Supporting children with blindness

or low vision
Ana Maria Lopez & Mahdi Sta
May, 12, 2018
Magnitude and causes of visual impairment
I- The Blind − Low Vision
program services
 Family Support
After the child is diagnosed, the Family Support
worker will help the family understand and cope with
the implication of the diagnosis and help them make
informed decisions about support services.
 Intervention Services
Help the child with vision impairment develop
different senses to the best of his or her ability:
touch, hearing, and the use of remaining vision.
 > Consultant/ Parents Collaboration:

● Intentional movement (orientation and mobility)

development of motor skills (e.g., rolling, reaching, crawling,
walking, and use of hands to manipulate and explore objects)
● Daily living skills (e.g., eating, dressing, toileting)
● Concept development (e.g., object identification, function,
and characteristics)
● Social and emotional development
 Consultation service
Indicators of a visual impairment Blind-Low vision program stuff can help the
child’s care or early learning center adapt to meet the child’s needs.

Drooping eyelids lack of eye contact by three months Squinting

II- How to teach a blind
child?
“Expect the blind child to learn the same things as any
other child, but realize that he may need to be taught
differently”

-Said a mother who raised 3 blind children to

successful adulthood
How a child learns
● The child learns many things by copying and following people
○ Speech, body language, attitudes, etc.
○ Some of things like speech are non visual, so it won’t be
any different for the blind child.
○ The most important way the child learns is by what is done
in the family.
■ What they hear and experience as soon when they are
born
● Example: home language
Sighted children
● Children with vision can easily see an adult using
silverware in the correct way
○ The child then tries to imitate , there the child can
accidently spill the food all over themselves, but still
imitating. Overtime, the child's imitation gets closer
and closer to the norm.
○ Adults can call to the child, and tell the child to hold the
fork right. The child can easily look around, and see
how other people are holding the fork.
How the blind child can learn
● Some schools concluded that the blind child will do poorly on things such
as table manners because the child cannot see what others are doing.
● We could support the child by providing him a way to learn. The teachers
or adults present can help him move his body through the motions as
appropriate.
● Other times, when you are feeding the blind child, you can guide his hand
to help him inspect and study the spoon with his fingers. Help him
investigate how it is held in your hand, and how it enters his mouth.
● He can keep his hand on the spoon as you move it into his mouth. You
can also talk to him even though he cannot speak yet, he can start to
understand and learn words.
● Gradually the child will be able to feed himself with no help.
Alternatives
● In cases where hand coordination is used, an arrangement is needed for
alternative to visual imitation.
● In cases where the child cannot see a train or a bus, you should ride the bus
with him and take the train with him occasionally so that he can have a feel of
what a train and a bus is.
● There will be some instances where you cannot let the child touch or
experience the real thing
○ Ex. you cannot let the child feel a lion because that would be very dangerous.
○ Instead you can use models that feel like the real thing, but in reality it is not.
○ Also, you can tell the boy the difference between a horse and a zebra. For example you may
say that the zebra is very similar to a horse, except it has black and white stripes.
Hand skills
It is necessary for the child to use his hands as his eyes. It
can also be a great learning experience.

Place the child's hand on an object as you explain to them

what it is. For example, If the child places his hand on a
mailbox, you can say “This is a mailbox, it is made of metal, it
feels hard…”
Watching TV?
● Often with a blind child, listening to the audio or narrator will be enough, or
sometimes an adult can explain to them what is happening.
References
-First Steps A handbook for teaching young children who are visually impaired,
Blind Childrens Center Los Angeles, California, 1993

-Teaching Students with Visual Impairments, Saskatchewan Learning, 2220

College Avenue Regina, Saskatchewan, 2003

-(Back) (Contents) (next).” National Federation of the Blind,

nfb.org/images/nfb/publications/fr/fr04/issue2/f040207.html.