How Do I Use the Read Aloud (Text-to-Speech) Tool?

The Read Aloud (Text-to-Speech) student tool allows students to select text on an activity and have it read aloud by the computer.

This tool can help students who benefit from hearing written text while reading. It works similarly to accessibility tools like Read & Write or the JAWS Screen Reader.

When used, each word is highlighted as it is spoken so students can follow along. Students can also choose different voices and adjust the reading speed.

Enable Read Aloud

The Read Aloud tool is enabled during the assignment creation process.

When creating or editing an assignment, go to the assignment settings and enable the Read Aloud option.

You can also enable Read Aloud for an existing assignment by opening the Activity Detail page and selecting Edit Assignment from the three-dot menu next to the assignment.

What Students See

When Read Aloud is enabled, students will see a new tool icon in their assignment toolbar.

Clicking the icon opens the Read Aloud panel. The cursor will change to crosshairs so the student can select the text they want to hear.

The student should click and drag to highlight the area of text.

After releasing the mouse, Classwork extracts the text and begins reading it aloud.

If the reading does not capture the text correctly, the student should draw a slightly larger selection box so that the full characters are included.

The Read Aloud tool uses optical character recognition (OCR), so results may vary depending on the clarity of the uploaded image or background.

Currently, Read Aloud supports English text only.

Reading Teacher Text

Students can also use Read Aloud with Teacher Text blocks added to an activity.

To do this, the student simply highlights the text they want to hear and then clicks the Read Aloud icon. The selected text will appear in the Read Aloud panel and begin playing.

Audio Controls

As the text is read, each word is highlighted so students can follow along.

Students can control playback using the audio controls in the Read Aloud panel.

They can:

• Pause and resume playback
• Change the reading voice
• Adjust the playback speed

The selected voice and speed remain active while the assignment is open, but reset between sessions.

The Read Aloud Panel

The Read Aloud panel can be moved by dragging the title bar.

Students can also expand the panel using the expand button to make the text easier to read.

When finished, students may close the panel or simply select another area of text to continue listening.

Why Use Read Aloud?

The Read Aloud tool helps support students who benefit from hearing written text. It can improve accessibility and reduce the need for teachers to record audio versions of assignments.