UDL Book Builder
What it is: UDL Book Builder is a site where you can create your own interactive digital stories. The books have built in coaches that can support diverse learning needs. The coaches direct student learning even when students are working independently. The digital books can include text, images, audio, glossary terms (that are linked within the story), and coaches that can provide hints, prompts, and modeling. The published books can be viewed online, downloaded to a computer, saved to a CD, or shared with others in the UDL library. Both teachers and students can use the UDL Book Builder to create interactive digital stories.
How to integrate UDL Book Builder into the classroom: Use the UDL Book Builder to create interactive stories for your students that meet their specific learning needs. Include students and familiar locations in your stories to boost reading motivation. Students love starring in their own stories. As you are creating a book in the Book Builder, be sure to devleop the coaches within the book. The coaches can offer reading hints, strategies, and model good reading. Start a school library of teacher created digital books. As the digital library is devleoped, be sure to note which reading skills are being emphasized so that other teachers can quickly sort through books that will match their students learning needs and interests. Students can also create digital books from their writing. The writing should be ready to publish (correct spelling, grammar, etc.). These stories can easily be shared online with other students in class, in the school, and with pen pals. UDL Book Builder would be a great tool for creating stories as a class using the interactive whiteboard.
Tips: The UDL Book Builder site has a great section with tips for authors and illustrators using the Builder. These tips are helpful for any adults creating a book, but are also worth sharing with students using the tool.
Leave a comment and tell us how you are using UDL Book Builder in your classroom.