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Innovation at RBS The Royal Blind School is working to develop, promote and share
good practice in the education of children and young adults with
little or no vision and has developed links, both nationally and
internationally, with professionals and organisations working in the
same field. ‘This Little Finger’, written by Mary
Lee, principal teacher at the Royal Blind School, Edinburgh, was
supported by a grant from the Home Reading Initiative, Scottish
Executive. It is the result of a cooperative initiative between the
Royal National Institute of the Blind, Scotland, the Royal Blind
School, Edinburgh, and the Visual Impairment Unit at Darnley
Primary, Glasgow. The pack has been compiled for the purpose of
enabling parents to develop in their young child with visual
impairment, an understanding of early concepts, language and
eventually books and symbols. Activities are outlined in the pack
that parent and child can do together as part of their everyday
routine. It explains the importance of these activities in helping
the child to understand the world and build on his or her understanding of
language and symbols. It introduces some fun activities that parent
and child can do together when going to the shops, going out for a
walk or during a quiet afternoon in the house. The emphasis is on
concrete experience and personal involvement. Finally it introduces
the different ways that reading can be made accessible to a child
with visual impairment, either through large print or tactile
methods. The pack is designed to be used in discussion with a home
visiting teacher (HVT) or nursery staff. Pages may be freely
photocopied, so that information can be used only as and when it
becomes relevant to the individual family. From School to Resource Centre (An EU Comenius 1 School
Development Project): This project investigates ways in which
special schools for pupils with little or no vision can develop a
national resource centre role to help support the education of all
children and young adults with a visual impairment regardless of
placement. ImPAct MDVI (An EU Comenius 2.1 Teacher Training Project):
This project addresses the concerns of teachers of children and
young adults with Multiple Disabilities and Visual Impairment
(MDVI) as to how they are expected to integrate the diverse
curriculum elements and particular skills they have been taught
into a meaningful Individualised Educational Programme (IEP).
Article: Non verbal communication and the Canaan Barrie adapted
signs for young people with visual impairment (first published in
RNIB Eye Contact Magazine (40) Autumn 2004). “It is now almost ten years since the publication of Movement,
Gesture and Sign by Mary Lee and Lindi MacWilliam and the launch
on the wider world of MDVI education, of the Canaan Barrie ‘on
body’ signs, as developed by staff at The Royal Blind School in
Edinburgh...” |
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