By Morgan Foreman Incidental learning, the first type of learning that occurs within babies and toddlers. With incidental learning, there is little to no explicit instruction involved. Instead, learning is developed through visual observations and experiences. But what happens when a young child has a visual impairment? How is their incidental learning impacted? A sighted […]
By Meg Wenzelman Gestures are body movements that have meanings and communicate to others. They have been observed in children before learning to speak (Iverson & Goldin-Meadow, 1997). Gestures are as important as facial expressions when interacting with other people (Ferrell 2011). Pointing, a common gesture, is an important part of development in language, fine […]
By Melissa Udelhofen The ability to converse and interact with others begins with the foundational skill of turn-taking (Ferrell, 2011) but how does this essential skill develop in our children with visual impairments? Various forms of turn-taking can be expected in typically developing infants as early as birth to one year old based on The […]
By Kristy Duckels It is believed that communication starts as early as in the womb for infants. It is also believed that direct talk at the infant in the womb can be extremely beneficial for an infant’s language development. The importance of communication continues throughout an infant’s life. An infant, as well as a child, […]
By Katie Wood and Rachel Strubinger From a very early age, children who are blind and visually impaired show delays. This is often because children with visual impairments and other children are not provided equal literacy experiences or chances to explore their world (Erickson & Hatton, 2007). These babies may reach their developmental milestones later […]
by Bryan Moles As Stratton and Wright (1991, pp xixii) succinctly state: “literacy begins to develop at birth; it does not wait until a child reads his first word or even until he opens his first book. Literacy is a basic process, set in motion long before actual reading and writing take place, and it […]
by Tara Hollinshead There are many important skills that develop during a child’s early years, especially throughout the first year. When a child has a visual impairment, a notable difference in their development compared to a sighted child is the way in which they learn. In her book Reach Out and Teach (2011), Ferrell highlights […]