1. What are the five alternative views about reading?

1. Audiobooks are pretty cool for several reasons; firstly for those who have difficulty reading, you
can listen to your favourite book, in an interesting and engaging way. When reading in busy
surroundings it can be difficult to focus, but with an audiobook and the right headphones (check out
our Top 5 noise cancelling headphones), it’s much easier to focus on the storyline. Also audiobooks
allow for multitasking, which can allow you to learn, study or ‘read’ in situations like driving, when
reading a traditional book would not be practical.
2. Slide Share is a website which focuses on sharing knowledge through presentations. Okay this one
involves a little reading but what SlideShare does offer is simple, well designed and enlightening
presentations. Areas such as technology, education, marketing, design, art or business, you name it,
SlideShare has it. What makes SlideShare great is that, although each presentation has a lot of
information, it is spread into small and easy to digest chucks. Unlike a report or a transcript, where
you are given one big chunk of information. SlideShare’s format creates an interesting narrative, very
much like a story.
3. TED Talks Video is becoming increasingly important in the process of spreading information. One
of the most popular video platforms is TED Talks. Taken from TED’s ‘About’ page “TED is a non-
profit devoted to spreading ideas, usually in the form of short, powerful talks (18 minutes or less)”.
TED covers everything and some of the best videos can truly change your perspective on life. Each
video is given by a specialist or a professional with knowledge of a certain field. A number of famous
people have graced the TED Talks stage including Bill Clinton, Bill Gates and Stephen Hawking.
4. Podcasts
If you’re reading this, you might already be familiar with podcasts. They are usually episodic and
usually cover certain subjects. Podcast can be about anything, from book reviews, interviews to short
anecdotes. Unlike audiobooks which can be long, podcast are usually a lot shorter and more specific.
The Codpast currently features three podcasts which consist of mini documentaries, audiobook
reviews and interviews with dyslexics.
5. Spoken word/Performance Poetry nights
For many dyslexics poetry can be hard to follow. At school poetry and especially Shakespeare were
difficult for me to say the least. It took so much energy to decipher what was being said, I quickly lost
interest in the storyline. Years later when hearing it spoken out loud in a familiar style, Shakespeare
was a truly captivating experience.
There are spoken word nights all over the country, which also double as great places to meet like-
minded individuals and network.