Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Encouraging Students Who are Blind or Visually Impaired to Express Their Feelings and Explore Imagination

For Teachers K - 12th
Being expressive in a creative, empathetic, or imaginative way is not only fun, it builds good pre-writing and communication skills. Learners with visual impairments have a roundtable discussion session where several sentence frames...
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Learning Names of Articles of Clothing

For Teachers K - 6th
What to wear today; such a vexing question. Spend some time introducing the names, fabrics, types, colors, and functions of various articles of clothing to your class. Each child will take turns asking each other what they are wearing....
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Learning to Express Myself

For Teachers K - 6th
Expressing one's wants and needs is vital for learners of any age or ability level. Young children with visual impairments and intellectual disabilities practice asking for preferred items, foods, or activities in a structured manner....
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Let's Pretend

For Teachers Pre-K - 6th
Playing pretend with real objects or concepts is a wonderful way for learners to make object-to-action connections, as well as practice daily living skills. Learners with visual and intellectual disabilities use a wide variety of real...
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Coin Identification

For Teachers 1st - 12th
You got some money, and you're not afraid to use it. Before you can use that money, you need to know what it's worth. Included is a set of activity instructions that will help your visually impaired learners indentify coins. Pupils...
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

One-to-One Correspondence

For Teachers K - 6th
Here is an interesting way to build concept understanding regarding one-to-one correspondence. Learners with visual impairments will use an array of everyday objects in context to foster an understanding of what one-to-one correspondence...
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

What Would You Do If...?

For Teachers 1st - 12th
What would you do if...? That's a great question, and, when posed to learners with visual impairments, a question that can foster concept development and speaking and problem-solving skills that relate to real-life situations. The...
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Letter Confusion

For Teachers K - 6th
Teaching a child with low or no vision how to read is the same as teaching a sighted child how to read — it all starts with letter recognition. This is a simple way to provide your learners with an opportunity to practice reading and...
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Treasure Hunt

For Teachers 1st - 6th
On, over, and under are some very common prepositions; but how can you teach these concepts to children with visual impairments? Here, is one way. Kids will practice following verbal commands as they go on a classroom treasure hunt. They...
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Where Shall I Put It?

For Teachers 1st - 6th
Position and positional phrases are concepts that need to be constructed for learners with low or no vision. Help them gain competence and a conceptual understanding of words like on, in, and under with a funny game. After gathering a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Pretty Plants Point of View

For Teachers 3rd - 5th Standards
Young poets use Kidspiration to draw a flower, personify the flower, and write a poem from the flower's point of view. Sharing these poems in small groups will reinforce learners' knowledge of personification. 
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Clean, Green Power

For Teachers 1st - 4th
Learners explore and discuss alternative energy sources, and identify disadvantages of current fossil fuels.
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Rough or Soft?

For Teachers K - 6th
When a child has some vision they need to be encouraged to use it in a positive and stimulating way. To better understand which types of tactile reinforcers your learner likes best; you'll rub different textured objects on...
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

High Stepping

For Teachers 1st - 12th
Learners who are blind or have visual impairments learn to take high steps in order to improve their balance and mobility. They start by marching in place, and then march around the room. Finally, they attempt to step over a towel as...
Activity
Perkins School for the Blind

Please Call Me Names!

For Teachers Pre-K - 8th
Teaching students who are blind means teaching them skills a sighted person may take for granted. To practice calling people and objects by name, learners engage in a cueing activity. The child calls for an adult by name, and then uses a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Modern Day Pen Pals, Connecting Our Art Room to the Rest of the World!

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
Initiate an international pen pal program! After establishing communication with an art class in another country, groups share pod casts and video streams of their work. The scripted resource details how to prepare for the pod casts, but...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

21st Century Book Club

For Teachers 1st - 5th
After reading a self-selected book, young reviewers plan, draft, revise, edit and polish a book review as their report on the book. Reviewers record and edit their report which is then placed in the digital library for others to enjoy.
Lesson Plan
Perkins School for the Blind

Bean Bag on My Head

For Teachers Pre-K - 8th
The world is a very different place to those who are blind. That is why it is so important to have your kids with visual impairments explore the world in many different ways. For this activity, a bean bag is placed on the child's head,...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Johnny Appleseed or John Chapman: Which Character is Your Favorite?

For Teachers 2nd - 3rd
Students study the life of John Chapman and compare it with the fictional character, Johnny Appleseed. Students listen to books about Johnny Appleseed, and watch a video and PowerPoint if available. They make a KWL chart, make an online...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Building A Portfolio

For Teachers K - 4th
Students gather images that are part of portfolio to be shared throughout the course of one school year. They complete written reflections based upon the images that are attained. The primary sources for the images is using a digital...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Compare Human-made Objects with Natural Objects

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students examine and observe how many human-made objects get their basic design from things in nature. They listen to the book "Nature Got There First," compare/contrast hollow bones with drinking straws, bird beaks and tool pliers, and...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Design Packing to Safely Mail Raw Spaghetti

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students investigate and determine a way to mail raw spaghetti. In small groups, they package their raw spaghetti using various packing materials, mail the package through the postal system, and evaluate their packing design after...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Design a Recycling Game!

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Students discover that recycling is using a product more than once so that natural resources can be saved and so that we won't need so many garbage dumps and landfills. They see that there are different ways to recycle. Students design a...
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Zoo Book for All

For Teachers 1st - 3rd
A visit to the local zoo launches an integrated life science/ language arts research project into the habitat, feeding habits, offspring, lifespan, and other interesting facts about animals. Each group selects two animals to photograph...