I'm interested in becoming a vision professional. Where can I learn more?

How wonderful that you're thinking of joining the field of visual impairments! There is currently a nationwide shortage of vision professionals! You can learn more about the different careers in the vision field: Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments, Orientation & Mobility Specialists, Vocational Rehabilitation Specialists, Low Vision Specialists, and braillists/paraprofessionals.  You can find a list of professional preparation programs here. Some universities offer online coursework, while others require you to attend traditional on-campus courses, while still others offer a combination. As university coursework changes, you will need to contact the universities directly. You can follow the link to their program sites to learn more detailed information. 

My child is blind or visually impaired. Where can I find support?

I hope that the pages throughout this website can provide you with the information to support your child and your child's educational team. If you aren't sure of resources in your state, the American Printing House for the Blind maintains an excellent listing of services that are available in each state and manages a Connect Center to support professionals, families, and consumers. For information about educational guidelines in your state, you may find it helpful to contact the vision specialist at the Department of Education in your state. Are you in need of a vision advocate? The American Council of the Blind may be able to help or point you in the right direction. Additionally, you may want to join a support network, such as Family Connect and/or a support network specific to your child's visual diagnosis.

My adult family member (or friend) is blind or visually impaired. Where can I find help?

The American Printing House for the Blind has an excellent listing of services that are available in each state. Additionally, VisionAware is specifically designed for adults who are losing their site. As a Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments, my expertise is in the education of children ages birth through 22 who are blind or visually impaired. My expertise is not with serving adults, that being said, you may find information throughout this website that can provide you with strategies and suggestions in supporting your adult loved one. 

Our program has a vacancy for a visual impairment professional. How can I post our vacancy?

You can and should post your vacancy on your program's website, but how do you guarantee vision professionals find your posting? You could post your vacancy on traditional job posting boards that are available for all jobs, but I suggest you post on a website that is frequented by vision professionals. AER offers a job posting board that is known to and used by many vision professionals. I offer job postings here at a rate of $50 for the first month and a reduced price ($25) for subsequent months as I know that it can take longer than usual to fill vacancies in the field of visual impairments.  I charge a fee to ensure the postings are real and current as well as to recuperate the costs of maintaining this web resource. Additionally, you may want to reference the presentation I gave at the Council of Schools for the Blind on strategies for recruitment and career growth.

How can I become a member and access the Members Only pages?

You can become a member by clicking on the "Log In | Register" tab at the top of the page. You will be prompted to create a password. You will then be able to access members-only pages including Printables and Presentations. These are FREE resources available to members. By signing up for a membership you will need to provide your email address. Please review the privacy policy for how this information is used. I value your privacy as I value my own. There are additional member-only pages that are accessible only to individuals who have purchased the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC Complete Set as my way of saying "Thank You!". These pages provide information to support the activities identified in the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC and also include additional printables to support those activities.

Is Teaching Students with Visual Impairments an organization? 

The web resource Teaching Students with Visual Impairments was created and continues to be maintained by Carmen Willings, a Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments. The job postings, ads, and affiliate links throughout the website cover the cost of operation of the website. Thank you for your support! Although I am not an organization, my goal is to direct you to organizations and resources that can help you throughout the pages of this website. If there are vision specific programs or resources you know of that you feel should be listed within the pages, please let me know so I can add them! There are submissions forms throughout the website for your convenience. If you'd like to learn more about my background, visit the About page.

Where is your contact information? I'd like to connect with you. 

I hope that the above Q&A will help answer any questions you may have. Although I do not display my email on the website, you can connect with me via LinkedIn, via the Teaching Students with Visual Impairments Facebook page, or complete the form on my contact page. There is also a form you may complete if you have job posting questions. There are also forms throughout the site where you are encouraged to provide suggestions on resources to add. Additionally, I will periodically seek specific feedback from members via surveys. If you need support regarding purchase of one of the digital downloads available for sale or my handcrafted jewelry, complete the form on the support page.

Behind the Scenes 

​What have I been up to behind the scenes? I am currently in the process of developing new VI resources, revising articles and creating new pieces of jewelry. It is my goal to create resources that will help me as a TVI and in turn, help you support you and your students! 

Free Membership

Sign up for free membership to access the FREE downloadable templates, handbooks and handouts on the Printables page. Simply click on the Log In | Register link in the navigation bar. If you haven't joined yet, you will be prompted to create a password. ​

Shop the VI Store

Visit the VI Store to view the range of materials and resources to support your instructional and VI program needs.

On-Demand Webinars

Shop

ECC Instructional Resources

Shop

Braille Jewelry

Shop

Job Posting Service

Shop

TVI's Guide Complete Set Bundle + BONUS Resources

$125.00 $100.00

Buy together at a reduced price and get BONUS resources!

TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC: An Activities Based Curriculum for Teaching Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired

The TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC is a digital pdf available for download. It is designed specifically for fellow itinerant Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments (TVI’s), and consists of over 400 activities and topic areas of discussion for instructing students in the Expanded Core Curriculum. The activities are age-neutral and multi-sensory and therefore can meet the needs of the broad range of students served on an itinerant caseload serving. The activities can be individualized to the students various learning modalities and scaffold in order to challenge students but ensure success. Select those activities that align with the student’s learning objects based on the student’s unique visual needs and academic and developmental level. In addition to the core activity areas, each of the 32 Thematic Units incorporates additional unique ECC concepts and skills providing you with a years’ worth of activities. These units are cyclical and can be used repeatedly to help students build on prior knowledge and develop a deeper understanding of concepts. Each unit includes suggestions for activity adaptation associated with the unit. These include lists of objects, possible community-based experiences, environmental print, poems, children & young reader books, children's songs, pop culture songs, movies, and websites.

In addition to the book, the following two supplements are included:

·      TVI’s Guide to the ECC Concept Checklist

·      TVI’s Guide to the ECC Activities Checklist

For complete product details and additional images, visit the TVI's Guide product page.

TVI's Guide to the ECC Product details

·      Digital pdf download: 346 pages (11 pt font)

·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

·      Author: Carmen Willings

·      Language: English

Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheets: TVI's Guide to the ECC Grab and Go Supplements

The Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheets is a Grab and Go supplement to the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC. This workbook is a pdf download that can be printed on demand for use with students. It contains five different types of worksheets for developing visual motor skills and near magnifier fluency skills particularly with the use of a video magnifier. As a companion to the TVI’s Guide to the ECC, the worksheets correspond to each of the 32 ECC Thematic units. The worksheets, along with a list of environmental print for each thematic unit, are designed to help students refine their visual motor skills while reinforcing ECC concepts presented in the thematic units.  

For complete product details and additional images, visit the Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Product Page.

Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheet Details:

·      Digital pdf download: 210 pages

·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

·      Author: Carmen Willings

·      Language: English

Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency and Maintenance Worksheets: A TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC Grab & go Supplement

The Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency and Maintenance Grab and Go ECC worksheet packet is a print on demand workbook that contains worksheets in print and simulated braille to use for data collection. Present the student with a hard braille copy and use the worksheets to document accuracy and fluency in reading braille. As a companion to the TVI’s Guide to the ECC, the worksheets correspond to the ECC Thematic activities presented in the curriculum guide. These word lists and sentences will help the student refine their keyboarding or braille reading skills while bridging ECC concepts presented in the thematic units. Although the lists and passages can be produced using a manual braillewriter, you may also copy and paste the passages into any braille translation software for quick production on an embosser. They may also be entered into a typing program such as APH’s Talking Typer to build keyboarding fluency.

For complete product details and additional images, visit the Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency & Maintenance Product Page

Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency Worksheet Details:

·      Digital pdf download: 338-page print and simulated braille worksheets

·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

·      Author: Carmen Willings

·      Language: English

Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists: Grab & Go ECC Supplement

The Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists Grab and Go ECC supplement is a 446 page pdf downloadable print on demand workbook that includes 2940 vocabulary card on 3 1/2" x 2" templates divided by each of the 32 Thematic Units along with a checklist of each unit words in print and simulated braille. As a companion to the TVI's Guide to the ECC, the vocabulary cards correspond to the ECC Thematic activities presented in the curriculum guide. 

Additional Use:

Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments can have a extremely varied caseloads. It is possible to go several years without having a student on your caseload who requires braille instruction. Like other skills, if you do not practice your braille regularly, it is easy to lose those skills. Use these checklists and cards to maintain your braille skills. Fold the checklist along the line dividing the print from the braille. Choose to either read the print and produce the word in braille using a braillewriter or read the simulated braille and decode it. Finally, these vocabulary cards and checklists may be used with family members or peers who are interested in learning and practicing the braille code.

For complete product details and additional images, visit the Thematic Vocabulary Cards & Checklists Product Page

Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists Details:

·      Digital pdf download: 446-page print on demand resource

·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments

·      Author: Carmen Willings

·      Language: English

BONUS!

Lotto Cards

The LOTTO Cards Grab and Go Supplement includes 37 theme related unit cards along with activity suggestions that support activities within the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC.

On My Way File Folder Cards

Print and use these cards to represent locations the student may visit that are related to the current thematic unit. Use these with the On My Way File Folder Game outlined in the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC p. 27.

NEW! Access to TVI's Guide Bonus Membership Pages

Note:

All products are digital pdf downloads. Once you make your purchase you will be directed to an order confirmation page where you will find the download link. This download will also be included on the receipt sent to the email address you provide. The pdf download can be found directly under the order number. If you encounter any difficulty, please let me know and I can assist you.

*Please contact me if you need to purchase using a purchase order. I am happy to help guide you in the process of adding Teaching Students with Visual Impairments as an approved vendor for your school or program or you can visit the product support page for information on using a PO.

Shop