INTERVIEWSBy: Carmen Willings
teachingvisuallyimpaired.com Updated October 4, 2017 As part of conducting the Functional Vision Evaluation (FVE), it is important to interview the people who are familiar with the student. It is always helpful to talk with caregivers to gain an understanding of their concerns and perception of the visual diagnosis. Interviews can screen for problems and help identify areas to address in the Functional Vision Evaluation.  Parent/Caregiver Interview
Parent/Caregiver Interviews
Parents and/or caregivers can provide invaluable information about how the student uses their vision during all times of the day and can provide information. They can tell you about the onset of the visual impairment, information on how the student performs activities of daily living, any recreational and leisure skills, as well as social interactions. You can use the form to the left to guide you in possible questions to ask a parent/caregiver.  Teacher Interview
Teacher Interviews
The classroom teacher can also provide valuable information about how the student is using their vision to complete activities in school and get around in the school environment. They can provide input on the quality and quantity of class work, the students reading level and how they interact with peers. They can also provide information on what accommodations the student is using and if they are using prescribed devices including glasses. Your district may have a teacher interview tool or you are welcome to use the one to the left to help guide you in possible questions to ask the classroom teacher.  Teacher MD/PreK Interview
PreK/MD Teacher Interviews
Students in preschool classrooms and in self-contained classrooms will spend the majority of their day with their teacher. The questions you ask these teachers will be different than those you may ask a teacher of an academic content area. You may use this form to help guide you through the interview.  Student Interview
Student Interviews
When possible (if the student is verbal or otherwise able to communicate), it is also important to talk directly with students about their vision and gather information about what they are having difficulty seeing or concerns they have. Interviewing the student can provide a way for the Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments to develop a rapport with the student. This is an ideal time to discover how much the student knows about their visual impairment and their ability to explain it in simple, understandable terms. Ask the student what they have difficulty seeing or if there is a strategy they have found helps. It is helpful to discover how the student perceives themselves. Do they perceive themselves as blind or their difficulty seeing things or do they view themselves as having normal vision? This is also a natural time to discuss the students hobbies and their preferences as well as if they have goals for their future.  Strategies & Tips for Conducting a FVELMA Presentation
I have created a page covering items discussed during my presentation on conducting the FVELMA. Included is the PowerPoint, resources I use in conducting the FVELMA, and templates. Become a member for free to access this page as well as other presentation pages and printables.
|
Free MembershipSign 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.
TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC: An Activities Based Curriculum for Teaching Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired
$50.00
Written specifically for fellow itinerant Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments (TVI’s), this book 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. The core activities listed in the Activity section can be adapted to each thematic unit. These include:
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. Unique Concepts within the Units include:
Although the intended audience of this resource is fellow Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments, special education teachers may find these activities beneficial to the students in their classrooms as the activities are multisensory and include life skills and concepts needed by all students. This resource, however, is not intended to take the place of a Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments (TVI). Readers are advised to consult their own TVI’s regarding instruction in the ECC and the unique visual needs of the student’s served in their programs. Note: This curriculum is a digital pdf download. 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. Each download is intended for single instructor use per copyright. Thank you for helping me preserve the content and not distributing copies to third parties. Product details Digital pdf download: 364 pages (11 pt font) Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments Author: Carmen Willings Language: English 
Visual Efficiency & Magnifier Fluency Grab & Go ECC Supplements
$20.00
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 supplement 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. Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheet Details: Digital pdf download: 210 pages Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments Author: Carmen Willings Language: English |
