Music activities can provide students with the opportunity to: develop an appreciation for all types of music; develop a mode of self-expression; develop listening skills; use positive expressions of feelings; improve coordination and rhythm; increase language skills; develop awareness of rhythm; and develop space awareness through movement.
Take advantage of music time to sing songs which use names. This can help all students get to know the names of their peers. This is also an excellent time for students to get their wiggles out prior to whole group discussions and activities that require longer periods of sitting and attending. Create an object box with real or real like objects (see the box above). Have each object represent a song and allow the students to select an object to determine what song to sing. (Tip: close your eyes and feel in the bin. Are the items recognizable? Keep in mind that you have the advantage of a visual memory.) Many students listen to the songs but don’t seem to participate. Consider recording some of the songs to encourage the student to practice and sing along first at home.
Teach Concepts Through Music & Movement
Take advantage of this time to teach body concepts and positional concepts through songs that teach concepts such as Hap Palmer or Greg & Steve. Incorporate songs that require students to follow directions and perform actions. Remember a student who is severely visually impaired cannot learn by observing and imitating the actions of others. You may need to physically put the student through the actions of the song or allow the student to experience the actions you are performing. Also incorporate simple finger-plays to develop finger dexterity.
Choose songs that will provide practice with concepts such as in/out, like/different, up/down, front/back or encourage identification of body parts. Provide a variety of musical instruments to play along with the songs/music. Work with the students on their listening skills. Provide experiences that focus on the auditory discrimination of people’s voices, instruments and sounds related to activities. Teach the differences in sound, pitch, rhythm, speed, volume, move, dance, share space and learn names of body parts. Move from simple sound identification to tonal and volume discrimination, to the reproduction of sound, to discriminating between similar or different sounds.
The following is a list of songs that incorporate directional concepts, a variety of actions and teach body parts. Structure the situation by:
Using hand under hand demonstration of actions. Demonstrate with the students body, how to perform actions or let the student feel how your body is moving.
Model the action and verbally prompt the student as the student follows along.
CD: Sally the Swinging Snake by Hap Palmer
Song Title & Concept/Skill/Vocabulary:
Something Special: Clap, walk, shake, high, low, in between, side, other side, back Rubber Band Man: thumbs, shoulder, wrist, ankle, arms, stomach, toes, elbows, fingers, nose, stretch, snap, land softly, hang loose, stretch tight, bend left, twist right, far apart, together , long, thin, short, wide Dancing with a Stick: Inside, outside, hands, foot, elbow, shoulder, head, whole self
CD: Walter the Waltzing Worm by Hap Palmer
Song Title & Concept/Skill/Vocabulary:
What a Miracle: Hands, feet, arms, legs, spine, foot, clap, stamp, swing, bend, stretch, twist, balance Flick a Fly: thumbs, shoulder, wrist, ankle, arms, stomach, toes, elbows, fingers, nose, stretch, snap, land softly, hang loose, stretch tight, bend left, twist right, far apart, together , long, thin, short, wide Dancing with a Stick: Inside, outside, hands, foot, elbow, shoulder, head, whole self
Book with Tape: Music for Little People by John M. Feierabend
Song Title & Concept/Skill/Vocabulary:
Head & Shoulders, Knees & Toes Head, shoulders, knees, toes, eyes, ears, mouth, nose The Wiggle Song: Thumbs, wiggle, fingers, hands, arms, head, legs, all of me Mother Goonie Bird right wing, left wing, right foot, left foot, head, sit down The Jack-in-the-Box Up, jump, flop, around, plop
The Body Rock feet, arms, head, hands, hips, knees The Freeze stopping on command Tummy Tango left and right
CD: Kidding Around by Greg & Steve
Hokey Pokey (Part 1 & 2) Turn yourself around, right hand, left hand , right foot, left foot, head, whole self
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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:
Object Characteristic Activities
Quantity & Number Concepts
Time Concept Activities
Environment & Job Awareness Activities
Listening Skills Activities
Reading Foundation Activities
Reading Fluency Activities
Braille Basics Activities
Writing Activities
Tactual Efficiency Activities
Developing Skillful Hands Activities
Visual Efficiency Activities
Optical Device Instruction Activities
Recipe Activities
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:
Self Advocacy Activities (e.g. advocating for safe classroom, presenting to class on visual impairment, requesting help and more)
Social Skills Activities (e.g. Being bullied or teased, giving and receiving compliments, body language, "I" messages when upset and more)
Recreation & Leisure Activities (e.g. exploring interest areas, getting involved in clubs and sports, playing games, and more)
O&M Support Activities (e.g. Suggestions for community based experiences, dog guide information, locations in the school, bioptics, ride sharing, traffic signs, and more)
Independent Living Skill Activities (e.g. chores, being responsible, using tools, recipe suggestions, hygiene, staying healthy, labeling foods and products, and more)
Sensory Efficiency Activities (e.g. unique sensory experiences related to the unit, unique optical device activities, and more)
Compensatory Activities (e.g. organizing materials, study habits, and many unique concepts related to the unit)
Career & Vocational Activities (e.g. job awareness, completing applications, job task suggestions, and more)
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
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
