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    Joined: Jan 2017
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    I am not sure where to put this question and I thought maybe this forum was the closest thing.

    I have a 20 month old toddler who can do many things that I have taught him or he's learned from youtube or apps. He can identify, say and make using magnetic numbers any number from 1-100. He can skip count by 5 and 10 up to 100 and starting to by 2's up to 20. He knows and can recognize one thousand and one million as well and he'll count by thousands. He can do simple addition and subtraction within 10 using my fingers. He can recognize simple addition and subtraction equations and read them to find an answer. He knows some basic fractions - e.g. two halves make a whole, 3 thirds make a whole.

    In terms of reading, he is able to sight read between 75 and 100 words. We have some simple board books that I have read to him and now he is able to read at least half of the words in these books. He can spell probably 10-15 words using wooden letters. He understands what consonants and vowels and can recognize simple punctuation.

    He is also severely visually impaired. In the best situations, he cannot see more than 2-3 feet in front of him (and what he does see is very blurry and unclear unless it is only 2-3 inches away from his eyes) and in the worst situations, he cannot see at all. Just as an example, we have a 72 inch tv screen and to be able to see he sit about 1 foot away from the screen.

    My toddler has an IFSP with the local school district and receives infant services through them. A teacher for the visually impaired visits once a week and provides play activities for him.

    He is at the point where he is doing things that children who enter kindergarten will do. Children with similar impairments at that age receive a lot of tools to help them with their school work - e.g. video magnifiers, slantboards, special paper, special markers, etc. I would like for my son to have access to these tools, but I've been told that for the infant program the funds are pooled together and toys are bought for the children to use. The best they've done is to give him a few braille books to look through.

    Does anyone know how I could appeal something like this so I can get him the tools that might help him.


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    The challenge is that an IFSP is designed around children with normative weaknesses--that is, delayed compared to typically-developing peers. The plan should service his area of identified weakness, but is not required to address his areas of strength. It's not an IEP, which is educationally focused (even then, supporting strength areas is not always required). Asynchronous development is expected in very young children, so intrapersonal discrepancies don't hold much weight in EI, as long as the skills are all at least within normal limits. Trying to gain access to the vision tools you've named on the basis of access to academic instruction is likely to be ineffective, since there is no mandate for academic progress at this level. You might have more success with this in another 13 months, when he is 2-9, and you enter the handoff stage to the IEP team. (An IEP can't be implemented until age three, but you should start transitioning a few months earlier; most districts will talk to you beginning at 2-9.)


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    Welcome!

    Both aeh and Portia offer great advice and information. smile

    I'll just add that you might want to check out the National Federation of the Blind (NFB)... especially their summer camp for students 4-12: BELL Academy, Braille Enrichment for Literacy and Learning.

    If your state is not on the list for 2017, you might want to start now, to see whether your state could get involved... it appears that age-wise your child would be eligible to attend in 2019.

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    So maybe you could go to a private charity like the Lions club (one of their philanthropic areas is vision) and.explain to the chapter the situation and maybe they could give you a grant for equipment. Or maybe they might know who could help.

    Trying to think outside the box.

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    Oh also learn how to use the accessibility features and Apps on common technology like iPads and computers. If you have an iPad the Apple Store could go over those features with you. Oh! That might be something the Lions club could get for you.

    The augmentative and alternative communication/technology department (AAC/T) of your school district. Might not be able to provide services but surely they could tell you names of apps, technology, and equipment they recommend for low vision elementary school kids. Also they probably run tons of workshops, you could ask to attend any on low vision technology and elementary students.

    Oh and in my state (Fl) we have something called CARD (Center for Autism and related disorders which includes those who are deaf and blind- as in have both conditions. Not saying your state has exactly that but maybe there is something like that in your state. They are very familiar with autistic children being 2e (both gifted and autistic). So they would certainly understand gifted and low vision and the conundrum of EI only serving the low vision the way they are doing it. They are so tuned into this world I bet they would send you in the right direction. So maybe your state has something similar.

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    Thanks all for the advice.

    Aeh - Those are exactly my issues and concerns right now. It really isn't that long to wait and I know my son well enough that I can figure out what works for him and what doesn't in the meantime. I hope that the IEP will give him some of those tools.

    Portia - I am trying to figure out right now whether or not Braille makes sense for him. He has enough vision to read large text but as he gets older it will get more and more difficult to find & carry large text books and braille has advantages in that situation.

    Spaghetti - My state does have a school for the blind. It is part of our school district. I'd like for him to go for a year when he is older so he can get some of the skills he may need when he is older. We do have a TVI (teacher for the visually impaired) visit us once a week. She is our conduit for all that information.

    Cookie - I've reached out to the Lion's Club when he was much younger to see if they could help with some glasses for him and since his vision condition was so unique they didn't have anything available. I might reach out again - I don't know. I am really not good at asking for help and am not sure how to even go about it. I will ask the TVI about the AAC/T.

    Thank you all again.


    Last edited by citymom2; 01/27/17 02:03 AM.

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