National Accessibility Week
In honour of National Accessibility Week, we’re highlighting something many people don’t realize:
iPads, iPhones, and Windows devices all include powerful accessibility tools built right into the operating system.
These features can support a wide range of needs—without requiring additional apps or expensive programs.
What’s Available?
Built-in tools can help with reading, writing, vision, hearing, and focus.
Some popular features include:
- Voice to Text (Dictation) – Speak instead of type
- High Contrast & Display Settings – Improve visibility and reduce strain
- Text Size & Formatting – Customize how text appears
- Screen Readers – Have content read aloud
- Assistive Touch & Input Supports – Make navigation easier
These tools can be easily customized directly on your device.
Quick Guides
Explore our Learn 71 quick-reference guides to learn more:
Apple (iPad & iPhone)
- iPad Accessibility Features (iOS 18)
- iPad Accessibility Features (iOS 26)
Windows
- Windows 10 Accessibility Features
- NEW: Learn71 Windows 11 Accessibility Quick Guide – Coming soon!
- Windows 11 Accessibility Features (Microsoft)
Accessibility is about ensuring everyone can access and engage with technology in ways that work for them. These built-in tools are a great place to start—simple, effective, and already available.
Summary of Learning Resources
- Elementary Summary of Learning with Comments
- Elementary Summary of Learning without Comments
- Grade 8-9 Summary of Learning
- Grade 10-12 Summary of Learning
For full MyEducation BC Resources – Learn71 visit the Learn71.ca resource page.
If you have any trouble with this, you have a tech tip that you would like to share, or you would like support with technology, please email us.
Luckily, Outlook has a few simple tools that can make a huge difference without creating complicated folders or systems.
🎨 Use Categories to Organize Visually
Categories let you add colour labels to emails so you can quickly spot important messages.
You could create categories like:
- 🔵 Staff
- 🟢 Parents
- 🟣 Tech Tips 😉
- 🟠 Urgent
- 🟡 To Read Later
👉 Right-click an email → Categorize → choose a colour or click on New category and set one up.
🚩 Flag Emails You Need to Return To
Instead of leaving emails unread forever, try using Flags.
Click the little 🚩 beside an email to mark it as something you need to follow up on later.
This works great for:
- emails you don’t want to forget to read later
- people to reply to
- tasks you can’t do immediately
Interacting with PDFs
One of the most frequently asked question we get is how can students interact with PDFs that are provided to them by the teacher. With the right tools, students can listen, highlight, write on them, annotate on them and even use dictate tools for speech to text.
Our district supports two tools:
- OrbitNote (browser extension)
- Microsoft Edge (built-in)
ORBITNOTE: 👉 OrbitNote is designed specifically to make PDFs accessible, interactive, and student-friendly.
With OrbitNote students can:
- 🔊 Listen to text (it reads aloud and highlights words)
- ✏️ Highlight and add notes
- 🖊️ Draw, write or type on the page
- 🎤 Leave voice comments
- 🌍 Translate and define words
- 🧾 Collect Vocab / Highlighted Lists
- 💻 Convert Non-accessible PDFs using OCR function
- 🖱️Right click any PDF and “Open with” > Edge
- 🔊 Read aloud (listen to the text)
- ✏️ Highlight important parts
- 🖊️ Draw, write or type on the page
- 📄 Fill out worksheets and save them
This is perfect when you are presenting and would like to demo an app in another window. You don’t have to minimize or close the current app to access the other.