Division on Visual Impairments

DVI Quarterly Volume 58(4)

A quarterly newsletter from the Council for Exceptional Children's Division on Visual Impairments containing practitioner tips for Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments, Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialists, and other professionals.

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Teachable Moments: Using Story Telling for an Orientation and Mobility Lesson Shelley McCoy, CTVI, COMS VIP Rehabilitation Services L/C Smccoy370@gmail.com In my short couple of years learning about and practicing the fascinating art/science of Orientation and Mobility instruction, it has become very clear that a multitude of factors impact engagement, retention, and overall effective teaching. Of all the factors that impact instruction, ulimately, Orientation and Mobility instruction is a relationship-based practice. Establishment of trust and comfort with a student or client is a natural, necessary segue into the successes that lie ahead. Without relationship and rapport, expecting a student/client to learn and grow can be likened to a bicyclist riding with two flat tires. It is a slow, painful ride getting nowhere fast. Relationship development has a few simple ingredients: knowing the student/client, using that knowledge to individualize your approaches with that student, and ultimately establishing trust. It is only with trust that a comfort level can be achieved where active learning can take place. Knowing the student 48 Knowing the student means not only knowing the etiologies, diagnoses, and optimal functionality of a student but equally, or perhaps even more importantly, exploring the personhood of the individual. What does s/he love? What are his/ her fears? What are his/her strengths? What

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