13
VIDBE-Q Volume 63 Issue 3
make the whole. It requires immediate proximity
and multiple opportunities to explore. Tactual
learning simply takes more time. Before children
know they can reach out and touch things, the
adults have to intentionally set up opportunities for
tactile interaction.
We must overcome the fear that complex
concepts are too difficult to put into a tactile format
for students in the elementary grades. I had a
kindergarten child with no functional vision that was
presented a complex skeleton. We reviewed it over
many sessions and he was able to not only
understand the concepts, but he also explained it
to his peers.
Image 1. Skeleton outline using straws for ribs, yarn for muscles, wooden
sticks as bone and fabric paint for smaller details.
Image 2. Close-up of leg using wooden sticks as a representation of the
bones and fabric paint to represent the skin.