This issue was edited by Lyn Robinson from the Statewide Vision Resource Centre.
From Deb Lewis
The Statewide Vision Resource Centre is again conducting an exciting program
of professional development programs and other activities.
First up for the year is the all-new workshop - "UEB Braille Maths Code
and Maths Layout" in the morning followed by "Setting up the Computer
for Low Vision Users" in the afternoon. You are all welcome to these workshops
- teachers, aides, visiting teachers, students, family members, therapists etc.
We encourage everyone working with brailling students to come along the Braille
Maths Code workshop which will be conducted by Lea Nagel and Maria Elford. Lyn
Robinson will assist you to get the best out of the computer for your low vision
users - right from the very beginning of the year and is also highly recommended
for those working with students with low vision. BYO your Perkins/Mountbatten
brailler for the morning session and/or your laptop for the afternoon session.
Please also bring your own lunch - though morning and afternoon tea will be
available. There is no charge for this activity.
For these and other programs we will be offering during 2009, please visit:
http://www.visiontech.svrc.vic.edu.au/PD2009.doc
but also note that the program is still in DRAFT form and to avoid disappointment,
please phone or email to confirm you attendance at the activity before the day.
You'll also notice that we have several student-focussed activities - Dot Power
for Kinder and prep Braille Readers, Louis Day, Literacy & Numeracy Week
Activity - so watch
The Bulletin for information.
Report on SPEVI Day Monday, October 6, 2008, by Marion Blazé
We had a full house of 80 participants in the Plaza at Vision Australia, Kooyong, to hear about ‘Prematurity: Implications for vision impairment, development and learning’.The most valued sessions on the day were the ‘client/parent panel (with our lovely Michael Kelly telling his own story) and Dr. Susan Carden’s session. Participants also commented that the opportunity to network was a highlight of the day.Feedback suggests that the topic for next year’s SPEVI day (on October 5, 2009) will probably be ‘Life skills and education, finding the balance’. Many other suggestions of topics were made and these can hopefully be incorporated into SPEVI activities in Terms 1, 2 and 3, 2009.
A special thank you to Lil Deverill as our outgoing (yes, it has two meanings!) Counsellor and the MC for the whole day, the staff at Kooyong who quietly made things happen, the staff at the Statewide Vision Resource Centre who did so much of the preparation work, and all the presenters whose research, preparation and entertaining presentations made the day such a success.
Here’s your opportunity to come and try surfing in a safe and supportive
environment.This All girls event aims to provide a surfing experience for girls
of All Abilities.It will be very safe and inclusive, there will be several surf
coaches and support people on hand to assist on the day. Girls of All Abilities
will generally surf on broken waves in
shallow surf. The aim of the day is to use positive female role models and professional
surf coaches to give participants a real experience of surfing.
When and Where? Torquay Surf Life Saving Club, December 6th
(9am registration) and Ocean Grove main beach, December 7th (9am registration)
What does it cost? $20.00
How do I register? Contact Steve Tibbits at Leisure Networks
on 5224 9908 by November 30th.
Words in My Hands has received:
• An award from The National League of American Pen Women
• Praise from acclaimed authors, Joanne Greenberg, and Patricia Clark,
researcher of American Sign Language at Rochester Institute of Technology
• Praise from B.J. LeJeune, Director of Deaf-Blind Programs at Mississippi
State University.
From the publisher’s Website:
Bert Riedel, an eighty-six year old deaf-blind pianist, cut off from the world
since age forty-five, discovers a new life through hand-over-hand-sign language.
This heartwarming narrative about the life-changing power of sign language communication
is told by Diane L. Chambers, Bert’s sign language teacher. Diane finds
her world transformed as well by her relationship with her unique deaf-blind
student.
Words in My Hands is U.S. $15.95 in soft cover. The book is also available on
CD in PDF format for use with screen reading software.The book is available
online at http://www.ellexapress.citymax.com
The BrailleNotes and VoiceNotes are small, portable computers, specifically
designed for vision impaired people, allowing them to efficiently produce, store
and retrieve information easily and quickly. This means, for example, that your
students can be effective in their schoolwork and school participation as the
BrailleNote is a multi-purpose education tool which can perform a range of tasks.
Humanware is now offering training in the use of the BrailleNote if you would
like to know more there is a handout attached with this bulletin.
You can also contact Ramona Mandy on (03) 9686 2601 or email: ramona.mandy@humanware.com
From the Inekards website Therese writes: ‘We all have hopes and dreams
for our children's future. When we look ahead we also envision the natural progression
of developmental milestones. Unfortunately those milestones did not come for
my daughter, Ineka, who was diagnosed with autism three years ago, at the tender
age of two. At that time Ineka showed little ability to communicate verbally,
had severe behaviourial problems and was developmentally delayed.
In facing my daughter's situation, I learned that children with autism often
understand visual concepts before the spoken word. So in order to stimulate
Ineka's communication skills we used pictures in conjunction with an early intervention
learning program. Ineka's communication skills grew rapidly. From that moment
on I felt compelled to maximize her progress with better visual aids.
One challenge I faced was the lack of suitable and consistent visual resources.
Eventually, I decided to meet that challenge by creating my own visual cards.
Utilizing my graphic design skills, I provided Ineka with the necessary visual
stimulus. In this process, 'Inekards' was born.
In designing Inekards, my vision is to help parents and therapists by providing
durable and comprehensive visual resource sets. My hope is to help focus and
consolidate our children's learning experiences, freeing valuable time and energy
for life with our families.’
Therese Potma, Founder, Inekards.
Therese, who is based in Sydney, will be in Melbourne in November. If you would
like to catch up with her she will be attending the Australian Society for the
Study of Intellectual Disability Conference as a part of their trade exhibition.
The conference will be held at the University of Melbourne, Economics &
Commerce Building & Old Arts Building, Swantson Street, Parkville, Melbourne,
from 24th-26th November.
If you cannot get to the conference you can find more information about Inekards
at their website at http://www.inekards.com
Otherwise Therese Potma can be contacted in the following ways: Phone or Fax:
(02) 9428 1882, Mail: 41 Wood Street, Lane Cove, NSW 2066 AUSTRALIA. Email:
inekards@bigpond.com
Information about the Inekards system will be available at the Statewide
Vision Resource Centre EXPO on Friday 28th November 2008.
By Lyn Robinson
Guided Braille Reading is like shared reading but with more support, which is
important for early braille readers and essential for reluctant early braille
readers.
Careful prompting can help children make reasonable predictions about the braille
words in front of them and make the experience more fun and rewarding for the
braille reader.
Introducing the Book
• This is the time to orientate the child to the book. Parts of the book
such as the front, the spine, the top right-hand corner and the title of the
book should be located
• Explore the Title: Starting with the title ask the child what they think
the book might be about? It is always good to have a title which gives an idea
of what the book is about. If it is a good title words in the book will come
up in this very important preliminary conversation. This will help to cue the
child into the story and give them some hints about the words which they might
come across
Skills and Strategies
• After exploring the title page, ask the child to turn the page. Check
that they know how to turn the page
• Ask the child what is on the page e.g. braille and pictures or just
braille?
• If there are braille pictures, allow the child time to explore the pictures.
Offer help if needed. Tactile pictures are not always immediately able to be
interpreted by a young blind children and they may need help
• Paired reading: Ask the child to read with you. You could say, ‘Now
let’s read together. You follow along with your fingers and I’ll
read the words’
Take some time to tactually explore the sentence together - attend to capitalization,
spacing and punctuation e.g. Ask the child to find the capital sign at the start
of the sentence and then help them to follow through to the end of the sentence
by asking them to find the full stop
o With light finger movements, ask the child to find the braille sentence and
track the braille from left to right and word by word while you read
o One to one matching –ask how many words in the sentence. Touch and count
each word in turn
o Find the spaces in the sentence – touch and count
Repeat Reading: ask the child to read the sentence aloud with you while they
track along their fingers. Use cues as needed: E.g. apply letter and sound knowledge
in context;
use prior knowledge; recognise and read word signs or known words from their
personal dictionaries. Call these words something fun so they know they have
found one of their special words. E.g. hot dots, short cuts or special words
Encourage predicting and inferring. Encourage good guesses
• Encourage self correction. Ask the child if what they just read made
sense.
• Retell the story with sequence and story elements (characters, setting,
beginning, middle, end)
• Have fun!
The Daylight Company has a great range of lighting and magnification devices
for people with low vision. Kim recently sourced a magnifying glass for a Bernina
Sewing Machine for her student. The cost is $65.00. They can be purchased from
Les Godfrey on Phone (03)9728 4108. The company also has a range of table and
floor lamps. The Daylight Ultra Slim has a fluorescent light and magnifier that
can be clamped onto tables. It can be purchased from Spotlight for approx. $200.00.
They also sell light boxes, lamps and magnifying glasses on flexible stands.
For products and stockists go to: http://au.daylightcompany.com/art/category/?id=184
From Adrian Such, Multimedia Support Officer, Renwick Centre
The Federal Government this week released a new portal-style ‘one stop
shop’ web-site for parents called MyChild - http://www.mychild.gov.au
– which “has been developed to create an online portal, aimed primarily
at families, providing information about issues affecting young children”.
The web-site has a mix of content but mostly provides links to various Federal
Government Departments, programs, announcements and future plans including:
• Government Programs such as the Healthy Kids Check Initiative and Immunisation
schemes
• Information for Parents covering the umbrella topics of Learning, Wellbeing,
Caring and Supporting children
• Government Support Payments
• An online register of Local Child Care Services
• Childcare Options and Assistance
• Content from the Government supported Raising Children website www.raisingchildren.net.au
Children with Special Needs
Currently the ‘Children with Special Needs’ page - http://www.mychild.gov.au/specialneeds.htm
- includes the following:
• Helping Children with Autism - government assistance for children in
child care and primary school
• My Time – Supporting parents of children with a disability, and
• Information regarding the Inclusion and Support Program for child care
services
ONH Consulting offers information to parents and professionals about Optic
Nerve Hypoplasia.
Christopher Sabine is the President of ONH Consulting. Here is some information
from the ONH Consulting website about him:
Christopher Sabine is an adult with Optic Nerve Hypoplasia currently living in Cincinnati, Ohio. He graduated magna cum laude from Wright State University in 1996 with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work and received his Master’s degree from the University Of Cincinnati School Of Social Work in 1997 with a specialization in human service administration. He worked for five years as a case manager for adolescents with a variety of disabilities and special health care needs as a service coordinator and case manager. His work involved developing service plans that address each child’s individual needs, supporting children to develop a vision and goals for the future, and working with families, schools, and disability and health care professionals to achieve that vision.
Mr. Sabine has attended and participated in numerous Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meetings in his role as service coordinator. He has been active on numerous local, state, and national organizations charged with the needs of urban youth, people with disabilities, and other minority populations. He currently sits on the Board of Directors of the Autism Society of Cincinnati. In this capacity, he has helped shape policy and service delivery for children and adults with Autism in Ohio through his role as local representative with the Ohio Autism Coalition.
Mr. Sabine has lived a lifetime of experience with Optic Nerve Hypoplasia. He is significantly visually impaired and uses a white cane, reads Braille, and operates a computer with software called JAWS that reads the screen in a synthetic voice. He received eight years of occupational therapy for sensory integration dysfunction as well as extensive training to enable him to perform many basic life skills using the alternative techniques of blindness. Like many people with Optic Nerve Hypoplasia, Mr. Sabine has some Autistic tendencies and some special skills that are unique to him. For example, he can still do some long multiplication problems in his head and knew every area code in North America prior to 1995.
Mr. Sabine is currently an active member of Focus Families, the only international
support group made up of families of children with Optic Nerve Hypoplasia. His
unique insights into life with this condition have assisted many parents to
better understand their children’s unique characteristics and develop
effective strategies to enable them to thrive.
From: http://www.onhconsulting.com/news.php?viewStory=3
For people with physical disabilities and vision impairments.This activity is suitable for people with:
• amputations
• brachial plexus injury
• arm and leg impairments
• hemiplegia
• spinal cord injury
• lower limb impairment of both limbs
• partial or total vision impairment
Places are limited so you need to register your interest to ensure your spot.
When: Saturday the 6th December at Geelong Water Ski Club
Cost: $25.00
For more information contact Alison Smith, Email. alisonsmith@recspecialist.com
Post: P.O. BOX 254, Doveton, Victoria, 3177
Phone 0417 739331
Disability Support Pensioners and Carer Payment recipients can apply for a
Sunday Pass at any Metropolitan Premium Station, or Metshop. The Sunday Pass
can be used for free travel on train, trams and buses on Sundays.
Areas covered include:
• Metropolitan Melbourne Zones 1 and 2
• Town buses within the Ballarat, Bendigo, Geelong, Mildura and Warrnambool
transit systems
Once you have applied for your Sunday Pass you will also receive two free travel
vouchers which can be exchanged for two return journeys on V/Line train and
coach services in Victoria at times when spare seats are available. For more
information call Metlink on 131 638 or visit the website at: http://www.metlinkmelbourne.com.au/fares_tickets/authorised_free_travel/free_travel_passes/sunday_pass
Variety will be holding their Christmas Party for disabled and disadvantaged
children once again at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre on Thursday 11th December
from 10.00 AM to
1.00 PM You need to fill out a nomination form for children to attend. Children
between the ages of 1 week to 13 years who have a disability or are from a disadvantaged
background may be nominated. Applications will be accepted up until 1st December
unless all places are filled earlier. Once Variety has received a nomination
you will be sent confirmation with details about the party and the procedures.
Please contact: Elyce Mckenzie, Variety Programs Administrator, Phone: (03)
8698 3921 or email:varietyatwork@varietyvic.org.au
The Guide Dogs Victoria newsletter “Getabout” is included with the print edition of the Bulletin. There are lots of interesting articles in the Getabout newsletter including one about colour blindness. Did you know that bulls are colour blind and it is the movement of the cape which angers them and not the colour itself!
Many of our students have participated in activities with Guide Dogs Victoria this year. You can read about the camp for junior students called ‘Shop “Til You Drop” - a week of shopping, sounds fun!
Senior students have recently been exploring the public transport system in the CBD at night, negotiating peak hour traffic and finding their way to a restaurant by foot. The “Night Out” programme was an opportunity for students to practise the skills they have learnt with their orientation and mobility (O&M) instructors during the year.
There will be a week long opportunity for secondary school students to further develop their O&M skills in the city with “GDV goes CBD” during the January 2009 school holidays. If you would like a copy of Getabout Newsletter in your preferred format contact Rachel on (03) 9854 4469 or email rachel.m@guidedogsvictoria.com.au
Entries for "Write On!" close next Friday 14th November. We have
audio books and vouchers from Bolinda Audio, Soundbooks, Louis Braille Audio
and Readings.
Please encourage your students to enter so they can be in the running to win
our awesome prizes.
Many of our students have been out and about achieving wonderful things, here
are some of their stories.
Student Sport Achievements @ Olympic Park State Athletics
By Jake Brown.
On Tuesday October 2I, I went to Olympic Park to compete in the State Level
Competition for Athletes With Disability (AWD). The events were Shot Put, Long
Jump, 100 metre and 200 metres. I was a representative for the Eastern Region
Zone Athletics and also for my School (Lilydale Heights College). I came 2nd
in the 100 metre and the 200 metre and I came 4th in the Shot Put and the Long
Jump. I was very happy with how I went and would recommend for others to compete
in Athletic Competitions.
Victorian Schools Swish Championships
Tusi Matia was the winner of a silver medal at the recent Victorian Swish Championships
held at Kooyong in September. Swish is similar to Table Tennis with modifications
for people with vision impairments.It is played on a table similar to table
tennis table but it has sides so the ball (which is like a puck) cannot go off
the table. Players use a long bat to hit the ball under a net in the middle
of the table. Points are scored if the ball goes off the end of the table.
Congratulations to both students for their sporting achievements.
Shane Spowart from Kerang High School was part of the team who prepared, trained and showed a prize steer, called Jeff, at the Royal Melbourne Show. The training and preparation of the steer for the show was part of Shane’s VCE Agricultural Studies. Shane has been commended for his handling and animal management skills. You can read more about Shane in an article published in the Weekly Times Now at http://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/article/2008/09/23/9075_business-news.html
Thanks to Kim Foley, Carol Buckland, Therese Potma, Deb Lewis, Denise Probert,
Marion Blazé, and all those who contributed to this edition of The Bulletin.
Thanks also to the fabulous team of proof-readers, stuffers and mailers. If
you have something you would like included in ‘The Bulletin’, please
contact Lyn Robinson. You can email me at lynrobin@svrc.vic.edu.au
If you would like to receive the bulletin by email please contact: svrc@svrc.vic.edu.au
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