During this critical time, Bookshare is eager to do all that we can to support educators, students, and families. We are getting important questions from educators. Here are some answers.
Who can access Bookshare books?
If your student finds it difficult to process or comprehend printed words, see text in books or on a screen, or physically manage books or reading devices, Bookshare may be able to help. This includes students with dyslexia, blindness, and cerebral palsy, and other reading barriers. Learn more about qualifications.
Do students need an IEP to join Bookshare?
No, an IEP is not required to join. Bookshare’s qualifications are determined by copyright law, not educational law. To join Bookshare, an individual must have a qualifying reading barrieras certified by a competent authority. Bookshare members may have an IEP, a 504 plan, or no plan at all.
Can students without reading barriers join Bookshare?
Under current U.S. Copyright Law, Bookshare membership is available only to people with qualifying reading barriers. However, Bookshare is in conversations with legal and educational authorities to identify ways to provide broader access to all students during this crisis. Please stay tuned for updates.
In the meantime, where can students who don’t qualify for Bookshare access ebooks?
Bookshare offers nearly 10,000 public domain books that anyone, including non-members, can read with Bookshare Web Reader and other compatible tools. Learn how to find and read freely available Bookshare books. Check out these hand-curated lists of recommended freely available titles:
- Free Books for All! – 208 fiction and non-fiction titles of varying grade levels
- Free Upskilling Books for All! – 147 how-to books for those who wish to learn a new skill, prepare to go back to school, or switch careers
- Free Children’s Books for All! – 43 books for second graders and younger
Other libraries, publishers, and ebook sources are available during school closures. As we hear of these resources, we’ll add them to this list.