Accessible Crochet

Accessible Patterns

The Basics Color Contrast Headings Alt Text Document Flow Multiple Formats Word & Google Docs Automatic Checkers Title and Author Headings Tables Lists Columns Adding Alt Text PDFs Reading Order Tags PDF Accessibility Checker Youtube Videos

The Basics

What does it mean to make my patterns accessible?

Making your pattern accessible means youre making your patterns as widely understandable as possible.

What are the General Guidelines to Making an Accessible Document?

Firstly, you're going to want to initially make your pattern in either Word or Google Docs, make it accessible in that program, and then export it to a PDF if you so choose. This process is the easiest to avoid most problems caused by these formats.

To do that, lets establish a baseline for how to make your content accessible. Online content, including digital documents, need to follow POUR: Percievable, Operable, Understandable, Robust.

Percievable

To make your content percievable you need to make sure the information in your patterns can be understood by everyone. This is done by making sure the information is able to be read by screen readers, and by adding alt text and long descriptions to images.

Operable

This means that someone can operate and use your content. In digital documents this means making sure that your information is set up properly so that it will be operable with a screen reader or just a keyboard.

Understandable

This is when information being presented to a user is able to be understood by the user. For crochet patterns this commonly means writing out what row each instruction takes place at.

Robust

To make a digital document robust is to make sure it is made so that anyone now or in the future can access it, be it by sight or with a screen reader.

What order should I work on my documents to make them as accessible as possible?

I would suggest following the order this lesson is set up in, from top to bottom. Theres a handy-dandy navigation bar on the side for quick reference as well if this isn't your first time working through a document but you still want some guidance.