18
VIDBE - Q Volume 63 Issue 1
Get involved with parent support groups at
the national and state level (these links are
national, but there are also state chapters):
http://www.napvi. org/
http://www.p2pusa.org/
Essential
Assessments
Explain the purpose of a
functional vision, learning
media, and expanded core
curriculum assessments.
Consult family during
learning media
assessment — get family
input on the learning media
options and their
preference .
Learn about the assessments that should
be done for a child with a VI:
http://www.perkinselearning.org /earn -
credits/online - class/essential - assessments
Weigh the advantages and disadvantages
of your child being a print reader versus a
Braille reader and decide what is best
based on the unique needs of your child. It
is possible that he/she may need to lea rn
both, but you need to consider the time out
of class in order to do this.
Understanding
the Impact of
the Vision
Loss
Help families try to
understand the vision loss
and its' impact. If you
haven't experienced the VI
yourself, it is very hard to
un derstand it .
Explain concepts such as
'incidental learning' and how
their child's visual acuity
relates to 20/20 (i.e. their
child with 20/200 vision has
to be at 20 feet to see what
someone with 20/20 vision
sees from 200 feet) .
Ask your child's eye care specialist/TVI to
help you understand just what your
son/daughter sees and the things he/she
may miss in their environment, so you can
create purposeful learning activities for
them.
Ask professionals to explain what your
child' s acuity really mesa for functional use
(i.e. 20/200 — what does that mean?). Refer
to:
http://www.afb.org/info/blindness -
statistics/key - definitions - of - stati stical -
terms/25
IEP Meetings Coordinate simulations for
school personnel at the IEP
meetings. This should be
done at the initial IEP
meeting and then annually
because school personnel
will change annually.
Have your child attending his/her IEP
meeting a s soon as you feel he/she is
ready; Teach them how to talk to adults
about their strengths and needs (*i.e. this
can be done via a short PowerPoint
prepared in advance).
