The elements within the expanded core curriculum are foundational to success in the general curriculum and in life. They are the body of knowledge and skills we each of us need to function effectively in daily life and the building blocks that allow students to gain access to general curriculum content. These nine essential areas include: compensatory access, sensory efficiency, orientation and mobility, assistive technology, career education, self-determination, recreation and leisure, and independent living.
Sighted children are able to pick up many of these skills through incidental observation of others interacting with the environment. People use vision to gather more than two thirds of the information they get from their surroundings. Children who cannot use vision to obtain information are severely limited in their ability to acquire these skills indirectly. Without intervention, their opportunities in life would be limited. As incidental learning is not available to them, to become capable and effective individuals both in school and later in adult life, they must be directly taught this skill set. Furthermore, it should be emphasized that skills in many of these areas must first be acquired before the student can participate in typical classroom learning activities. For example, a blind high-schooler will need assistive technology instruction for computer access to complete the PowerPoint presentation his history teacher is having each student create as an end of unit project. He will also need social and communication skills to contribute to group discussion activities. He will need self-determination skills to advocate for accommodations and other instructional needs with his core teachers who may not always know what will help him access their coursework. He will need effective cane travel skills to navigate between classes in the school hallways safely. He will need career education to start becoming aware of the options available to him when he graduates. These are only a few reasons why thorough instruction in the expanded core curriculum is so fundamental for students with significant visual impairments, including and especially those with additional exceptionalities.