Teaching MS & HS Students with Multiple Disabilities who are Blind or Visually Impaired

1. Teaching MS & HS Students with Multiple Disabilities who are Blind or Visually Impaired Carmen Willings/ TVI Founder & Developer of Teaching Students with Visual Impairments www.teachingvisuallyimpaired.com Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

2. About Me • Wife & mother of 2 teenage sons • 24 years teaching Special Needs • 19 years in field of Visual impairments • 8 years PreK Classroom Teacher • 15 years Itinerant PreK-12 • Website Developer • www.teachingvisuallyimpaired.com • GaAER Board Member • 2018 APH Scholar Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

3. Teaching Students with Visual Impairments • Research & experience based information in all areas related to VI • VI Program Resources • VI Evaluation & Service • Accommodations • All ECC Areas • Free membership – goal bank, free printables & access to past presentations • VI Job Postings • New - publications Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

4. Determining Needs & Service • Collaboration & Modeling • Case Studies • Instructional Strategies Today’s Objectives(focused on MS & HSStudents following a modified course of study) Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

5. Initial & Updated FVE/LMA • Get to know the student • Determine learning media • Visual strengths/needs • Degree visual impairment impacts education • Need for evaluation • Need for Low/Mid Tech AT • Need for further assessments (LVE, O&M, AT for High Tech AT). • Areas of ECC Need Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

6. ECC Areas to Consider • Use an ECC checklist • Reflect on what ECC areas needed • Prioritize & Consider Roles • 1:1 Para follow through after modeling? • All students working on? • Just need modifications & modeling? • Setting up environment & modifications • Summarize strengths & needs in PLAAFP Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

7. ECC Overview & TVI Role • Direct Instruction • What skills am I the only one who can teach? • What skills will the student need ongoing instruction in? • Collaboration • What skills can I model & support the team? • Tagging onto other goals: VI Support • Determining Service Delivery • Under/over serving student? Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

8. Core Activities for Ongoing Goals/Objectives • Concept development • Object characteristics • Quantity, Number, Time • Modes of communication • Reading Foundations & Fluency • Speaking & Listening skills • Access to Core Curriculum • Spatial & Body Awareness • Sensory efficiency • Tactual efficiency • Visual efficiency • Listening Skills • ADL’s & Job Tasks • Assistive Technology • Keyboarding • Low Vision Tool Use • Use, fluency, troubleshooting Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

9. Teaching with Themes • Keep student interested & engaged • Use Naturally Occurring Themes • Don’t assume prior knowledge • Plan to Intentionally Cover all ECC Concepts as appropriate for the student • Still take advantage of teachable moments Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

10. MS Student with Severe & Profound Disabilities • MS Student with Mild to Moderate Disabilities • High School Student NLP & Autistic • High School Student low vision & moderate delays Student Examples Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

11. Student #1 Middle School Student with Severe & Profound Disabilities with light perception. Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

12. Switch Activated Area • Darkened & quiet area of room • Invisiboard, APH Power Select & Mini-lights • Black drawer liner • APH Joy Player • AT Communicator (ex. Big Talk) – “More please” w/ Essential Oils (Don’t apply! Just for smell!) • Computer: Helpkidzlearn.com with switch interface Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

13. Essential Oils & Big Talk: “More Please” Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

14. Finger-paint app Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

15. Magic Fingers! app Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

16. Talking Carl Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

17. Helpkidzlearn Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

18. Sensory Stories Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

19. Instructional strategies Environmental adaptations Products Activities Share YOUR successes with Students with Severe & Profound Disabilities Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

20. Student #2 Middle School Student with Mild to Moderate Disabilities as well as Optic Atrophy, CVI, & High Myopia Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

21. Alphabet Match: Visual Discrimination • Materials: • Alphabet Border • blank index cards • Index Cards • Velcro dots • APH Wheatley board • Increase/decrease the field of choices • Hide pieces throughout the room for student to scan and locate. Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

22. Matching Patterns Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

23. Match Picture to Outline Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

24. Complex Visual DiscriminationSmall Detail Changes Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

25. Match Drawn facial features Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

26. Visual Closure Activities • Pre-Made or create your own. • Match picture to outline of picture. • Cut picture in half and encourage student to match picture. Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

27. Visual Discrimination Using Photos • Space further apart • Grossly different photos ensure success. • Increase complexity by selecting photos that have similar features. • Select photos that ensure age neutral and match students interests. • Ideas: store flyers, vacation destinations, coupons, etc. Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

28. What’s Happening? Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

29. “Go Find” Visual Scanning Activity • Hide objects or pictures related to the student’s interest or current theme around a room: • Varying material sizes & features • Scan midrange and distances • Scan on varying levels • High/low contrast • Varying levels of visual clutter • Provide clues to the student as needed (e.g. At chest level to the left of the door). Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

30. Tracking Beautiful Bubbles app Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

31. Mahjong Jewels app Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

32. Picture Match Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

33. Spot the Difference Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

34. Wheatley Picture Match Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

35. Track & Discriminate Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

36. Near Magnifier Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

37. Follow the Path Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

38. Visual Tracking Magnifier Practice Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

39. Instructional strategies Environmental adaptations Products Activities Share YOUR successes with Students with Mild to Moderate Disabilities Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

40. Student #3 High School Student w/ Mild/Moderate Disabilities, Autism and NLP Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

41. Calm Work Environment Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

42. Reading Foundation Activities • Skills to access core curriculum • Information primarily presented auditorily – missing reading foundations. Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

43. Build-a-Word Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

44. Words We Know(word families) Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

45. Abacus Race Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

46. Recorded Text Reading Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

47. ECC Concept & Fluency Activities Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

48. Song Lyrics Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

49. Spatial & Body Awareness Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

50. Instructional strategies Environmental adaptations Products Activities Share YOUR successes with Hi-Lo braille Students Teaching Students with Visual Impairments