Services for the Blind

Visually impaired listeners can hear selections from The Washington Post, The Washington Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Christian Science Monitor, The Sunday New York Times and readings from more than 250 newspapers, magazines and recently published books in serial form, thanks to The Metropolitan Washington Ear. The Ear is a nonprofit organization that provides reading and information services for people who are blind, visually-impaired and physically-disabled, who cannot effectively read print, see plays, watch television programs and films or view museum exhibits.

The Ear provides a dial-in newspaper and magazine service with toll-free lines throughout Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia, and a 24-hour a day radio reading program (using pretuned radio receivers loaned without charge). The Ear also provides audio description for live theatre, broadcast and cable TV, films, videos, iMax films, and indoor and outdoor exhibits. To learn how to benefit from these free services, call 301-681-6636, or to access the free reading service, visit the website www.washear.org.

www.aph.org The American Printing House for the Blind's Louis Database contains over 150,000 titles that are available in Braille, large Print, Computer File and Audio Tape for free. The inventory is mainly text books, but recreational reading titles are also included.

Open-Captioned Videos

The Captioned Media Program, CMP, provides free loan, open captioned videos to persons who are deaf and hard of hearing. More than 4,000 titles including classic movies, educational videos, and special interest videos are available. Open-captioned videos, like subtitles, provide the viewer all the information contained in the audio track. Membership in the CMP is free and is open to persons who are deaf or hard of hearing, their parents, families, teachers or counselors. To see the catalog and learn more, visit the website www.cfv.orgor call 1-800-237-6213.

Signing with Babies

It is possible to teach babies and/or young children with special needs to sign while waiting for speech to emerge. Check out these sites on the web:
www.babysigns.com
www.sign2me.com
www.handspeak.com

Autism Websites

www.autism.org The Center for the Study of Autism provides information about autism to parents and professionals, and conducts research on the efficacy of various therapeutic interventions. Much of the research is in collaboration with the Autism Research Institute in San Diego, California.

www.smarterkids.com/spec_centers/sn_02.asp This particular link provides information about autism and links to other autism resources and organizations. The home page offers news and advice on children and education, family resources, tips and products for children with special needs, a home schooling center and a grand parents corner.

www.dotolearn.com A website that offers on-line games, software, workshops and learning opportunities for those with special needs and their parents, teachers and health professionals. Contributors to this website come from diverse backgrounds that range from computer and web experts to professional educators, parents, teachers and clinicians.