Assistive Technology for Students with Dyslexia Wizcom ReadingPen2 By: Anne Khan Foundations II: Diversity, Learning, and Technology

Dyslexia is a reading disability that occurs when the brain does not properly recognize and process certain symbols. It is one of the most common disabilities seen in children in our schools today. There are many products that can assist dyslexic students in understanding information and improving their skills to learn. Imagine a day without reading... Imagine a day without writing... Imagine a day with dyslexia....

What assistive technology is available for students with dyslexia? ~ Audio Recording Software ~ Touch Typing Tutors ~ Spell Checkers ~ Scanning/Reading Pens... Scanning/Reading Pens: These are portable devices which dyslexic people can use to listen to text instead of reading it. The user points the scanning/reading pen on a particular printed word and the pen’s speech synthesizer then speaks that word. Scanning/reading pens can also scan a line of text and read it aloud. Some of these devices have built-in dictionaries that can speak the definition of a scanned word. Through this device, dyslexic users can understand printed text regardless of where they are. A product that I highly recommend is the ReadingPen2!

ReadingPen®2 Portable scanning translator to improve reading fluency and comprehension! The ReadingPen2 is an innovative portable learning tools for students with reading difficulties (such as dyslexia) or students of another language. The ReadingPen2 provides reading autonomy and fluency and enhances text comprehension for students.

Uses the American Heritage® Children's Dictionary and Thesaurus, American Heritage® College Dictionary and Roget's II Thesaurus. Recognizes over 500,000 words from the American Heritage® College Dictionary, 4th Edition and Roget's II The New Thesaurus. Provides translations from Wizcom's English to Spanish dictionary. Provides audio word pronunciation (American pronunciation). Built-in scanning tutorial to improve scanning technique. Features...

The ReadingPen2 also features: Scans single words or full lines of text. Displays selected word in large font to enable easier, clearer viewing. Displays definitions, synonyms and translations of the scanned text on the LCD screen. Audio word pronunciation with text-to-speech (TTS) technology using built-in speaker or earphones. Spells out scanned words, highlighting individual letters. Displays syllabic division of selected word or phrasal verb (most products). Comprehensive translation that extends beyond the simple, most frequently used meaning of the word. Direct look-up of idioms/phrases. Identification of inflected words and the display of their corresponding entries. History option enabling review of the last 80 looked up words. Recognition of a wide range of printed font types and sizes (6-22 points - up to 8mm), including inverted text on contrasting backgrounds (except red on white, white on red, blue on black and black on blue). Recognition and automatic merging of hyphenated text. Two display modes: Toggle between abridged and complete definition/translation display. Easy to use buttons and straightforward menus. Right/left handed support. Auto shut-off feature to preserve battery life.

FEATUREDESCRIPTION CPU ARM 7 TDMI RAM 128KB + 64KB ROM 4MB minimum (depending on product) Socket for Flash Memory Card 4MB/8MB/16MB Key Pad Push Buttons - Power/ESC/ENT/Up/Down/Left/Right Optical Scanner 128 pixels linear array image sensor 400 DPI resolution Communications USB (models with communication) Display InformationResolution: 120 x 32 pixels Size: 61mm x 20mm / 2.4" x 0.8" Power 2 x 1.5V AAA Alkaline batteries Size (LxWxH) 6.4" x 1.5" x 1" (163 x 38 x 23 mm) with cover Weight 3 oz. (90 grams) (not including batteries and/or flash memory card) Audio Built-in speaker, earphone socket (available with most products). Safety CE, RoHS, UL, FCC class B

Base Price: $ The Classroom Set consists of 10 ReadingPen®s packaged into a custom built hard carry case with 10 sets of headphones, training devices, batteries. $1,799.95

Wizcom Technologies Ltd. is a pioneer and world leader in personal, portable, scanning dictionaries, reading Pens and scanning Pens. Pens enable students and people working in multilingual environments to translate and define printed material without disrupting their reading process. People with reading difficulties (from grade school and up) use ReadingPen® products to help them understand text, improve overall reading skills and boost self-confidence. The ReadingPen® line is proven to enhance reading ability, self confidence, the learning process and the academic success of people with learning difficulties, including learning disabilities such as dyslexia or aphasia. The National Center for Technology Innovation (NCTI) has recognized the ReadingPen® as a technology-based approach that helps students with reading difficulties acquire better reading and comprehension skills. In addition to the continual development of new products for established markets, Wizcom is currently focusing on creating new and improved products targeting the general education arena. These products are designed to help students of all ages (kindergarten to university level), improve their reading skills and overcome assorted literacy issues.

Manuals and Support Available Online! Visit to access online support and download the the Operation Manual in PDF format!

WIZCOM Partners with EDUCATION! Wizcom Technologies offers schools and universities an opportunity to add exciting new teaching tools into the classroom. The ReadingPen allows amazing improvement of students' reading abilities, makes it significantly easier for dyslexic students to read, and helps in learning new languages. Wizcom has created ClassPacks, special kits adapted for classroom learning.