Do you have accessibility supports for struggling readers, students with IEPs, or ELLs?

CommonLit offers several tools to support students of different reading levels and needs, including special education students with IEPs (Individualized Education Program), ELLs (English Language Learner), and EFLs (English as a Foreign Language).

CommonLit's accessibility toolbar allows students to translate, highlight, and hear text read aloud. Students can hear the text read aloud in English (click the play button), translate a section (click the globe button), or highlight a section (select text to highlight and click the highlighter tool).

We also offer Guided Reading Mode as a tool to support basic comprehension. You can assign to a whole class on a difficult text, or individually to students based on their need for differentiated support. Guided Reading Mode chunks the text into bite-sized pieces and asks students basic comprehension questions about what they've read before they can move on.

CommonLit also offers texts originally in Spanish for Spanish-speaking ELLs and EFLs. Assign these to students to adjust them to the rigor of CommonLit's assessment questions in their native language before assigning English assignments. You can also instruct them to use the translation tool on English assignments.

Have a suggestion for further ways to support your students? We'd love to hear them at feedback@commonlit.org.

Common Accessibility Toolbar FAQs:

What happened to translate and highlighting?

These features are currently getting a makeover! Check back soon for updates to the feature.

Can students start read aloud where they left off?

Yes, students can pick up read aloud where they left off by clicking "Read Aloud" to reveal speaker icons next to each paragraph/line of the text and clicking the speaker icon next to where they want the reading to begin. We also bookmark where teachers and students leave off in the text, so it should pick up where you left off in your last session when you hit play.

Can students access the toolbar on tablets and phones?

Read Aloud is currently available on mobile devices and tablets.