Tech Tools for Teachers PODCAST

Clusive: Elevating Reading Accessibility

November 4, 2024

Cover image for Episode #196 of the Tech Tools for Teachers Podcast, titled ‘Clusive: Elevating Reading Accessibility.’ The image features the podcast logo at the top left, with ‘Episode #196’ in bold black text on a white box. Below, the title of the episode is displayed in bold text against a light blue background. A smiling woman with shoulder-length brown hair is pictured on the right, wearing a black top, in front of a solid red background.

Looking for a game-changing reading tool that truly embraces Universal Design for Learning (UDL)? This week, in Episode 196 of the podcast, we are diving into Clusive, a really helpful site that’s transforming how students interact with text.

Screenshot of Clusive’s reading feedback prompt titled ‘Your thoughts?’ where students can express how a reading made them feel by selecting emotions like ‘interested,’ ‘happy,’ ‘curious,’ etc. Text fields below allow students to explain their feelings and indicate what they learned.Screenshot of Clusive’s ‘Student Details’ page, displaying data for a selected student named ‘Shanna.’ The page shows metrics such as hours read, number of readings, words looked up, and reading reactions. No readings are displayed yet for this student, with placeholders for topics and reactions.Screenshot of Clusive’s Library view, featuring filters for topic, reading level, and word count. Various genres and reading materials are shown, with options to filter by categories like ‘Fiction,’ ‘History,’ ‘Science,’ and reading levels from elementary to advanced.Screenshot of the Clusive ‘Activities’ dashboard, displaying a quick overview of student activity through active reading time bars. The screen shows a timeline of student reading sessions with prompts to hover over for detailed reading history. Instructional text encourages sorting by hours, books, or student name.Screenshot of Clusive’s word familiarity assessment prompt, displaying a word (‘embark’) and a scale for users to rate their familiarity, ranging from ‘Never heard it’ to ‘Use it.’ Instructional text at the top invites users to rate a set of words to receive a personalized reading experience.Screenshot of the Clusive ‘Word Bank’ feature, showing a categorized list of words based on familiarity. Users can move words to different categories such as ‘Never heard it,’ ‘Heard it,’ ‘Know it,’ and ‘Use it’ to personalize learning. Instructional text at the bottom explains how to manage word ratings and navigate back.Screenshot of an informational article about Amelia Earhart within the Clusive program. The left side menu offers navigation options, and settings on the right allow customization of text size, line spacing, letter spacing, font type, and color scheme to support accessible reading.

Here’s why Clusive is a really cool reading tool:

  1. Backed by UDL Experts – Clusive isn’t just another reading platform – it’s built from the ground up with UDL principles in mind
  2. Accessibility That Actually Works – Whether your students are struggling readers, English language learners, or simply have different learning preferences there is support for all kids
  3. Smart Settings That Make Sense – The settings go beyond basic text adjustments like text – to – speech, reading levels, visual customization and so much more!
  4. Powerful Teacher Insights – You can track all of your students to see how much they are reading and understanding.
  5. Your One-Stop UDL Reading Hub – Clusive brings together everything you need for UDL-aligned reading instruction in one place

Whether you’re supporting struggling readers in elementary school or challenging high school students with complex texts, Clusive has a flexible, inclusive approach to reading that puts UDL principles into practice. So go check it out and see what new things you can learn too!
Have a great week everyone!

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