature along with other literacy support options.

Screenshot of words with dots between syllables

Syllable Support in Immersive Reader

Screenshot of Grammar Options in Immersive Reader

Grammar Options in Immersive Reader Including Syllable Support

Symbolized Text Does Not Support Literacy

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Symbols for frequently used words such as like, of, some, and know do not help someone produce a picture in their mind. Look at the examples below. If you covered up the text, could you guess the text below?

symbols for like, of, some, know

When a picture representation of a word is added to a text representation of a word, it tends to add to the complexity of visual information presented in a way that does NOT help an individual learn how to decode, recognize, or comprehend the text. The added image doesn’t actually help students make an association between the printed word and the symbol. A strategy to use instead is to present the text without an added picture. The text itself is the symbol.

Senior at Loudoun Valley High School Creates Videos and Books to Support the Learning of Language Using Augmentative/Alternative Communication

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Ceci Fetterolf was a senior at Loudoun Valley High School during the 2021-2022 school year. For her capstone project she created a series of videos illustrating the multiple meanings of 15 different frequently used words. These videos can be used to help those learning language using augmentative/alternative communication understand how these words are used in everyday interactions. The videos are organized on a virtual poster each linked via a QR code. 

Ceci also authored three online books explaining mathematical concepts using frequently used words. These books can also be used to help any learner explore math concepts using commonly used language. Learn more about her motivation, approach, and what she learned by listening to this audio interview with Ceci and/or reading the transcript of her interview.

Ceci Fetterolf, a senior at Loudoun Valley High School during the 2021-2022 school year, displays a poster featuring QR codes to each of her created videos and books

Ceci Fetterolf, a senior at Loudoun Valley High School during the 2021-2022 school year, displays a poster featuring QR codes to each of her created videos.

Speech to Text Within a Google Slide

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A recent update to Read&Write for Google Chrome has brought with it a new, highly requested feature! The Talk&Type button is a shortcut to activating the Voice Typing feature of Google Docs. Prior to this update, this feature only worked in the Speaker Notes section of a Google Slides presentation. Users needed to turn on the Enable Dictation feature in the Accessibility settings of Chrome to dictate directly into a slide. Now, users can use the Talk&Type button in Read&Write for Google Chrome when using Google Slides to use speech to text, essentially cutting down on navigation and providing a consistent experience between applications. This new feature provides learners with yet another option for how to compose text to show what they know! Watch this short tutorial titled Read&Write in Google Slides Speech to Text Update to see how it works.

Audio Recording and Transcription in Google Keep

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Google Keep is a note taking application available to any student in Loudoun County Public Schools. One way users can take notes using a mobile device is by recording audio. The recorded audio is both saved and transcribed so the user can access the note again in their preferred modality. They can listen to the recorded audio, read the transcribed text, or do both! Watch this video titled Google Keep: Voice Notes and Transcription.

Text Preferences in Immersive Reader

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Immersive Reader is a literacy support tool from Microsoft. One of its many features is the ability to alter text in a variety of ways based on the preferences of the user to customize their experience. The user can increase or decrease the font size, change the font, change the spacing, and change the theme including altering background colors. Anyone can choose the combination that works best for them!

Screenshot of text preferences in Immersive Reader

Text Preferences in Immersive Reader