Ideas to help people with dementia to continue to enjoy reading

From the October/November 2016 issue of our magazine, people with dementia may continue to enjoy stories, poetry and non-fiction writing even though reading itself can become difficult.

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If someone finds it harder to read or hold their attention on longer pieces of writing, short articles or books with concise sections might be more manageable. This could include collections of short stories or poems, as well as newspapers and magazines.

A person might enjoy reading books or poetry together with someone else, who could even read aloud while the person listens. The discussions that arise may be as worthwhile as the reading material.

Sometimes large print, giant print or audio books can help, and many are available from RNIB. If you use an ebook, the appearance of text can be adjusted to make it easier to read.

There are a large number of podcasts – audio files that you download or listen to online. Many are series that you can subscribe to, through a site like iTunes or using a podcast app on a mobile device. Others are available as complete readings of books, and a large number are available for free.

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