Students with Special Needs

General Information

Services to People with Disibilities - From the American Library Association.
Welcoming Students with Disabilities at Your Library - From WebJunction
Individuals with Disabilities Act - a US Department of Education site supporting the Individuals with Disabilities act.
The Library and Students With Special Needs - How to change your program to meet the needs of special students. From the Pennsylvania School Librarians Association. 1994
Project Enable -" a collaborative project of Syracuse University's School of Information Studies, Center for Digital Literacy, and Burton Blatt Institute, provides high quality, comprehensive, train-the-trainer continuing education program for school librarians nationwide in ways to create and deliver effective library and information services to students with disabilities."
The Council for Exceptional Children

Adaptive Library Facilities

Universal Access: Making Library Resources Accessible to People with Disabilities - A handy checklist which may be used to see how accessible your library is.
Disability Accessibility in the School Library - A good guide to making your library accessible from the NoSweat Librarian.

Hearing Disabled and Visually Disabled Students

The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped - A service of the Library of Congress. There are book reviews, book lists of Braille books, and many other fact sheets, bibliographies, and circulars.
Elementary School Classrooms and Low Vision - Classroom design information from the Perkins School for the Blind. December 16, 2020.
Bookshare - Books for students with print disabilities. This service is free for schools.
The Described and Captioned Media Program - Check this out for media programs. There is a free subscription. It is funded by the Department of Education and the National Association of the Deaf.
The National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled - Here you may find a link to your local service for talking books.
The American Foundation for the Blind

Students with Autism

Unlocking Potential, Innovative Library Programs Enhancing the Lives of Autistic Individuals. - an article by Kelly Davis, Feb. 19, 2024.
Libraries and Autism: We're Connected - Helpful resources and web links.
The Austism Ready Libraries Toolkit - Useful information for working with autistic young people. This is from Web Junction.
Confident but Lacking Support: School Librarians and Students with Autism - This is a paper by Amelia Anderson and Selena Layden, Oct. 27, 2021. This study deals with preparation of school librarians to work with autistic students.
Make the Library More Accessible to Autistic/Learning Disabled Kids - This is an article by Meghan Ashburn, a mother whose autistic son didn't take a book out of the school library all year. It also includes links to several relevant books. December 2, 2020.
100-ish Books on Autism and Neurodiversity - This list is from Not an Autism Mom, July 20, 2020. There are books for educator and students
Thirty Activities, Strategies and Resources for Teaching Children with Autism
Implementing Programs for Children Spectrum Disorder - Suggestions from Public Libraries Online which will be helpful in school libraries, also.
Storytime for the Spectrum - Story time for children with autism. This is an article by Megan Cottrell in American Libraries, March, 2016.
Storytimes for Autistic Children - Kierra Parrott, August, 2008.
Parent Tips for Going to the Library - This is for parents planning a trip to the public library with their autistic child. It is from Pathfinders for Autism.
Autism Spectrum Disorder - Lots of information from the CDC.

Neurological Disorders

Dysgraphia - A neurological disorder which affects handwriting and fine motor skills.

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This site is maintained by Linda Bertland, retired school librarian, Philadelphia, PA. Please address any comments, additions, or corrections to info@sldirectory.com.