BuddyBooks-LD

Students with learning disabilities (LD) often face significant challenges with reading, leaving them at risk of falling behind in school and struggling later in life. Over 80% of LD students struggle with reading, contributing to a national crisis where 65% of fourth graders read below proficiency. Many current tools fail to address the unique needs of these students, leaving teachers without effective resources to help close the literacy gap. BuddyBooks-LD (BB-LD) is designed to tackle this problem head-on, building on the success of the existing BuddyBooks platform, which has already shown it can improve fluency and comprehension for struggling readers. BB-LD will introduce features specifically tailored for students with LD, such as color-coded text to help with decoding, vocabulary tools to explain challenging words, and interactive games to make learning fun. A co-reading feature will allow students to take turns reading with a partner, and self-reflection prompts will help deepen their understanding. These tools are easy for teachers to use and give them valuable insights into student progress. In Phase I, we will develop a prototype and test it with students and teachers to ensure it meets their needs. BB-LD has the potential to make a lasting difference in the lives of LD students, giving them the tools they need to succeed.