TRANSCRIPT - Low Vision and O&M

>>Donna: Good afternoon, everyone. This is TSBBI outreach tech T time. Before we begin, let's review our goal that is to build a community of practice for technology. That will allow us to support each other. When we're teaching our students in the spirit of that goal, we want to be interactive. We are going to do so by using the Q&A and the chat if you will put questions for the panelists in the Q&A and general comments in the chat. Today's session is low vision and O and M with Audra Bishop and Kelly Nicolson coming back to visit us in tea time. I am going to Turn it over to them.

>>Audra: Alright, well I'm very happy everyone is here. I hope we're all surviving the end of the school year if you are working in schools. I know it's a little crazy right now. I am an O and in Fort Worth ISD. So am I. I'm Kelly Nicholson. I'm forward So we are partners in crime here in our district. And, as we went through and started putting this together. As it usually happens, it kind of morphs into other things we found. So we tried to organize it all to hit some of the points that kept coming up to us. When we were talking about things. So we will get started and as Donna said, if you'll put things in the Q&A, then we can address those questions and we will try to be sure. At the end to go over everything in all the questions. So some things we are going to. Plan to talk about today is what is low vision. I know most of us probably know that definition of it. But. As with all of our students. There's such a wide range. There's no real clear cut. This is definitely low vision. This is something else. So we'll talk a little bit about that. We'll also talk about parents, guardians, caregivers, and helping them understand low vision. As well as classroom teachers and school staff. And also students and having students kind of take ownership of their visual impairment. And we will be talking about the expanded court curriculum. That's well. So when we come up, with what is low vision, I was going through some of the resources. I have kind of accumulated over the last few years and One thing I will say that was good that came out of all of this COVID years was a lot of stuff got put into live binders. I started using P the literacy a lot more to find stuff just trying to find things to help my families. So it's kind of nice. I got to spend a lot of time looking at that stuff and find some resources. And so you'll see, in the PowerPoint there are links to where I found some of this information. So this was coming from paths to literacy and for educational purposes just low vision is typically an individual who reads print. And as a corrected visual acuity of 2070 or worse in the best eye. So that is also adds in some of our you know as some people like lack of a better term, our one-eyed kids who have maybe a pretty good eye and then a not so good eye. They fall into that category also. The majority of our low vision kids have poor distance vision. So that makes it challenging to obtain detailed information from whiteboard, smartboards, charts, etc, when they're out in the community traveling. Those are our kids that can't see a pedestrian walk sign across this street. Can't read a street sign. Can't see those traffic. Signals maybe can't really identify traffic. Very well. And like all of our kids, each individual is unique and is probably going to need specific support. So you may have several kids with the same eye condition. They all need something different. There's no kind of one size fits all for our students. And most can read print when the material is up close or with the assistance of devices. And as we know, a lot of our television kids don't want to use their devices because they don't want to look different, but they also think that, you know, reading things here and having pencil smudges on their nose is perfectly normal. So I have a 5th grader who we always know when she's been working hard in class because she'll have pencil all over her face. Sound that's Did you wanna talk? So. Parents, guardians and caregivers, of course. We just want to kind of talk about some of the options and things that you can do with parents to help them understand their low vision student. And our biggest thing that we like to do for our students is get those caregivers under the simulators. They need to kind of how their kids are seeing. I know we can't always simulate every single thing, but we can absolutely simulate at least their acuity so that they know. Have them do some activities at home. I did this with adults as well as I've done it with my students and their parents because it just really gives them that aha moment of oh my gosh my kids really can't see when I'm telling them to get all those crumbs off the table because they said they already cleaned it up. So have them, you know. Do some activities and some specific things we could of course was watch television. Have them describe a facial expression. Those are for those kids that, you know, parents are mean, mugging them and they have no idea because they can't see their parents face. Have them make a snack with those simulators on. Reading, of course, just reading something, anything with the simulator on and then walking out outside around the house, go to the moment They're corrected to 2,020 and they don't have that 2,017, 2,000 82,100 that low vision and then. Our thing that, Audra and I both have found with our low vision kids is visual fatigue. I specifically have a student. He does use a cane but has very minimal vision in the lower quadrant of one eye that is the only vision he has and he says after 30 min on a computer He's done. So they just parents don't understand why their kids are not, you know, maybe doing so well in school and they're having late assignments because they're exhausted and they want to come home and nap. So just things to keep in mind. And my favorite thing with the scintillators is having them do this and then when they take it off, be like, man, wouldn't it be nice if your kid could take those off? But they can't like that is what they deal with all the time and so our low vision kids a lot of times I tell people they kind of fake it. To make it, you know, and so they give the impression to people that they're doing really well. Because they are so used to it. They've been doing it for so long. They have been getting by. And so sometimes we forget how hard they're working like her student she was talking about. He can't come home and do homework after he's used all of that energy all day long. He comes home to take a nap. He's not going to do homework. He has no vision left to do those things. At that point. Oh, and then review the purpose of any device or equipment they're needed. So if they do need a cane, if they don't need a cane, describe it, or if they need those low vision devices, monoculars, or even the buses that they're using for their in the classroom. Just Talk to the teachers, CCTVs. Yes, explain it. Sometimes the VI teachers have already done a really awesome job of that. And sometimes maybe that we can just readiterate the fact and help them to understand the difference in the 2 of us as well. And then I already said that show them how to use the equipment whether it be you know the cane the monocular or the CCTV or you know any No, no, no, no, no, no, no, you're not used in the classroom. And you're gonna see some similarities here when we're talking about classroom teachers and school staff. And I always put school staff because I mean the custodian at your school, the secretaries, the administrative assistants, everyone at that school that interacts with your student needs to have some understanding of their vision. I have battled in one of my schools all year with certain teachers who continue to tell my student, he doesn't need a cane. He has a little bit of light perception. He is a Braille user. Trust me, he just came. But they like to, he, when in familiar area, he, he looks like he might be able to get around okay, you know, he kind of squeaks by. So they're like, he doesn't need his cane. Oh, he doesn't need it until he does a somersault down the stairs because he was running in the hall also. So. So the same thing, putting them in simulators and asking them to read from their smartboards. Ask them to describe your facial expression. Change the lighting you know they love to turn off half the lights in the classroom and sometimes that's great for some kids but for our low vision kids sometimes that makes the glare from their computer screen all the computer screens around them that smartboard makes it worse. For them. Have them sit in different places in the classroom and try to read the smartboard or all the pretty charts they have on the wall and everything else. And talk to them about visual fatigue because especially our kids are in middle school and high school and they're changing classes every period. So maybe you have a teacher there always like 5th period. They've already had 3 academic classes in the morning and they've been using their vision all day. By the time they get to that 5th period class, they have nothing left for that teacher and that teachers may not be getting the best. From that student on a daily basis. Well, why is it? Well, they just don't want to do the work. Well, maybe it's because they're so tired visually they don't have anything left to give you. So they have to understand those things. Those are things that We live it every day. We deal with it every day, all of the students we interact with have some form of visual impairment. So it's second nature to us to think about those things. But it's really hard to put yourself in another teachers. Shoes who hasn't had any of that training doesn't deal with it on a daily basis. And really doesn't understand it. So sometimes you have to say it again and again. But putting them under simulators really is helpful. We actually did a career day a couple of months ago and the teachers and the students wanted to go under simulator and use a cane and all of that. And one of the teachers after 5 min, she was like, I don't know how they do it. I don't know how they do it. I just, I don't know how they do it. How would they do this? How would they do that? I'm like, well, this is where we come in. But things they would never think of unless you actually put them in that situation, you can tell them all day long. You can send them videos, links to things to read. It's not the same as putting them under a simulator and have them try to actually do something. They're going to ask your student to do. And we just had them walk in the classroom with simulators on in the cane and just doing that she the teacher herself and never had a visually impaired student in her class. She was just like, They've got to have so much training. I can't imagine having a visual impairment and being able to do the cane and academics. So. And just to using the student's name anytime you address them or need their attention, it's second nature to us to use our students names. It may not always be to a teacher and especially when you have a student with low vision in a classroom. I actually run into this even with my students who are blind. You know, they may be raising their hand to ask a question. And the teacher is calling on someone else and that students answer and they don't realize they're. They're not being called upon and they can't see what's going on around them. Oh, she's calling on that person or that person also had their hand up. They just know themselves. They're in their little bubble. It's them. They're being ignored. That's what they feel like. And also we're doing the purpose of any device or equipment that's needed. I was in an art a couple of months ago and realized. The teachers didn't know what to call a CCPV. They knew it was the thing that made things bigger for my student, but they didn't know it was a CCTV and they were worried. They didn't know how to ask questions. They were having issues with some math stuff but didn't know what questions to ask and it's just Again, it goes back to we know the questions to ask because we've had the training. But our classroom teachers don't. So just keeping that in mind that they may. They may have questions, but they don't know what to ask you. So, and one more thing on that too, especially with the Kane as well for those safety issues and like fire drills and all of that, even though they're low vision. When it's a fire drill or a lockdown or whatever they're doing, it kind of sends everyone in a tizzy. And so the teachers need to know to walk through to make sure that that low vision kid is being observed. Or they already have a safety plan in place because it's it's super important for all the staff there whether it be just the safety plan in place because it's super important for all the staff there, whether it be just the classroom teacher or the custodian that comes and says, There needs to be some plan because it's going to be chaos. Even if it's, you know, a planned drill, it can be chaotic and that's extra chaotic for our students.

>>Donna: Audra, this is, Donna. When using the simulators. I know I I was sometimes hesitant and tried to Counteract the Rebecca. Rebound effect of that. Oh, goodness. No, they can't do this and keeping those expectations high Activities. That would address that during the activity.

>>Audra: I think sometimes if you can like set them up for something successful, they can so they can find that. Oh, you can do that. Oh, it is harder, but they can do that. And, you know, just trying to like help them problem solve like, okay, what are you seeing that you're finding as an issue? Oh, you're having trouble doing this. Well, let's put a simulator on and let's see if we can figure out like maybe, cause you know, you're looking at it with your vision too, so you may be missing what is the actual problem for the student. And if you put the simulator on too, you might be like, oh, I know what's going on here. And especially like with glare, a lot of times. The automatic thought when you turn off the lights is that it's gonna help the glare because you don't have those fluorescent lights or sometimes in some of the schools now, LED lights bearing down on them. But then you have all of the computer screens and the classroom going and you have the light and it just makes a different type of glare situation too. So sometimes putting a simulator on yourself to help problem solve could maybe help tune just make sure it's not. Going to be a, the work easier because we don't need to make the work easier necessarily. We need to make accessing the work easier. So there are spending less. Effort to see it? But they can still do the work. That makes sense.

>>Donna: Thank you. Hope that made sense. It's been a long week. I hope I'm making sense. Okay.

>>Donna: No, that was perfect. Thank you.

>>Audra: And then just making sure that they know the accommodations and why they're needed. Cause you know, some of our kids have those accommodation lists that are like 20 accommodations. Well, do they really need that? Do they, why do they need that? How is that helpful to them? And it's not enough. I don't feel like to just give them an email at the beginning of the year when they're getting a million other emails and they kind of file it away in their little brain and they forget about it. So just checking in every once in a while to make sure those accommodations are getting used and being provided. Because Generally the accommodations are to make it where they can access the material and participate in class and that's what we want. So sometimes that's the 1st question. Well, I'm having trouble with XYZ. Well, are they using their accommodations for that? That may be the 1st thing that's causing an issue. Maybe they're not using their accommodations.

>>Donna: And it looks like Amy had a comment that Is brother interesting. She says Amy says sometimes it's helpful to have fellow students at any age try the simulators and have a show and tell with the tools.

>>Audra: Oh.

>>Donna: Now that's another angle that I hadn't used yet is that show and tell with the tools.

>>Audra: Yes, that's our next. That's the next thing that we're going to talk about. We're, we're getting in there. The emotional needs of the student with low vision are not any different than any other student. They want to have friends, they want to be like everyone else. That also poses a problem because they want to be like everyone else and everyone else is not having to use a monocular. A cane, a CCTV, or a magnifier or large brand or whatever they're having to use. And so that's where we get a lot of them. I don't wanna use that. I don't wanna be different. And those can be hard conversations with students sometimes too. For them to understand. We're not giving you easier work. We're just making it where you can do the same work. You have the same chance at doing the same work. You're not having to work harder just to see it. It's a conversation you have to have I think having helping the students schedule private meeting with their teachers, especially if you have a teacher that's kind of. Conversations. Our students tend to have a pretty good relationship with us. With their VI teachers, they tend to trust us. They know we have their backs. So if you can help them schedule a private meeting where they can talk about their vision, not in front of everyone, you know, not like are you using your stuff in front of the whole class, things like that. Might be able to problem solve some of that resistance. That you get to using their supports and their devices. And taking the time to help the student understand the reason that they use it. One of my students, she wants to use the regular size iPad or tablet that all the other students use. She has a larger one. Because she needs the larger one. She didn't know why she needed the larger one. I had to explain it to her and as soon as I explained it she's like Oh, that makes sense. It would be better if I could see more than one word at a time. That would that would be good, wouldn't it? Still the same stuff as your friend sitting next to you. You just have a bigger surface to look at. That's all. And making sure the students aware of their accommodations. They can't advocate for their accommodations. They can't ask for them. They can't make sure they're there if they don't know what they are or why they have them. So that's another. And also talking to them about visual fatigue. And the things they can do to help manage it. I know Kelly's student that we're talking about comes home. He's a high school student, comes home, takes a nap. He will probably tell you all day that. And get tired. His eyes don't get tired. He's fine. Hmm. We had a hizard today. In fact, and that was one thing he is now advocating for himself went in and said he has this big test coming up next week. Went in and said, he has this big test coming up next week and it's on the computer. It is not able to be put on in large print. And he said, How long do I have to take it? They said, well, you've now got 3 days as long as you need. So you can take many, many breaks. And he said, can I lay my head down? Can I, can I like close my eyes? And so it's a process, but it, whenever I got him in the 5th grade, he would have never advocated for himself to do that. He's finally learned through just. Me harping on him as his own in and then his via teacher as well, you know, advocate, advocate. Now he's realized that he really can't do computer work. 30 min because it's just so difficult. And I mean, even with this cane, we go out for an hour at a time and he's exhausted and even when we come back he's still he's got to go back to class luckily he has back to back electives so that art class isn't so difficult for him when he gets back. But you just gotta take, into, you know. Account that they really do need a lot of breaks. And letting the teachers know what those breaks look like because for him he may need to put his head down for 5 min. He's not gonna, he's not asking to sleep for an hour. He just really needs to check out from everything for 5 min. And, and then he can go back to work. But if you don't. Tell teachers what that break looks like they may look at it as he's just getting out of work. And then the switching between visual tasks, like if there's something that's very computer heavy, then maybe he needs to do something on print. For a little while without that lighting from the computer. Adding to the visual fatigue. And I know a lot of this does not sound like Typical O and M. We're not talking about crossing streets and reading signs and things like that, but as O and M's I feel like we have to support all of these things and support our VI teachers and sometimes the relationship we have with our students is different because we aren't always in the classroom talking about academic work. So where they may be budding heads with their VI teacher or their classroom teachers or their parents. For themselves sometimes when they're fighting themselves on everything. Sometimes when we talk about things out and about, and we're discussing and supporting those things, they may be a little more receptive to it. So just knowing that sometimes you may have best laid plans for an O and M lesson that they may be well well, you just seem really tired and maybe we need to do something else today. And be able to roll with those punches kind of. But we did also when we did that career day, we put the students under simulators, and gave the McCain and we had binoculars and it blew their minds and it blew their minds. And you know, we had some kids that they were like, This is no problem. We could do this and other kids that as soon as they put the simulators on they were like I can't move I can't I can't even like turn this is not okay So it is helpful kind of like you were saying to do that show and tell with the students too and let them just let them touch all of that equipment one time so then maybe they aren't grab it and touch it all. And I have a kindergartner that I did that with. She's She's now becoming low vision. We didn't realize this, but now she is. And every kid in her class because as you know kindergartners are just cuckoo. They all wanted to touch the cane. Now I want to grab it. They wanna, you know, they wanna hold it. They wanna know what it's all about. So I started telling her, okay, I want you to tell them what, you know, what this is. Why do you use it? What are the parts of it? Because kept calling it a stick and that's Roger and I is the biggest pet peeve. It's not a stick, it's a cane. So now she says it's a cane. And you know, we get big on that, but it just letting them get all of that. Touchy feely stuff out in the very beginning in a new classroom and then if they need reminders towards the you know the middle of the year do that because she now has got such a good relationship with all the little kids in her class because they know the only time that they can handle her cane is if it has rolled away and she is actually looking for it. That's the only time they can touch it. And this are obviously we're talking about students that you can have these conversations with they can have these conversations with their teachers. We know you may have some low vision students out there who have multiple impairments. Maybe they can't have those conversations, so maybe you are the one having to lead those conversations. Or just through you working with them, maybe you're putting together note cards or a PowerPoint that they can help share with their teachers, share with their families, things like that too so that they can still have some control and ownership over the things that are happening and are expected of them and it's not all just. Orchestrated and engineered by someone who's speaking for them. And then just keeping in mind with orientation and ability when you have a student who's low vision, are they a cane user? Some of our students with low vision are, some of them aren't, some of them only need it when they're going out. In public traveling, in unfamiliar areas. So just finding out when do they need it. And I've had some students that in their familiar school, do they need their cane inside the school? No, but then they're moving up to maybe middle school. So when the 5th grade rolls around, we're using arcane more because you're going to go to middle school. You're going to be going up and downstairs. You're going to be changing classes every period. We're going to need that cane more. So. Just finding out when they need it. Also with the monocular, when and where to use it. If some people that think it's okay to use it in a classroom. Sometimes it's only outside, sometimes it's only in those real distant situations. So just knowing when and where they should use that monocular. And also phone apps. I was actually in an art earlier today and The phone use of my student with low vision was a big issue because They use it for certain things in the classroom, like taking a picture and then being able to blow it up on their phone if maybe the teacher has a map or something on the smartboard. But then they take advantage of that and then they're looking at anime videos and not listening to the teacher. So having to figure out. They may have a phone. They made you use their phone for certain specific things. Student has to know when that's okay. So do the teachers. Finding the happy medium for sure. Yes, and like we did our last tech to time was all about technology and I love technology but technology also doesn't always work so they do need to know those low tech things too. And then a big thing, pretty much the rest of the stuff we're gonna talk about is expanded for curriculum because this is kind of the. I feel like where we need to help support our low vision students. Particularly the most. Sometimes, are those skills that We even forget that they do not get that information. They do not get reliable. Visual information for things that. Other people do get that visual information that helps teach them things. So. We're gonna go through some different things with This I'm gonna try and move this over here. There we go. Okay. Yeah, so, expanded core for me. I've just started realizing in the last few years that if all my low vision kids first, st Huge part of it because I don't have a lot of low vision. I can say that on my case load I have mostly totally blind but the low vision kids that I do have I'm finding there a lot of gaps in the ECC so I may not be doing necessarily all O and M things but yes I'll have an O and but then I'm doing ECC stuff because the specific high school student. He is now. All of his gaps have basically been filled in and he's finally said, I need to learn how to cook. And I'm like, heck yeah, that's ECC. Let's go for it. And so, but specifically for assistive technology, you know, using those devices. Magnifiers, monoculars. Minocular games. I love the monocular. And we took this particular student high school. He was not in high school at the time, but we took him to the zoo in the summer for our summer camp and he didn't realize that he could use a monocular and see the animals and it was just an aha moment for him because his vision is very poor. But we used one of the . And he was able to actually see some of the animals really far away And it was just, it was so exciting. Audrey and I both, we go right. And he was like, he was like, I see it. But you know, it's and then just that was something I'd never try to monocular with them because He's a cane user because it's low vision enough that he definitely needs the cane. And but then that day I realized, Hey, we're gonna we're gonna start using the monocular for things. He still can't read a street sign and he can use the, okay, I always say it wrong. Theo app. The worst part about the Oko app is he has an Android and so it doesn't it's only on the iOS at this point. We're still working on that. Into them and they it is in the works though. But yeah, so now he's using that. For those ones where he can't see the pedestrian signal. Which is pretty much every single one. He also has a hearing impairment so those audible signals are not always reliable to him. We can do for those low vision kids. Of course there's other apps that we use and we definitely talked about this on our other TEAM, but seeing. And with monocular games with my younger kids, I like to find like what is their favorite thing? Do they have a favorite color. And with my younger kids, I like to find, what is their favorite thing? Do they have a favorite color? Do they have a favorite thing? Did they have a favorite color? Do they have a favorite thing? Did they have a favorite color? Do they have a favorite, musician? Do they have a favorite movie? Anything like that? You can get pictures from that. Can put them all over their school and make a scavenger hunt using a monocular that they have to go find all of these things

>>Donna: Kelly, we had a question in the in the comment about. The OCO app for those that weren't in our last T time.

>>Audra: Okay. Yes. Absolutely. So it gives auditory, visual and haptic feedback for Yeah, that's, yeah, yeah.

>>Donna: Can you give us a quick? Right down on that.

>>Audra: So if you have that app to free app, it's only on iOS right now. You can point it, to free app, it's only on iOS right now. You can point it your phone in the general direction of that pedestrian sign. It's not going to show. I'm gonna show good on here and it will give you the auditory signal that it's oh don't walk. It also puts like a kind of reddish overlay if it's a don't walk or a green overlay on your screen. If it's, that is okay to walk, it will give you the countdown at crossing that. So it's only good for lighted intersections. But I have used it in like a busy downtown setting and it was very reliable in the downtown setting. Again, it's technology so they still have to be able to cross without technology in case it's not working or anything like that, but it is a helpful tool. Okay, and on there.

>>Donna: It looks like we're fast and furious in the comments.

>>Audra: Yeah.

>>Donna: Whether you want to read that out or you want me to read it out for you.

>>Audra: If you want to read it, that'd be fine.

>>Donna: Okay, we had Jessica who says is there a specific monocular you suggest I found that an iPad and smartphone work better for the low vision students she has. Because they get frustrated with the field and challenges involved with using a monocular versus digital magnification.

>>Audra: For me, the big green one that comes in there. Like an 8 x. Diamond vision kit in the envision kit. Yeah, that's the one that I like. It's just very fragile. So you can't that one. Do it in your pocket. That was not so bad. Yeah. The big green one, the 10 X, is the easiest one I have found when I'm teaching them how to use a monocular because they can put their whole hand around it for focusing and things like that and then moving to a smaller one that may be a little harder to manipulate and then definitely those 4 x 6 x. Are much more fragile because if they do like push on the lens when they're putting it in their pocket or something it's not gonna it's gonna break. But I don't like taking an iPad. I don't know know an M lesson just for the sake of You know, they're fragile. They're gonna break. How do you hold it? How do you use your cane? How do you hold a bag? How do you hold all of it at the same time? And then so many of our students don't have Okay, when they're young. So if we're teaching a little one, then yeah, I would probably go with a monocular 1st and then as they get older get into the phones or the iPads. And then one thing with the monocular also, if this is a low vision student that Maybe able to drive in the future, they have to be able to use a 4 x monocular for those biopics and being able to drive without. A lot of additional restrictions. So I do always try to make sure if they're low vision that they do know how to use a monocular.

>>Donna: That is that is great information that we can take to our low vision specialists to get those prescriptives. Just in case. Yes. And I only know that because the low vision specialists that we use actually signs off people on driving.

>>Donna: For them.

>>Audra: And so she explained it all to us and explained exactly what we need to do to be able, like if they can't use a 4 x, they're not going to be able to use biopics because that's what the magnification is on the biopics.

>>Donna: So. James says that the heavy green ones are called speck wells.

>>Audra: Okay, I always say it's a big army green one from the envision kit and I'd love to start with those because they're so easy to focus and manipulate.

>>Donna: Yeah. And let's see. Annie's asked if anyone else had found the Oko app not working well on 6 lane roads. That they only found it to be reliable on 2 lane. Has it improved?

>>Audra: My it has worked for me on 6 lane and and when I say 6 length 6 lane with a median also. And I've had some issues lately with the where the sun is shining. If there's glare or the sun is behind it, it is not finding it. And so that's when I tell my students this is why I've taught you how to cross with your traffic. And or if there is no traffic, you're going to have to solicit assistance because it is. All of those things, of course, technology doesn't always work. So that's why we want to make sure they know how to do all of. And definitely with the OCO app, if you'll set, if you encounter anything like that with a difficulty, if you send in like a report on it. I can't remember where it is on the app. I'd have to look. But you can send a report on it. They're really good about getting back to you and asking questions and trying to problem solve and fix any issues. They've been very good about that. So I would definitely do that.

>>Donna: And We are crazy busy in chat. Yay, I'm loving when we're busy in chat.

>>Audra: Yeah.

>>Donna: James has an interesting side note and I think we discussed this in our last one that Oko is the check word for I.

>>Audra: Yes, it is. It is. Yes.

>>Donna: Yeah. And let's see here. Linda says she generally starts with a 2.5 X as it gives a larger field then go to the right recommended power per the division doctor.

>>Audra: Yes.

>>Donna: Yay, glad we're getting low vision reports in there. And then Jessica was saying that unfortunately one of the students that she has. Cannot get a monocular focus but can use a digital focus. And there are some, and Linda was saying there are some auto focus binoculars, but they're a bit more on the pricey side.

>>Audra: There are, yes.

>>Donna: And they're gonna look into that option.

>>Audra: Yeah, our districts won't pay for those automatic ones for sure. But sometimes the low vision specialist has grants and will get them. And then where does is it okay we're gonna go ahead and keep going and then hopefully I don't wanna run out of time. Hopefully we won't run out of time. Career education I put in here to virtual field trips and then actual field trips when possible. I know actual field trips are not possible for every everyone one good thing that came out of the COVID years as I like to call them was all of these places put virtual field trips for people on there. And at the end I did I do have some links to some of the favorite sites that I had found. Good. For your low vision kids. Just to exposed into things that visually they're missing out on because they can use their technology, they can enlarge the screen on a lot of these things and look at things. It's also good. We have found a lot of times our students just when you ask them what do you want to do when you when you grow up? They just tend to name a job that they've encountered along the way. Like, I'm gonna work at Walmart because maybe Walmart's the only place they've ever been going with their family. They don't know there's all these other jobs. My student who's a a Braille user decided he's going to be a driver for Fedex because Fedex delivered a package to his apartment one day. That's great, but realistically, he's not going to be a driver for Fedex. But if he wants to work for Fedex, hey, there's all these jobs. Let's go do a virtual field trip and see what all is out there. Let's see if Fedex is really where you want to work. Or do you want to work somewhere else? We can you can explore different. Things and expose them to different careers that they may not pick up on because watching TV they may not be seeing the same things that we are in the details and things like that. So keep in mind those virtual field trips can be a good avenue for building some career knowledge so they can make some of those decisions. Lot of those jobs where they have like a day in the life of someone in and out burger or a day in laugh of someone who works at Starbucks and they will go through the entire process of even clocking in to what they do all day long and then clocking out. They're very long and boring to me, but to our students who are wanting to do that kind of thing. I think it would be a fabulous idea. To look at YouTube to see what someone is doing when they're working there. And we can't always take them and you can't always see what you're doing there and we can't always take them and you can't always see what you're doing on a field trip even. So it's just another option. Try that YouTube even. So it's just another option. Try that YouTube and they have them for everything. So, reckon leisure. As we all know, we have to collaborate with our PE teachers and our APE teachers. We have a great relationship with our adaptive PE teachers in our district. And we do all kinds of things with them throughout the year and then our PE teachers as well. And these kids don't even know their low vision, a ball flying at their head. They may not see it. They these fee teachers have to know that they have to know where they're able to do things if there's issue with, you know, photophobia when they're going outside because all a lot of our low vision kids have photophobia. So they need to know about everything in their vision so that they can be successful in PE. We can suggest activities to the families of course and we have tons of things and I'm pretty sure at the very end we have a couple of activities that were on there as well in and then if we can connect with local sports for people with disabilities, we just had a running group come and speak to us. Just the APE and then O and M's in our district and they're just an entire group that is running with tethers with blind and visually impaired adults and they're trying to get in with with the school system too. And so they actually came and ran with one of my students, one of Audra's students for Special Olympics and it just got that connection going. So now we have that. So then it's now turned into the soccer team wants to come and talk to our students. So we're trying to just get more and more so that our students have that connection and know that they don't have to just sit at home and not do any of the activities that their friends are doing. And then independent living skills, things like clothing management. I know a lot of times you'll have those conversations like, yeah, they can dress themselves. Well, that's great. How are they picking their clothes? How did they know? How are they organizing their clothes so they know where their clothes are? Are they really getting a say in what color shirt they're putting on or what kind of pants or a skirt or whatever they're wearing that day. Personal hygiene. This is a big one. You know, I mean, it's a big one for all kids, especially as they get into middle school and high school and apparently deodorant just doesn't exist. Taking showers just doesn't exist. But sometimes you have to have this personal hygiene conversations because we don't want to be the stinky kid, you know, cooking skills. A lot of times our students, they have no, they may know how to use a microwave, but they're not allowed to touch the oven or the stove or this or that because what if they get hurt? Well, they're gonna get hurt if you don't teach them how to use it. So you've got to teach them and that may require you to use it. So you've got to teach them and that may require you going into the home and doing some of those things and showing the parents how you can teach them. And that may require you going into the home and doing some of those things and showing the parents how you can teach them and doing some of those things and showing the parents how you can teach them what words you should be using, what language you should be using to help describe things for them. And showing the parents how you can teach them what words you should be using, what language you should be using to help describe things for them. I know our region center here in Fort Worth is working on getting, some personal hygiene for girls and voice, how to shave for boys and then how to apply makeup for our low vision students. And then cleaning and organization in the home, organization in general for our low vision students is a challenge. I'm gonna touch on that personal hygiene. I think it's gonna be fabulous. My high school student, I was like, well, do you shave on your own? Well, my mom helps me. So he doesn't really know how to do it. So I think that if you all can get anyone to come and help do, a little presentation on that. That would be fabulous because we're excited. Yes.

>>Donna: That is, I love that and we talked this, weekend before last. About using, their low vision devices to help them shave.

>>Audra: Yes. Yes.

>>Donna: Or help them put their makeup on and maybe that could be that buy in. You know, on to use the device.

>>Audra: Right. Something that they want to do that they're invested in and then, oh, I will use it for that. Clashes and we've had to get her to understand that they can't be too long so you can still wear your glasses. Yes. And then self-determination. So just being able to advocate for their needs in the classroom and at home. Not just to say, well, I need to set up front or something, but like I need to take a break. I've been, you know what? All my classes this morning, I've had to do this, this and this. Can I just have 5 min before I start your assignment or can you give me a paper copy of the assignment today because I don't think I can look at my computer for one more minute. You know, things like that, just being able to recognize and know those things and feel supported when they do speak up and they're not just kind of brushed aside as. Looking for an easy way out because I really don't think they're looking for an easy way out. They're crying out for I cannot do this anymore. And helping then set goals like what do you want to do? What do you want to be able to do? That would help you get to where you want to go, help them set those little goals so they do feel like they're accomplishing something and not just constantly trying to get there. And help them identify their strengths because I think sometimes we sit in meetings and everyone talks about all of the needs and a couple of strengths here and maybe they were not using those strings. To get farther in there and the things that they do struggle in. Yeah, yeah. Compensatory. Organization skills are key for our low vision kids. Both of our students their backpacks are a hot mess I think the desks are hot mess every time I go say, hey, did your mom's on that permission slip? Well, I don't know. Let me look, opens his bag and it's just crumpled papers everywhere. So we've tried. It's just his VI teacher has struggled as well. It's just hard for those low vision kids because are totally blind. They just seem to be more organized if they have to be. These low vision kids are like, oh, I'll be able to find it later. And then by the time there's 15 papers in there, they can't find it. So we really have had, we have a little folder system that we've tried. It's still not working because he won't use it but Maybe by a senior year we'll use it. And I did barter with my student and I said, Hey, next week can we sit down and kind of look at your desk and look at your backpack and together maybe we can figure out like one thing that would make it more organized. And we'll start there and she was like. That's acceptable. So we're, you know, just trying to give them like, let's do it together. I want you to have a say and how we're going to set this up because if they have no say they're not they're definitely not going to use and it won't make sense to them. And they may come up with a system that makes no sense to you but if it makes sense to them and gets them organized. Everyone will be much happier. And then of course our social interaction skills and our low vision kids. They can't see what we're our facial expressions are teachers even you know OMS their VIs it's it's hard to know but we talked to them about those facial expressions listening listening to their tone of the voice of the person and then, you know, just. Making sure that they ask questions if they're not sure. Audra will speak on this conversation around them because she has some personal experience with that. And then also just personal space. Our low vision kids want their personal space because they've got devices. They've got all these things and they want to have that respected and not running up on people. And it's hard for them, especially if they can't see them. They're probably going to. And then just say, oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't see you there. And having them to try to be able to addate for themselves. And I will say for me personally, I have a student currently that's not in school and I'm not sure when he will make it back to school and I'm not sure when he will make it back to school due to some mental health issues and they're not sure when he will make it back to school due to some mental health issues and they all stem from. He will make it back to school due to some mental health issues and they all stem from this, the social interaction skills and the struggle he has had as a low vision student with feeling like he's being bullied. He hears kids having conversations around him and automatically assumes those conversations are about him. Even if he's not hearing his name and he's not my only student. I've had several low vision students. This is a constant thing I hear from them is I'm being bullied at school. People are talking about me. People are making fun of me because if there's 2 kids laughing next to them, they assume they're being they're laughing at them. And they don't always understand those different tones of voice when people are talking to them either because they're not getting the facial expression. Reliably to to pair it up and understand it. So I have used pictures when possible so that they can get as close as they need to to look all through that picture. There are things you can find on YouTube too, just searching for different, you know, like sarcastic tone, angry tone, sad tones, just so they can hear some of those differences. And this is also something it gets harder when they get to middle school and high school and there are so many kids in all the different classes. It's harder to go talk to the other students. And kind of explain, hey, they don't know when you're talking, it's harder to go talk to the other students, and kind of explain, hey, they don't know when you' So that this is just something I feel like if you Focus on nothing else sometimes for your low vision kids, the social skills piece is a huge piece for them that they are missing a ton of information and need constant support. And. So for the virtual field trips, these are some of the sites that I have found I like the most. The we are teachers sites has a ton of virtual field trips. The Nature Conservancy is another good one. I would just caution on that one. Make sure you. Watch them 1st yourself. And make sure that it's appropriate for your kids because they do have some for more of like your college age kids and things like that. And they all talk about like your college, age kids and things like that. And they all talk about like, you don't need a permission slip, but technically you don't need a purchase because you're not going on the field trip, but you probably still need to check with those parents and make sure it's okay to, you know, show that trip or some of those things. And then PBS Learning Media has some really good ones that are. More simple, they're geared towards maybe some of the younger kids, but those are also still good for some of our middle school age kids and they have it's not just like oh going on a safari or something like that some of them are like job exploration college exploration things. They have lots of virtual field trips and like Kelly was saying YouTube has lots of to like a day in the life of. That are good to show our kids also. So I included some links for those on there for you to check out as well. And then we have time for more questions and comments. That's trying to give us a little bit of time for that too. And I do at the very end have our contact information too if you want to email either of us or have any questions or anything too.

>>Donna: It looks like we have to scroll quite a bit back in the chat for

>>Audra: Yeah, probably so.

>>Donna: For what's going on here. Let's see. Talk about yourself. No, I have almost found it here.

>>Audra: Okay.

>>Donna: Cynthia thought it was a, a good point that Linda made about starting with a lower power as it would be more difficult to wean the student off the overpowered tool. Judy says that there is great resources from Dr. Laura Lieberman. She's the guru of APE, especially for blind visually impaired students with multiple disabilities and for deaf blind. Britney says the Washington State School for the Blond has some great videos about shaving without sight. G also comments don't forget money skills cash change and credit cards Small skills nowadays, cause not a whole lot of folks are using.

>>Audra: Yes. Yes. Yes, the credit card and debit card thing is a big deal right now too. Yes, just understanding the differences in those.

>>Donna: Hmm. Yeah, and that, you know. There's a huge difference between a credit card and a debit card.

>>Audra: Yes.

>>Donna: Get yourself into some trouble on that one. So definitely a lesson. Okay.

>>Audra: Yes, you can get into a lot of trouble if they go off to college without any of that knowledge that they can get into a lot of trouble too.

>>Donna: Oh yeah, oh yeah. And Brittany also said to connect with Vanderland French for region 4. About her fresh and flawless event for students and she put a link in. There. Before the video clips.

>>Audra: Okay. Region. Precious.

>>Donna: And that was me saying there are, you know, I'm partial to virtual reality. There are some great virtual reality experiences out there now that are including visual scanning and social skills for bullying and being that they use the VR. We're looking for baseline there to see if they work with our students with visual impairments.

>>Audra: Yes. Elizabeth thought that the AP H hive sarcasm detective course. I haven't seen this yet. Yes, they have several, I was gonna say they had several in APH in the hive because I know they had a few of those.

>>Donna: I'm going to check that out. Was insightful.

>>Audra: COVID where the kids could attend them too. And that was good too. And I think they, I wanna say they're still doing some of them.

>>Donna: Awesome.

>>Audra: If not, I know they're archived that you can go back to.

>>Donna: And James asked, what are some of the monocular games that you try or that you you do with your kdos.

>>Audra: Oh, a lot of them like, like I said, either finding a favorite color or favorite musician, favorite person, pictures. I'll start with them just on the wall in front of them and they just have to spot and focus and then I may have them track so I may put several pictures along the wall and they have to track different left to right, up, down, things like that tracking with it. And then I like to do kind of a scavenger hunt all over the school. So I'll be that person that has stuff stuck all over the school and they have to go find it and sometimes that's disappears by the time we get to it because someone has taken it down but that's always fun too, but I just kind of make up my own depending on what where the students at and what they need to

>>Donna: Awesome. And let's see, Karen is saying that she loved this session. And that it's a great reminder that even though a student may not work, they can explore their interests.

>>Audra: do.

>>Donna: Instead of it like a volunteer, they can explore their job interests. And Gianna, I'm hoping I said that name right? This is her 1st time participating in T time and it was very beneficial. Great information that. She will use with their students. Thank you.

>>Audra: Hey.

>>Donna: I am so glad. Joanne, I also do groups of pictures and they have to tell me which one doesn't belong to work on monocular skills.

>>Audra: Okay. That's a great idea. Yes.

>>Donna: That, that detail one, yeah. I used to put posters when we were doing, technology Olympics. I used to put posters up on the wall as part of the distance vision. Of different streets signs and we tried to get them within scale so if the student was across the room they would they would still have you know, scale for that. So, you know, love doing pictures when we can get them up and about. And James is good idea. Thank you, wonderful presentation. And we are down to the last 5 min.

>>Audra: Anyone has anything else? I do have, let me see. That's our email contact information to.

>>Donna: Oh, Linda says that the students can attend art workshops for free at the lighthouse of Houston. And creating with blind abandoned.

>>Audra: Oh. I love that. I have several of my low vision students. They always seem to love art.

>>Donna: Yeah.

>>Audra: Yeah. Okay.

>>Donna: And sometimes we forget to check our lighthouse. For Great stuff. I mean, there's some amazing lighthouse programs.

>>Audra: Yes. Well, and we had our region service center with the lighthouse today, like a holiday event and we had John Brambleage here and he actually did a painting activity with all of the kids and they all got to talk to him and see his art and I'm telling you they all absolutely hearing from him and the parents love seeing him. It was really awesome.

>>Donna: He was amazing at TERR last year. Was it last year? Yes, last year.

>>Audra: Okay, I'm like, we weren't at TERR last year, so we did not see him this year. So we definitely would have known that you've been there. So, and another thing with, the PE and APE we definitely would have known that you've been there. So, and another thing with, the PE and APE we did at TERR this year we went to and we saw Jeff K do a presentation and he has amazing ideas also for including students and just figuring out things on the be involved in everything. So we really. We really enjoyed his presentation too. And Jeff's coming to our district, June, 21st or communication 11, the 21st of June. So he has a Pinterest page too. And it is really awesome. Has so many good ideas and you just have to look up Jeff Keys and it pops up. Yeah. With APE, all kinds of information. Yeah.

>>Donna: That is awesome for those of you that are not members of AER and join us at TAER conference.

>>Audra: Yes.

>>Donna: That's the Texas ARE chapter. Join us. Join us. We're gonna be on the beach next year in corpus.

>>Audra: Okay.

>>Donna: So definitely see about getting yourself signed up. And Judy says thank you for the presentation. She's in New York and retired. Teacher of Students with Disabilities spent 3 years working on