VIDBE-Q Volume 65 Issue 4
microwavable macaroni and cheese cup – activities that can occur in the TVI's
resource room or during a designated snack time during the school day. By
incorporating the planning, preparation, and cleaning aspects of the simple snack
task into their lessons, the pre-service teacher is able to provide the learner with
practice that encompasses numerous life skills and concepts. In addition to the
category of independent living, the other eight areas of the ECC can be included in
these activities and easily incorporated into a typical school routine: compensatory
access (writing and reading the recipe); sensory efficiency (use of a low vision
tool, use of hearing and smell to locate items); assistive technology (use of a
computer or other device to search for food ideas and to write the recipe
instructions); social interaction (conversational exchanges, turn-taking, requesting
and refusing assistance); recreation and leisure (increasing confidence in
movements, identifying preferred activities); career education (following
instructions, organization and planning, exploration of food preparation);
orientation and mobility (safe and efficient movement to retrieve items, spatial
concepts); and self-determination (goal-setting and choice-making). By choosing
routine activities within which to teach and reinforce ECC skills, opportunities are
substantially increased for learners with visual impairments to frequently practice
these critical life skills.
