Bookshare is for students who find it difficult to process or comprehend printed words, see text in books or on a screen, or physically manage books or reading devices
Eligibility for Bookshare is defined by US copyright law, not education law. As such, IEP’s or 504 Plans are not required for Bookshare membership. To access Bookshare, a professional with appropriate expertise must confirm that an individual has a qualifying condition such as:
Learning or Reading Disabilities such as dyslexia that significantly interfere with decoding words and reading comprehension. For students, a need for reading accommodations or a diagnosed Specific Learning Disability (SLD) could be indicators of this qualifying condition. These students typically are reading below grade level and demonstrate an inadequate response to effective instruction and intervention for reasons other than learning the English language or having significant cognitive or intellectual disabilities.
If your student has one or more of the following reading challenges, they likely qualify for Bookshare:
- Problems with decoding
- Problems with reading comprehension
- Consistent reading and spelling errors
- Poor fluency: Slow or inaccurate reading rate
- Receiving supports through RTI or MTSS
- Other Symptoms of dyslexia
- An evaluation or assessment indicates a need for reading accommodations such as digital or audio books or text to speech.
Visual Impairments such as blindness, low vision, macular degeneration, and other types of vision loss that make it difficult to see words on a page or screen or read without enlarged font, audiobooks, or braille.
Physical Disabilities that make it difficult for students to hold a book, turn pages, move their heads, or physically manage a book or the act of reading a book in the way that someone without such a condition would.
Membership in Learning Ally or the National Library Service (NLS) for the Blind and Print Disabled, or a similar body outside the U.S., also serves as certification of eligibility.
Learn more about who can certify eligibility.