Focus by Ingrid Ricks -- A Book Review

A Book Review of Focus by Ingrid Ricks

How might it feel to go to get glasses, pick out your favorite frames on the way in to the ophthalmologists’ office, and then to find out that your field of vision is so small that you are legally blind?  To learn that glasses won’t help? To learn it is a progressive disease?

Find out how Ingrid Ricks felt when she received this devastating news. Find out how she got her positive perspective back. Find out what life is like with Retinitis Pigmentosa…and what she is doing about it.

Ingrid Ricks tells it like it is, making it all so real you feel like you are right there. At times, we might go down to the depths with her but, as always, she brings us back up to the positive, optimistic place that characterizes her writing.

As a mother with two sons who had sudden vision losses, I remember looking for books – any books - on the subject of vision loss, and coming up short. At that time, there was basically nothing I could find. I wasn’t looking for a book that explained the technical details or for a book specific to my sons’ condition. I just wanted something, anything on the subject. Finally, someone wrote one of those books I had been looking for.

But even if you don’t know anyone with vision loss, or maybe even more so in that case, this book can help you to see life through someone else’s eyes. 

You can get the book through Amazon here. 

Book For Children with Low Vision!

At last! Here is a positive book for children with low vision, All children have different eyes, Learn to play and make friends, by Edie A. Glaser, a writer who has lived with low vision since infancy, and Dr. Maria Burgio, Ph. D., a child and family specialist.

Low vision children dribble, skate and hopscotch their way across the pages, as they model upbeat responses to difficult social situations. These cheerful children confidently explain their eye conditions in simple words. They demonstrate, in a natural way, how to join the fun, answer questions about their needs, ask for help, and show leadership.

Parents and teachers will find a chart in the back of the book which lists the social competency skills demonstrated, along with activities to help children, particularly 4 to 8 year olds, to learn these social skills.

”The eyes are beautiful!” my neighbor said when she saw the book. Doina Paraschiv, the illustrator, has made all the pictures very attractive and endearing.

You really have to see this beautiful book for yourself to appreciate it. You can order the book online, or print a form to mail in your order, at this website:
http://www.vidipress.com/allkids/store.php



P.S. If you are receiving this as an email, you can read this post in a blog format, or read past posts, at: http://viphs.blogspot.com/

Handbook for Itinerant and Resource Teachers of Blind and Visually Impaired Students

HANDBOOK FOR ITINERANT AND RESOURCE TEACHERS OF BLIND AND VISUALLY IMPAIRED STUDENTS
Author: Doris M. Willoughby and Sharon L.M. Duffy
Reviewed by Margaret Mary Myers

Review: Don't let the long name and the 1989 copyright of this book fool you as this is a treasurehouse of practical advise and instruction for teachers and homeschooling parents. Some of it is specifically for the itinerant or resource teacher, advising her how to deal with parents, staff, and IEPs. But much of it teaches you step-by-step how to teach!

The book includes, among other things:
*Hints and tips about teaching braille, note-taking, handwriting and keyboarding.
*Techniques for independent living, cooking, sewing, and industrial arts.
*Discussions of social life, dating, marriage, and the family.
*Cane curriculum with instructions and illustrations.
*Guide to the Nemeth Code.
*A "paper-compatible" abacus method.

In this book there is a strong slant toward NFB (National Federation of the Blind) philosophies. Even if you happen to be one of the people who doesn't agree with some of the particular philosophies of this organization, this handbook contains loads of good information and ideas that I think you will find extremely useful.

Corrected Ordering Information for Handbook

There was an error in the previous post giving a link for the interesting handbook for learning Braille. Also, I would like to mention that this book does not teach all the rules for writing Braille. But I think it's very worthwhile as a way to jump-start our own education. It made me comfortable with Braille, and then when I began to learn the rules, they fell into place more easily. Below is the corrected ordering information:

If you would be interested in ordering the Handbook for Learning to Read Braille by Sight, APH gives the following ordering information:

Handbook for Learning to Read Braille by Sight by Leland Schubert, 1966 Regular print: 7-51450-00 -- $28.00

Handbook for Learning to Read Braille by Sight

HANDBOOK FOR LEARNING TO READ BRAILLE BY SIGHT
Author: Leland Schubert

Review by Margaret Mary Myers

What a great book for sighted parents and homeschooling teachers who want to be able to read what their children write in Braille! You can use this book on your own, at your own pace. Working my way through this book was very enjoyable and increased my fluency in reading Braille (by sight).

Comprehensive and incremental, this handbook starts with the alphabet, a few punctuation marks, and numbers. After teaching most of Grade One braille, the book proceeds with Whole-Word Alphabet contractions, then the contractions for: "and, for, of, the, with," followed by dot-5 contractions.

For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about, don't worry; after pursuing this book, you soon shall. I was pleasantly surprised to see my learning expand as I worked my way through the interesting, adult-level exercises in the book. An answer key is provided in the back, so we can see the word we got stuck on or perhaps that silly mistake.

This fun book is available from American Printing House for the Blind.

Kester Braille

Kester Braille by Louise Johnson
Review by Margaret Mary Myers

Would you like to start teaching your child to read - using braille? If you homeschool, these books would be an ideal place to begin. Or if you are a teacher of the visually impaired who has learned Braille, but you don't have a lot of experience with it yet, these books could be very helpful for you in teaching your students.

You don't need to have prior knowledge of braille in order to use these books, which enable you to teach your children both Braille reading and Braille writing. The Teacher's Guide provides all the information that you need, including how to teach your student tracking. All you need is the books, a few minutes a day, and a Perkins braillewriter (which - as a homeschool parent or as a teacher - you can probably borrow through your state resource center).

Even for an older child who already knows how to read in print, and now must learn braille, I feel thse books are worthwhile as a starting place. They helped me get my then-nine-year-old started on Braille after he experienced vision loss.

Level One introduces the letters of the alphabet and beginning sounds. Level Two introduces three-letter words with short vowel sounds, writing sentences, and the numbers 0 to 20. These books are one of the best buys you are going to get...both as far as the cost and as far as getting your young child started on the road to literacy. Visit the author's website for more information.

How to Homeschool Your Blind or VI Student

Nothing But the Best, by Sarah J. Blake
Book Review by Margaret Mary Myers
(This book review was written several years ago, but the e-book is still available today.)

How would you like to have a friendly, knowledgable person in your living room any time you wish, telling you all about how to homeschool your blind or visually impaired child? Imagine her speaking to you conversationally over a cup of tea, telling you of her own experiences as a blind child and a blind adult, making complex explanantions about the eye simple to understand, sharing with you what methods various people have used in homeschooling their children. Now imagine that in her Mary Poppins type carpet bag, she has a limitless supply of resources of all types about homeschooling, blindness, and the education of blind children. And sometimes when she comes, she brings guest speakers who are experts on various related subjects. This is the virtual reality of Sarah J. Blake's electronic book, "Nothing But the Best."

If you've never bought an e-book before, now is the time. When you buy this user-friendly e-book, you follow the prompts to download it to your computer, where you can read the author's ample explanations and illustrations, print pages as you wish for your own use, and connect to countless other resources. Each link opens in a new window; you never have to worry about losing your place. The text also boasts a search feature, so if you are interested in a particular topic, you can type it into the search and it will quickly give you the page or pages where you can find that topic.

Although the book was designed and designated particularly for homeschoolers, other parents may also find much useful information, including the chapters on blindness, low vision, social skills, college preparation, career planning, music, art, and other subjects. Teachers of the visually impaired may find the abundant resources for all the academic subjects helpful in their planning. And homeschooling parents, as well as prospective homeschooling parents, will gain insight on making the decision to homeschool, getting started, where to find supplies, books, organizations, and other resources, besides all the valuable information on teaching children who are blind.

You can skim the table of contents, the layout, the features, and get a feel for this book in a day or two. You can spend many an enjoyable evening perusing its contents. You can use it as a resource for many years to come. But I believe the benefits will be with us and our children for a lifetime.

To download yours, go to Sarah Jane's.