Reading for pleasure during school breaks can maintain a struggling student's academic progress and may stave off regressions.

Is Print A Troublemaker?

Titles on the list that follows can turn reading into a happy family affair during the upcoming winter break. These books—chosen by experts—come in accessible book formats that make a difference especially for learners who struggle to read traditional books. When special education students are found eligible for accessible educational materials (AEM) by their education teams, troublesome books in print can be legally converted to a format that is easier for them to read. Nearly a dozen options are permitted under an exception to federal copyright law so that eligible children can read in the ways they learn best. 

Chosen By Experts

This partial book listing by age groups is taken from suggestions for a home library published by The American Library Association, Children's Book Council Joint Committee, and the ALSC Ouicklists Consulting Comittte of The Association for Library Service to Children. In each case, parents and teachers can find the accessible editions through AEM programs nationwide. Parents can always read the books aloud to help struggling readers; and having accessible reading formats on hand is another great option to encourage reading when schools are not in session. Books found here have added learning features, such as highlighting with a text to speech feature. They support skills including decoding, fluency, and comprehension.

Here are selected titles by age groups. Complete lists can be downloaded from the ALSC website or from the Children's Book Council. Books found here are audiobooks linked to our AIM-VA partners Learning Ally and Bookshare. AEM programs in each state may have other editions available in braille, ePubs, PDFs and more. Accessible editions are a great way to help families establish a "reading for pleasure" habit during school breaks.

Print and Accessible Editions

Ages 0-3:

• Ten Nine Eight, by Molly Garrett Bang
• From head to toe, by Eric Carle
• What Will Fat Cat Sit On?, by Jan Thomas
• The Quiet Book, by Deborah Underwood
• Trashy Town, by Andrea Griffing Zimmerman and David Clemesha

Ages 4 to 7

• LMNO Peas, by Keith Baker
• The Stories Julian Tells, by Ann Cameron
• Bink and Gollie (Bink and Gollie #1), by Alison Mcghee and Kate Dicamillo
• Traction Man and the Beach Odyssey, by Mini Grey
• Actual size, by Steve Jenkins
• Chicka chicka boom boom, by Bill Martin
• Not a Box, by Antoinette Portis
• I Am Invited to a Party! (An Elephant and Piggie Book), by Mo Willems

Ages 8-13

• The Mostly True Story of Jack, by Kelly Barnhill
• Frogs, by Nic Bishop
• The City of Ember Deluxe Edition, by Jeanne Dupr
• A Tale Dark and Grimm, by Adam Gidwitz; Jacob W. Grimm; Wilhelm K. Grimm
• Turtle in Paradise, by Jennifer L. Holm
• Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, by Grace Lin
• Judy Moody, Girl Detective (Judy Moody #9), by Megan Mcdonald
• Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson and Donna Diamond 
• Holes by Louis Sachar
• Knucklehead: Tall Tales and Mostly True Stories about Growing Up, by Jon Scieszka

Ages 12-14

• Mockingbird, by Kathryn Erskine
• Better Nate Than Ever, by Tim Federle
• The Graveyard Book, by Neil Gaiman
• The Outsiders, by S. E. Hinton
• Titanic: Voices from the Disaster, by Deborah Hopkinson
• Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai
• Darius and Twig, by Walter Dean Myers
• Okay For Now, by Gary D. Schmidt
• Bomb: The Race to Build -- and Steal -- the World's Most Dangerous Weapon, by Steve Sheinkin