Updates and Resources

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Today is Global Accessibility Awareness Day, and as someone who loves everything related to accessibility and digital inclusion, I have had an incredible time participating in different events and talking about how I use assistive technology in my day-to-day life. If you told me ten years ago that I would be excited to talk about my visual impairment and how I accomplish different things though, I wouldn’t have believed you at all.  

https://veroniiiica.com/2020/05/21/tips-for-improving-confidence-about-using-assistive-technology/

Audio Description Project Updates

This week's newly added audio-described content includes additions to Netflix, Hulu, and our list of TV series with audio description. Visit our Audio Description Project page at http://acb.org/adp to access our master list of audio-described entertainment.

Camp Abilities Florida is going virtual for the 2020 season! Please sign up and join us for virtual workout sessions with visually impaired athletes, Q&As with Paralympic athletes, a talent show, dance party and more in the works. Virtual live sessions will be held July 10th-14th. Campers must be ages 6-18 during the camp window. Schedule will be announced ASAP. Click the button below to register for Virtual Camp Abilities! 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd54QF2ynadI7jHEDUCIV4ovuxtj1h0-4T3HYTgUOpelcQrIg/viewform

BELL Academy will be free to all participants this year.  NFB is providing all materials needed. They will be shipped to participants homes prior to their chosen session. Kids will still have time with a licensed TVI every day and they will meet with their peers via zoom. They will also have access to the Florida BELL team daily.

This link to register is below.

If you or any parents you share this information with have any questions please feel free to call Kimberly Banks at 404-259-2651. 

https://www.nfb.org/form/nfb-bell-academy-home-edition

The inaugural Virtual ExCEL Camp will be held from mid-June through mid-August and will include a live hour at 2:00 ET, on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and is free to all registrants. The target audience will continue to be for students. Also included are five at-home extension activities for the camp theme. Virtual ExCEL Camp will be separated by age/grade groups. Because students are not always able to attend during the scheduled hour, the sessions will be recorded. Please register your students with their needs and levels in mind. Students will receive a camp shirt and other APH goodies.
Parents, please register your student for the weeks that match their needs.

https://www.aph.org/join-virtual-lessons-for-at-home-education/

Project InspireProject INSPIRE will offer two courses online this summer. 

Pre-Kindergarten – 1st Grade Students: Nemeth Code within UEB Contexts and Strategies for Supporting the Student in Building Math Skills

An Introduction to Nemeth Code Symbols Used in Grades 2 to 5 and Strategies for Supporting Elementary Students in Building Math Skills

Check Project INSPIRE’s website for updates or follow on Facebook.

The Festival will take place virtually this year and will be held on September 25 & 26, 2020. So, mark your calendars and stay tuned for more information!

Visit our website

Florida Vision Technology has joined our nationwide effort to vigorously monitor and prevent further spread of the coronavirus and invites you to join us in that effort to. The health of our clients and team members is our paramount concern!!  We will discontinue in person meetings until further notice, this includes both our Fort Lauderdale and Largo stores being closed. Given the current situation, we will continue servicing our clients during our normal business hours via phone, email, etc. communication methods.This will avoid exposure to our clients or associated to accidental transmission of the virus, to protect the more vulnerable family/ friends/people in our respective communities. 

An abundance of free and paid sources of ebooks are available to keep students learning during the COVID-19 crisis

Parents and teachers are searching for high quality content to keep students learning, engaged, and, let’s face it, entertained during the COVID-19 crisis. Good news! Purveyors and suppliers of books have been stepping up during school closures. The volume of libraries, publishers, and education platforms opening their doors to students and educators is heartwarming, but can also feel overwhelming.

Where can educators find publisher books for students? Where can a parent find age-appropriate reading material for a child? Where can teachers and parents of students with learning differences like dyslexia or blindness find books in alternative formats? Here’s a handy list of book sources for students of all grades, levels, interests, and reading preferences. 

https://blog.bookshare.org/2020/04/ebooks-everywhere-make-sense-of-options/

“I want to provide an update to people who receive benefits from the Social Security Administration.

The Department of the Treasury (Treasury) announced on April 1 that Social Security beneficiaries who are not typically required to file tax returns will not need to file an abbreviated tax return to receive an economic impact payment. The IRS will use the information on the Form SSA-1099 to generate $1,200 economic impact payments to Social Security beneficiaries who did not file tax returns in 2018 or 2019.

Treasury, not Social Security, will make automatic payments to Social Security beneficiaries. Beneficiaries will receive these payments by direct deposit or by paper check, just as they would normally receive their Social 

Get $50 off a new Braille Label Maker with the code BLM50. 

The 6dot Braille Label Maker is ergonomically designed to be portable and easy to use anywhere. It has a built-in Braille keyboard that supports all grades of Braille in virtually every language. The powered embossing makes for high quality Braille labels that are easy to read. The QWERTY keyboard enables non-Braillist to generate labels too! An automatic cutter provides effortlessly clean label cuts without the need for scissors. 

Tired of Netflix? 14 World-Class Museums Offering Virtual Tours Right From Your Laptop

https://robbreport.com/lifestyle/news/14-virtual-museum-to-visit-during-social-distancing-and-quarantine-2905827/

In the wake of the intensifying Covid-19 pandemic, many of the world’s most venerable art institutions have been forced to temporarily shut their doors.  Thanks to the extensive Google Arts & Culture project, more than 2,500 spaces from around the world are accessible online.

Learning Tools, Local and Teacher Resources, Music, Arts, Media & Games, 

https://mailchi.mp/08afdfd27aca/stay-safe-stay-healthy-stay-learning-and-stay-entertained?e=ab0fa8aa16

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-zoos-aquariums-live-stream-animals-isolation-quarantine/

As schools, restaurants, stores, entertainment venues and other public spaces close to prevent the spread of coronavirus, zoos and aquariums are no exception — but life still finds a way. To help relieve the stress, boredom and loneliness that come with self-isolation, zookeepers across the U.S. are live-streaming animals for people to enjoy from the comfort of their own homes.