ECC Valentine's Day Activities

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! It's that time of year to stock up on CVI supplies since so many stores are carrying shiny red everything. Hit up our favorite CVI supply hot spots like Dollar Tree and Michael's for sweet deals. I was just at Michael's and they have all Valentine's day decorations for 40% off. 

I teamed up again with our awesome preschool teacher, Annie, to develop some Valentine's Day that teach Expanded Core skills and are fun to do. At our school (Utah School for the Blind), we are big on using curriculum that is specific for children with vision impairments. One of our favorite curriculums is the Texas School for the Blind Elementary Concepts Curriculum (if you don't know much about this, come right back to my blog because I am blogging about it NEXT!).  We used some units from TSBVI ECC with some fun ideas we found on Pinterest to create some awesome Expanded Core Valentine's Day activities. 

Check them out:

Activity #1: Love Potion

Source: http://preschoolpowolpackets.blogspot.com/2014/01/love-potions-valentine-science.html?m=1

Materials: kool aid, clear cups, Sprite, water, red food coloring

Activity: Students can choose to make their love potion using water and kool aid or with Sprite and food coloring. Students can compare and contrast flavors and taste.

Expanded Core Main Areas: ILS, SD, SS, SE

Activity #2 Conversation Hearts

From TSBVI ECC Friend Unit (page 24)

Materials: candy conversation hearts, cutout hearts

Activity: teacher writes/Braille conversation starters and finisher on hearts. Each student takes a turn selecting a heart and identifies if it is a conversation starter or finisher. Teachers can put print words in a smaller print to create a magnifier use activity. Students may use a magnifier to read the print. Students can eat conversation hearts on their turn.  Follow objectives a, b and d from Others Unit B: Friends, page 24 in TSBVI ECC

Expanded Core Main Areas: SS, Comp, SD, CE, C

Write conversation phrases on hearts. Use an optical device to practice reading or locating text.

Add a Braille label for students who are learning Braille. 

Activity #3 Friendship Cookie

From TSBVI ECC Friend Unit page 30

Materials: cookie dough, cookie cutter

Activity: From TSBVI ECC, follow activity #3. Activity #5 for an additional cooking activity. Students each make their own cookie and then they merge them together to make one big cookie. If possible, let the kids put them in/take out the oven.

Expanded Core Main Areas: ILS, SS, SD, SE

Activity #4 Heart Hunt

Materials: cutout hearts in a variety of colors and textures

Activity: Send students on a heart hunt. Give them a selected color or texture to find around the wheelchair tray, classroom or the hallway.

Expanded Core Main Areas: OM, SE, SD, C

Activity #5 Heart Attack

Materials: cutout hearts in different colors/textures, directions cards

Activity: Students can select a classroom door to “heart attack”. Teachers prepare 4 different direction cards with up or top, down or bottom, left and right printed on them in print and Braille. Teachers can draw an arrow (and add texture for blind students) to indicate directions. Students select a direction card and put the heart on the door that correlates to the direction. For example, student selects “bottom” card and places the heart on the bottom of the door.

Expanded Core Main Areas: OM, C, SS, RL, SE

direction cards. Annie put the card on the door and her student had to place their valentine heart in the correct direction. 

Some heart cutouts used puff paint for texture. Other hearts were made with textured paper from the Carousel of Textures from APH. 

Transition Activity Calendar

Transition is a big topic for our youths with vision impairments. There are a lot of great new resources for education teams to work on transition. I want to share this awesome resource from the National Technical Assistance Center (NTAC) on Blindness and Vision Impairment. They have an amazing activity calendar that starts at middle school age. They have a link for an overview on the Expanded Core Curriculum (I love that!).  The activity calendar comes with a download version for Word and helpful information links throughout the calendar. Everything on the calendar is reader friendly so it is all easy to understand and use. 

I highly recommend this transition activity calendar to all families and education teams. There are so many great activities to help prepare for transition. Remember that transition does not mean employment only. Transition is about helping our youths move from education world to adulthood. I love that the transition activity calendar starts at middle school. It's a great place to start because waiting until 16 years old can be too late. There are so many experiences and skills that our youths need to have (and refine) to become successful, independent adults. 

Here's the link (bookmark it, share it, use it!):

http://www.ntac.blind.msstate.edu/consumers/tac/

Truth Bomb for Parents of All Kids Including Children with Vision Impairments

Hello friends. It's good to be back!! I was on a little hiatus with writing. That is because I was privileged to be part of a writing team that is putting together an ECC app---yay!! I am so excited for it and will definitely share the moment it comes out. 

This post comes from a fun mom that I love to watch, Kristina Kuzmic. I watch her videos because as a parent, I totally relate to her. This particular video was one that reflects my own parenting style. I also thought about for parents of children with vision impairments. 

I thought about my parents because this is an area that many struggle with. Many parents these days struggle with this as Kristina points out. My parents of children with vision impairments sometimes miss giving opportunities for independence at home. This often times requires more hands-on time for instruction but the reward is so great! I know, I know that some of you are saying that your chid argues with you when you ask them to do something or try to teach a skill. Guess what! You are not alone!! Parents across the country are struggling with this too. Myself included. Most kids do not want to do chores. Most do not want to do them again because the first time they did a sloppy job. Most times we are not the "fun parents". We say no to our kids. We hold them accountable. 

I love the quote "Don't handicap your child by making their lives easy." (Robert Heinlein). Chores are a natural aspect to the Expanded Core Curriculum for children with vision impairments. There is much to be gained when kids with vision impairments take on responsibility at school and at home. 

Enjoy Kristina. She makes me laugh every time. I laugh because I agree and because it is my life. I love my kids just as I know my parents of children with vision impairments love theirs. 

Easy Accessible Christmas Activities

Hello Friends!

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Happy Hanukkah!

I know it may seem that I have been gone from my blog but rest assured, I haven't! Here is a big post with all the recent projects I have been working on. I recently put together ideas for an accessible Christmas for toddlers to school age kiddos. Check back next week because I have something for middle and high schoolers that I am doing this week. The original ideas all came from Pinterest and Wonderbaby. I do site the original site on each idea.

I also recommend that you read the article, Holiday Survival for Kids with Sensory Impairments on Wonderbaby.org  (link: http://www.wonderbaby.org/articles/wonderbaby-holiday-survival-guide). I also recommend Tactile Holidays over on Thomas Marshall Does it All blog (link: http://www.thomasmarshalldoesitall.com/tactile-holidays/).

Here are some of my favorite Christmas and winter holiday activities:

What’s in the stocking Christmas game?

Source:
http://littlewondersdays.blogspot.com/2010/12/whats-in-stocking.html

Accessibility options:
· Trade objects found around the house to objects specifically pertaining to Christmas such as an ornament, mitten, candy cane, Christmas lights, mistletoe, etc.

· Game option 1: Ask kids to go find a few small items in the house and bring them secretly to me so I could put them into a Christmas stocking. Then I added a few common items myself and invited the kids to sit with me. We took turns passing the stocking and reaching in to identify an object with only our hands.

· Game option 2: Play a match style. Have two sets of objects. Velcro one set of objects to the stocking and place the other set of objects around the walls of the house (to work on trailing) or place objects on the floor with you.

· Use objects that teach about Christmas such as a bow, candy cane, gingerbread man, mini nutcracker, jingle bells, little present, garland. The stocking can be a lesson by itself!

· This can be a fun game to talk about Christmas concepts. It also can promote discovery of objects, object permanence and introduce specific things about Christmas.

The Sweet Smell of Christmas

·  Can be purchased from any bookstore or Amazon for $5.64.
· this book is a scratch and sniff book that can also use objects to teach about concepts of Christmas.
· Scent is a fun way to teach about the holiday season.
· You can use the stickers for smell.

Objects to add to the story (these are items that are discussed during the story):
· Pine cone
· Tinsel
· Candy canes

· Garland
· Gingerbread cookie cutter or gingerbread cookie
· Orange
· Hot chocolate
· Presents
· Mini Christmas tree

Christmas Tree Discovery Bottle Activity

·  Source: http://www.sunnydayfamily.com/2015/11/christmas-tree-in-bottle.html




Materials:
· Voss water bottles (can be purchased from Smiths)
· garland
· ornaments
· mini lights
Great for babies
Portable
Easy to switch out materials
Fun I Spy game
Make more than one!

DIY Portable Light Box

Source: http://theimaginationtree.com/2013/01/diy-light-box-for-sensory-play.html

Many kiddos with vision impairments like using light boxes (or light tables) but they can big to carry around to holiday parties.

Make a portable one!
Materials:
Small clear container (buy them from Walmart or Target)
Battery powered lights
Window clings (encourage family members to have them at their house. They are a cheap and fun way to play on the light box). 

**I've made so many of these!! They work great and so many other kids use them!**

 Holiday Scent Jars

Scent jars is a fun way to work on sensory efficiency development.
They are great for little ones that a sensitive to touch or have lesser motor control.
They are easy to make!

Materials:
Essential oils
Cotton balls
Scentsicals (scent sticks that can be purchased from Walmart or Michaels for about $5).
Empty shaker jars or sandwich bags.

You can match scent to true object (see picture above) or you can have just the scent jar.
*Be careful to not introduce too many scents at one time. Introduce scents one at a time.
It’s okay to really make a strong scent. Subtle scents may not provide enough to catch attention.

Magnetic Christmas Tree Activity

Have some fun decorating the tree! You can also swap out the tree and make a present or a gingerbread man.

The lights are added for some visual attention for little ones who are attracted to lights.
Add an outline to the shape using puff paint or pipe cleaners for little ones with no vision. Remember to be careful for visual clutter. Pick simple colors that don’t have too much patterns.

· Cookie sheet (buy the cheap ones for about $1)
· Bows and ornaments (I used bows because I worried that little ornaments might be a choking concern).
· Magnets and hot glue
· Battery pack of lights taped on the inside ledge of cookie sheet

My Christmas 5 Senses Book

 I took out the word “I” so that we can focus on the sense and not on any potential limitations. Even if a sense is limited, it still can be discussed with little ones.

Materials:
-Cardstock (I laminated it for issues with drool and to make it more durable. They do make non glare laminate)
-Hot glue
-objects

**I've made so many of these books and they turn out great!!**

Christmas Photo Tree Activity

Butcher paper Christmas tree activity
Can use pictures of items or people that your little one will see during the holiday.
Use objects such as ornaments, pieces of garland, candy canes for little ones with no vision.
Outline the tree with garland, pipe cleaners or anything that can provide a tactual outline.

Materials:
Butcher paper (or construction paper)
Velcro
Pictures

Sensory Centerpieces

Have some fun things to explore during the holiday season. Make sensory centerpieces or table decorations that can also be an activity, too!

Materials:
-hurricane vases or large plastic bowls
-battery powered lights
-ornaments, pine cones (with scent!)

 Winter Activity

Source:http://www.notimeforflashcards.com/2014/01/snow-window-winter-activity-for-kids.html

Christmas isn’t the only thing to talk about during the holiday season. Winter has many sensory opportunities!
Some little ones may not be able to touch ice or snow easily. Bring the winter activities to them!
Teach about ice, frost and snow:

-Frosted window activity using contact paper (use the sticky side), painters tape, hot glue snowflakes, snowflake ornaments, cotton balls
-Head to Michael’s and get some flocked branches and mini trees. Cut them up and let them compare and contrast flocked trees and evergreen trees
-freeze some items such as cranberries, wreaths, pine cones, etc and discover items.

 Christmas Tree Sensory Bags

· Source: http://www.giftofcuriosity.com/christmas-tree-sensory-bags/#_a5y_p=2781860
These can be used on the light box too!

The Christmas tree in the original idea doesn’t have enough contrast. I took a pipe cleaner and glued it to the outside of the bag to provide better accessibility.

The bags focus on the sensory opportunity so allow your little one to squish, pat and grab the bag.

Don’t forget about the feet! Some little ones don’t like to use their hands just yet so let them stomp with their feet or lay on it with their head or other parts of their body.

**I've so many of these, too! They are so fun! I used different scented gels and aloe vera gel.

Materials:
-quart or gallon bags
-hair gel
-sequins and buttons
-glue
-pipe cleaners