Activities for Visually
Impaired Students

I’m offering the following activities for visually impaired students especially for teachers. As well, some of this information gives you strategies for how to work with your disabled students.

This topic is close to my heart because I’ve lived with low vision for over 25 years now, due to a rare, genetic form of macular degeneration called Angioid streaks.

Through my personal experience, I know without a doubt that visually impaired students can live robust, empowering and independent lives.

Teachers and education administrators must know how to best set up our students for success.

Grooming & Dressing

These are great areas to teach at a young age because a student who knows how to properly present himself or herself will go far in their chosen career.

Through grooming activities, it’s possible to teach students with low vision how to know when they’re styled, clean and neat. Sessions on how to use separate containers to organize grooming items can be helpful.

Use color contrast as this makes it easy to identify each item.

These activities should focus on how to independently understand up/down, wide/narrow, in/out, front/back, matching, depth, etc.

Help students understand how all items during grooming feel, such as wet and dry hair, soap, sponges and towels, toothbrushes, etc.

Activities related to dressing, such as using buttonholes, pulling up slacks or zippers are powerful in terms of fostering independence.

Dressing activities should also focus on being able to tell if an article of clothing is right for weather conditions, social occasions, or work environment.

Classroom Activities for Visually Impaired Students

The best strategies for older students are to help them interact and succeed within the classroom.

For example:

• Provide enlarged copies of classroom materials
  
  
• Give plenty of time for students to find enlarged print or audio book versions of textbooks
  
  
• Be sure to speak anything you’re writing on the chalkboard
  
  
• Allow visually impaired students to sit at the front of the class
  
  
• Allow for recordings of all class sessions
  
  
• Be sure to keep classroom doors fully open
  

School Curriculum

Low vision schools offer a wide range of options to visually impaired students. For example, the Perkins School for the Blind offers curriculum options in areas such as accessing technology, leisure skills, Braille, social skills, mobility training, and independent living skills.

Some examples are:

• Math
• Science & Technology
• English Language Skills
• Music Therapy
• Piano Lessons
• Braille Music
• Occupational Therapy
• Speech & Language Therapy
• Adaptive Physical Education
• Art
• Keyboarding Skills
• Cooking
• Social Skills
• Self-help Skills
• Horticulture
• Recreation & Leisure Time Activities
  

Encourage the Use of Technology

Personally, I find the available modern day low vision aids and technology fascinating.

Through the use of high tech gear, all of us with low vision have the ability to live independent lives.

Be sure to encourage your students to make use of these advancements. Take the time to educate yourself on the latest screen reading software, book reading technologies, video magnifiers, etc.

Even what we may consider to be simplistic technology, such as task lighting and a reading stand for a second grader can be of immense help to students.

As well, learning activities for visually impaired students need to include more technologically advanced options such as telescopes for more easily seeing and reading a chalkboard.

If you’d like to know more about this aspect of activities for visually impaired students, I invite you to fill out the form below and I’ll send you my researched information on helpful low vision technology.

Low Vision > Low Vision Store > Activities for Visually Impaired Students

Top of Activities for Visually Impaired Students