“They’re Not Ready Yet” – Why Waiting to Begin Independent Living Instruction at Home Widens Deficits and Prevents Future Independence For blind children, a common barrier to ECC (Expanded Core Curriculum) instruction taking place at home, particularly in the area of independent living, is unintentional parental attitudes. The parents or caregivers often perceive that the… Read more Don’t Wait to Start Independent Living Instruction
I’ve used various screen magnification softwares regularly since elementary school. People assume ZoomText distributed by Freedom Scientific, is the apex product on the market. I strongly disagree. ZoomText has fancy features but causes a lot of problems. Primarily, it slows up your system so much as to eventually make it unusable. The longer it runs, the slower… Read more Screen Magnification Software: Zoomtext vs. Windows Magnifier
Freedom Scientific’s Convenient OCR The term OCR refers to Optical Character Recognition or the process by which a camera captures an image and the software processes it into a digitally readable format. The Convenient OCR feature built into the JAWS screen reader from Freedom Scientitifc can scan to recognize several elements including image files, inaccessible… Read more Two Practical OCR Options: Convenient OCR through JAWS vs. Seeing AI’s Document Channel
In my experience, thorough, instinctive keyboard skills are an absolute prerequisite to successfully learning computer navigation with a screen reader, especially for those transitioning from being a mouse user. I have students use my personal iPad in class regularly as it’s a whole lot easier than dealing with IT for everything I want to install… Read more Talking Typer iOS: Accessible Typing App for the Blind
Electro-Optical Systems share the same basic components, but executions can vary widely. Examples include desktop, portable, transportable, handheld, and wearable video magnification systems, sometimes called CCTVs. A unique entry in the transportable category of electronic video magnifiers is the Lime Lighter from Dancing Dots. Specially designed for accessing sheet music, this is a foot-pedal controlled music… Read more Low VIsion Access to Sheet Music
Providing children with an accessible school day is essential for learning to take place. But for kids with a CVI (brain-based visual impairments), an accessible day means more than adapting the classroom environment and materials to support functioning. Visual fatigue plays a large role in the lives of children with CVI. It can cause soar… Read more The Necessity of Visual Breaks for Kids with CVI
LIGHT Reaction to Changing Light Levels In addition to interviewing parents about their child’s reaction to changing light levels, it is also important to observe the child’s behavior when encountering these changing light levels. For example, does the child stop on the threshold at the door when coming back in from recess? Do they pull… Read more Key Testing Protocols for CVI
When we are presented with an object, we must have two skills to recognize it: sustained gaze and shift of gaze. Sustained gaze means a certain amount of time is needed for processing to occur or the item will not be remembered or recognized. Shift of gaze is also crucial for a full understanding. In… Read more Why Shift of Gaze Deficits Are So Detrimental to Kids with CVI
Medical Professionals Don’t Recognize or Look for CVI Far too common among parents of kids with CVI is the story of struggle to obtain a correct diagnosis. Misdiagnosis and underdiagnosis are far too common and both lead to barriers acquiring access to appropriate educational services. Rachel Bennet declared at the 2019 Perkins CVI Symposium that:… Read more 3 Common Themes from Parents of Kids with CVI
1. CVI Means an Under-Connected Network According to Dr. Lotfi Merabet, the main difference in brain structure between ocular blindness and CVI is in the amount of connectivity. With ocular blindness, the brain’s connections and pathways are as strong as normal or even stronger when compared to brain imaging of sighted controls. The network that… Read more 5 Fascinating Concepts about CVI and the Visual Brain