By: Carmen Willings teachingvisuallyimpaired.com Updated October 28, 2017
All students need to learn to manage their time, but this is an especially important skill for students with visual impairments and particularly for students who are blind. Students will need to have a structured schedule in order to anticipate events and know daytime activities from nighttime activities.
Time Concepts
In order to manage their time and structure their day, they will need to have a basic understanding of time concepts. Time concept words include: now, later, fast, slow, before, after, during, past, future, next and finished. Understanding time concepts will help students make sense of their world, pace themselves and prepare them for activities.
Encourage the student to:
be prepared for activities when they begin.
identify time frames for completing learning experiences.
demonstrate ability to use a watch/clock.
keep a schedule of activities for the day, week, and month, electronically and/or on paper.
plan work schedule for studies and class projects.
Keep Track of Assignements
Of course it is important for all students, but particularly students with visual impairments to learn how to keep track of their school assignments. Organizing school materials will assist students in keep track of them. Students can use their iPad or iPod to take pictures of the board where assignments are written. The picture can then be viewed and referred to in order to stay on top of assignments.
Encourage the students to:
use a homework folder to record homework assignments or take pictures of assignments on the board with their iPad.
turn in homework assignments on time.
develop methods needed to complete classroom assignments (e.g., assignment sheets).
Six-Ring Binder for Braille This binder, available through APH, is designed to be used with a mini slate and stylus. The student is able to write quick notes using the slate and stylus.
Specialty Watches
Low vision watches have larger faces and bold numbers for easy viewing. They are available from a variety of venders including Maxi Aids, Independent Living Aids and Amazon.
Talking watches are available that allow the time to be heard at the press of a button. These watches are also available from a variety of vendors.
Braille watches are available that feature faces that flip open allowing the student to feel the braille numbers and tactual hands.
Time Keeping Apps...
Free Alarmed is Voice Over friendly. It features a notes area with reminders. It also has a multi-feature timer, alarm clock with snooze option and a sleep alarm. It also has a flashlight.
$0.99 The Pocket Time app allows the user to know the time without taking their iphone out of their pocket. The app uses motion sensing software to activate the speaking clock.
Free. Shake: Time app is a gesture based clock. Once the gestures are learned, the user can fully access the time without touching the screen.
$0.99 The Talking Clock for iPhone for iPhone is a an app that allows you to hear the time when the screen is touched. It can also be programed to announce the time in intervals.
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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
