Learning Experiences

Introduction

Our families often ask for activities they can do with their children at home, in between visits with their Early Intervention Teacher of the Visually Impaired (EI-TVI) , as well other providers and therapists. Here are 20 fun ideas developed by our teachers, and they can be enjoyed by the entire family!

The Learning Experiences are guided activities you can do in your home or via telehealth with your EI-TVI, with the intent that you will continue the experience on your own because that’s when the real learning occurs. They are tied to everyday routines like play time, bathing, and feeding because routines help all children feel assured that the world is an orderly place and promote their independence.

The experiences also introduce you to the Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC), a set of nine core skills that children who are blind or visually impaired learn when they enter a school-based program. The activities are concrete examples of how ECC concepts can be incorporated into everyday routines in a fun, meaningful way.

Get Started!

Scan the list of Learning Experiences. Connect with your teacher to discuss your interests. Your teacher can help you choose the best experiences based on the developmental needs of your child and your family’s interests. Then make a date to do the experience with your teacher first, either in your home or via telehealth.

If you have any questions or comments about the learning experiences, please contact your EI-TVI. We are always looking for ways we can improve the experiences and welcome your feedback.

Book cover of child with pumpkin pie play dough

20 Learning Experiences!

Click on the titles below to download the PDFs you would like.

A Ticket, a Tasket - What's in Your Laundry Basket. This activity gives your child access to a washing machine, a dryer, and all the steps in this familiar chore while developing important sensory, travel, and fine motor skills.
Choo, Choo, Choose! Looking to Choose/ Touching to Choose. This is a way for a little one to let the parent know what they like and a way for the parent to let them know that they are heard.
Exploring the Seasons with Our Senses. This activity will help your child with visual impairments use their senses to learn about the world around them.
Five Little Pumpkins. This hands-on activity is a fun and interactive way to include your child in the storytelling experience.
Going on an Egg Hunt! Your child will learn to understand that items and people still exist even when you can't see or hear them, anticipate what happens next during the activity, be introduced to orientation and mobility concepts, and even practice a calming breathing technique when the “egg hunt” becomes too exciting!
Have a Seat! An Activity with Chairs. Different kinds of chairs can be found all around the house. But what makes a chair a chair? They can be used to teach your child who is visually impaired about many different concepts besides how they’re used as seats.
Helping Your Child See - Using Contrast. In this activity we experiment with different foods and/or objects on various backgrounds to learn what is easiest for your child to see.
How to Travel Without Leaving the Home. This activity introduces the concept of Orientation and Mobility through a traveling activity inside your home – without ever packing a suitcase or walking out the front door.
Let's Build a Snowman. Your child will experience snow with all their senses while learning important concepts like “cold” and “wet,” sequencing skills while you build a snowman, and predicting what happens when the snow melts. Put a towel on the floor just in case your floor gets wet!
Let's Make a Gardening Sensory Bin. Even if your child can’t see a flower, they can touch the petals, smell its fragrance, and listen to how it sounds swaying in the breeze. A gardening sensory bin is one way to help your child develop an understanding of nature without even going outside.

Let's Make Pumpkin Pie Play Dough. Making pumpkin pie play dough with your child is a sensory experience filled with smells, textures, sounds, bright colors, and maybe even a taste or two.
Little One, Little One, What Do you See? Many children with visual impairments have difficulty seeing at a distance. Let’s explore what your child can see at a distance.
My Daily Routine Sensory Bin. Children with visual impairments learn with their hands. In this experience your child will explore by touching, looking, tasting, and listening to these objects in their home.
Pack Your Bag! Choice Making with Everyday Bags. Not only is color and texture appealing, bags also offer so many choice-making opportunities about what goes inside it or be taken out. In this activity you can also talk about how many things are in a bag and whether it's light or heavy.
Play in Your Own Kitchen Band. Everyday objects in the kitchen can be played with to expose your young child to a variety of new sounds, textures, and sources of vibration – all musical concepts that you can use in parent-child play.
Pudding on a Plate. In this activity your child will learn a charming rhyme and make yummy pudding to go with it. The activity helps your child learn independent living skills, introduces measurement and counting, and provides a multitude of sensory experiences.
Rhythm and Rhyme. Songs, poems, and stories are a fun way to cuddle, snuggle, and play with your child while promoting early literacy and social/emotional connection.
Splish, Splash - Let's Take a Bath. This activity introduces the concepts of water, bathing, and water play in a fun, accessible way. The activity is appropriate whether your child loves taking a bath or is just starting to establish a bath-time routine.
That's How I Roll! Rolling is a big step in human sensory development as a child builds an internal sense of their body and how they can move to achieve a goal.
Where O' Where. This interactive activity develops a child’s ability to scan their environment and find requested objects. This is important for safety reasons and developing independence.