Accessibility Services

Getting Around Toronto

December 15, 2014 | Soheli | Comments (0)

There are lots of ways to travel around our city, but is everything accessible?  There are options for those in wheelchairs or requiring mobility support, but it's important to know what they are and where they are located. The TTC has a number of accessible stations, for example, that have escalators and elevators to assist […]

Canadian thalidomide victims victorious

December 8, 2014 | Soheli | Comments (2)

In a rare act of unanimity, Canadian MPs recently voted to provide "full support" for those living with the effects of the drug thalidomide. It's recently been in the news, but thalidomide victims have been struggling to be heard for decades now. Most of these survivors were born in the early 60s, around the time that pregnant women […]

IBBY Selections and Other Picks for Kids

December 1, 2014 | Soheli | Comments (0)

When you hear 'ibby', what does it mean to you?  A) A small, spotted dog B) A nonsensical word made up by Dr. Seuss C) the International Board on Books for Young People D) the itch you get in that exact spot on your back you can't reach If you answered C – pat yourself […]

Improving Our Website

December 11, 2013 | Elizabeth | Comments (0)

Good news!  Our web team is busy designing improvements to the TPL website.  They're writing about their progress and you can follow along on their weblog.  If you'd like to help make torontopubliclibrary.ca better, the team wants to hear from you.  A great way to do this is to sign up for our Website Advisory […]

Accessible Technology Tips: Creating New Documents, Opening, Saving and Printing Files in Kurzweil 3000

November 14, 2013 | Margaret W. | Comments (3)

There is so much information on how to use Kurzweil 3000 that sometimes it's hard to find just bare bones instruction! To help, here are some quick, very simple ways to perform common tasks while using Kurzweil 3000: To Create a New Document: On the Main Toolbar, click on the New button, or use the shortcut […]

Autism Spectrum Disorder: Increase Your Awareness With the Help of the Library

November 13, 2013 | Margaret W. | Comments (0)

Autism is affecting more and more lives. The Toronto Public Library can help you increase your awareness of this very complex disorder. Articles Find many full text, current articles in the library's databases. Here are some examples: In the Health Reference Centre Academic database, you can find the full text of an article published in  the Townsend Letter in Oct. […]

We Have A Right To Be Heard: Toronto Disability Pride March

October 2, 2013 | Margaret W. | Comments (3)

The 3rd Annual Toronto Disability Pride March takes place Saturday October 5th, 1-4pm. The march starts at Queen's Park and ends at Ryerson University's School of Disability Studies. Why march? "To bring recognition of the struggles and value of people with disabilities as we fight against ableism and other forms of oppression. To be visible and show […]

Where Am I? What Time Is It? How To Keep Your Bearings While Using ZoomText

September 19, 2013 | Margaret W. | Comments (0)

Have you ever gotten "lost" using ZoomText? It's very easy to lose your bearings when using the program the first few times, especially when using high magnification. I know, because when I started learning ZoomText I certainly experienced that problem. Then I came across a couple of very useful "ZoomText Tips and Tricks" videos on the AI Squared website. […]

Using the Library’s Health and Medicine Databases to Find Information About Acquired Brain Injury

August 12, 2013 | Margaret W. | Comments (0)

People often come to the library asking for information about acquired brain injury, for themselves or for a loved one, or as students or professionals working in the health field. Their information needs range from the very basic to the extremely in-depth. What is acquired brain injury? According to the Toronto ABI Network, acquired brain […]

From The Guardian: The Top Ten Books About Disabilities?

July 23, 2013 | Margaret W. | Comments (2)

In the Books Blog of the British national newspaper The Guardian, Paul Wilson states that "despite literature's fervour to explore the far reaches of human experience, disability is for the most part disregarded, or at least pushed to the margins. Disabled protagonists are few and far between". In his post he presents his choices for the top ten books on […]