Online Family Resources

by Carmen Willings
www.teachingvisuallyimpaired.com
Updated March 22, 2024
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When families first learn their child is blind or has a visual impairment, they face an emotional impact and may have a difficult time trying to cope with the diagnosis.  Families will typically search for support and resources to learn more about the specific diagnosis and also seek to learn how to help their child learn and provide the best support and resources for their child. The following resources will help parents connect with support groups and other families with children who are blind or visually impaired. ​

Blind Babies Foundations ​

The Blind Babies Foundations mission is to provide family centered services to support children's optimal development and access to the world. As of July 1, 2014, Blind Babies Foundation became a program of Junior Blind. The website provides parent education and resources including a fact sheets on CVI (also available in Japanese), ROP, retinal diseases, optic nerve hypoplasia, and albinism. 

Blind Children's Center

The Blind Children's Center is a family centered organization supporting children with visual impairments. It offers a range of publications and resources including educational books, booklets and videos.

Braille Bug

Braille Bug is a website by the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB). It is an excellent resource and a wealth of information for peers or siblings to learn more about braille, it's history and activities. It is geared not only to children interested in learning more about braille, but to teachers and parents as well. It provides information about braille including its history, a reading club, games to play, information about Louis Braille and Helen Keller as well as information for parents and teachers.

Center for Parent Information and Resources

This website serves as a central resource of information and products to a network of parent training and resource centers that focus on serving families of children with a variety of disabilities including visual impairments and blindness. It also provides a listing of categories of disabilities under IDEA.

Dots for Families

Dots for Families is designed for family members, teachers of children with visual impairments, and others interested in promoting literacy opportunities for young children with visual impairments.

FamilyConnect

FamilyConnect is an online, multimedia community created by the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) and the National Association for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments (NAPVI). This site gives parents of visually impaired children a place to support each other, share stories and concerns, and link to local resources.

Foundation for Blind Children (FBC) ​

Foundation for Blind Children (FBC) serves the blind and visually impaired of all ages, from birth to currently 102 years old. With three Phoenix-area campuses, FBC provides education, tools and services that enable ALL persons with vision loss to achieve greater independence. The organization’s vision is to have a world where vision loss is a diagnosis, not a disability.

The Louis Braille Center

The Louis Braille Center offers a catalog of braille books for all ages, a Saturday Program for children who are blind or visually impaired, and an information section for school children interested in learning about braille.

Lutheran Braille Workers

The mission of Lutheran Braille Workers is to provide the message of salvation, through faith in Jesus Christ to individuals who are blind and visually impaired throughout the world. They provide quality Bibles and Christian publications in braille and large print formats to individuals who are blind or visually impaired for free. They produce titles in 30 languages through the work of 5000 volunteers in about 200 centers across the United States.

Magic Foundation

Magic Foundation is a national non-profit organization created to provide support services for the families of children diagnosed with a wide variety of chronic and/or critIcal disorders, syndromes and diseases that affect a child's growth.

National Organization of Parents and Blind Children (NOPBC) 

This is the New Jersey chapter of the National Organization of Parents and Blind Children (NOPBC) provides families with support, encouragement, and information.  The organization works to overcome lack of understanding about childhood blindness.  Although membership to this organization is open to professionals serving children who are blind, its mission is focused toward families.

The National Organization of Parents and Blind Children (NOPBC)

The National Organization of Parents and Blind Children (NOPBC) provides families with support, encouragement, and information.  The organization works to overcome lack of understanding about childhood blindness.  Although membership to this organization is open to professionals serving children who are blind, its mission is focused toward families.

​Wonder Baby

Wonder Baby is a project funded by Perkins School for the Blind and is dedicated to helping parents of young children with visual impairments as well as multiple disabilities. It includes articles, Q&A, resource, a blog, newsletter as well as giveaways.