Activity Ideas from the Field

Many activities can be implemented using materials that are readily available.  It is important to determine which phase of educational treatment the learner is in, and adapt the activity accordingly.

We welcome your ideas! Please email us at borgk@tsbvi.edu if you have something you’d like to share.

Ping Pong Ball Drop

A young child picks up and drops ping pong balls on a tray.
A young child picks up and drops ping pong balls on a tray.

Vision teacher Iris Maxwell from Thunder Bay, Ontario created the game “Ping Pong Ball Drop”. There are three strips of Velcro on the tray, and each ping pong ball has a tiny piece of Velcro hot glued onto it. The child loves to throw things off her tray (what kid doesn’t!) and the ping pong balls are perfect because they are easy to grasp, have a lot of contrast, and make a great sound when they land in either the metal bucket or the plastic flower pot on the sides of her wheelchair.

This is a good example of a Phase I Offering activity.  The adult’s role in this activity is to offer additional ping pong balls by replacing them on her tray. If a student is in the Phase II level of Imitation, the adult might have a tray also with ping pong balls on it, and be doing the same activity as the child.

Sand and Water Play 

A young girl plays in a sand table with things that she can practice pouring and scooping.
A young girl plays in a sand table with things that she can practice pouring and scooping.

This green container is from a gardening store and has been used for water, sand, leaves, snow – the possibilities are endless. 

The other children love to come up and play with this student when she has these or other toys on her tray.  (The toys in the photo include a nailbrush and nesting cups.) 

Textured Pathways

A rectangular walkway made from rubber interlocking pieces that have had various textures added to them.
A rectangular walkway made from rubber interlocking pieces that have had various textures added to them.

TVI Liz Eagan used Playmat Puzzles to create textured pathways for a child to explore while rolling, crawling, or walking. These textured pieces could also be used with a child who is lying on his/her back or stomach or in independent or supported sitting by creating a boundary around the child but within arm-, head-, and leg-reach. To learn more about Liz’a idea visit Paths to Literacy.

See also Ideas from the Field: Materials.

Ideas for Older Learners

By Suzanne Becker, TSBVI

A TVI and classroom teacher describes how she serves her secondary-level students who are visually and multiply impaired using Lilli Nielsen’s Active Learning approach along with other strategies. 

Collage of ideas from the field