As many schools and other facilities face extended or intermittent closures due to COVID-19, it’s important that parents and educators have the necessary knowledge and resource to ensure children who are blind or have low vision are not disadvantaged.
Vision Australia has compiled a range of resources including videos from educator, researcher and parent Melissa Fanshawe, available support services, government advice and free online resources to support parents and educators.
Useful Videos
For general classroom teachers
For specialist blindness and low vision teachers
For families of children who are blind or have low vision
Vision Australia Resources
Telehealth
Whether you are new to Vision Australia or an existing client, there’s a new and safe way for us to deliver services to families. Telehealth uses technology to conduct appointments with a Vision Australia service provider. For more information check here or contact your service provider.
Specialist Disability Support in School program (SDSS) (Queensland only)
Vision Australia has adapted to be able to continue to provide services remotely through Queensland’s SDSS program for eligible students. Please liaise with your school to determine if a referral form can be completed (more information and referral form available here).
Accessible Materials
Vision Australia’s Print Access service is available to support students and families to have educational material produced in accessible formats, including braille, e-text, tactual, audio and large print formats.
Vision Australia encourages all people to explore if they are eligible for the Personla Support Service, which will fund the productions of a certain amount of educational and recreational reading material into their format of choice.
The production of educational material in alternative formats can also be funded via an individual’s National Disability Insurance (NDIS) package.
You can find out more about the services Print Access offers online or contact them via phone on 1300 84 74 66 or email [email protected].
Learning at home Resources
State education departments
Queensland
- Queensland Education Department: Learning at home advice
- Queensland Educations Department advice for children who are blind or have low vision
South Australia
- South Australian Department of Education: Learning at home advice
- South Australian School for Vision Impaired
New South Wales
Tasmania
- Tasmania Department of Education: Learning at home advice
- Tasmanian Department of Education: Information for students with disability
ACT
Western Australia
Victoria
- Victorian Department of Education learning from home advice
- FUSE: Resources for educators
- Statewide Vision Resource Centre
Northern Territory
- Northern Territory Department of Education: Learning at home advice
- Northern Territory Department of Education: Services for children who are blind or have low vision
Online platform accessibility resources
Zoom
- Accessibility FAQs
- Hot keys and keyboard shortcuts for Zoom
- Zoom access with keyboard commands
- Mosen: Meet me Accessibility – a guide to zoom cloud meetings from a blindness perspective
- Zoom on BrailleNote Touch
Google classroom
- Google classroom on BrailleNote Touch
Google for Education accessibility features
Google Hangouts Meet Accessibility
Blackboard
- Best practices, tips and educational resources
Design accessibility
Accessibility for vision impairment
Apple iPad
BrailleNote Touch
General
- California School for the Blind: How-to guides
- American Foundation for the Blind: The visually impaired web users’s technology
Typing
- Typio Accessible Typing Tutor
- Freedom Scientific: JAWS, Fusion and ZoomText
- Mdelio: Resources for educators and families
Resources for educators
- Vision Australia Digital Access
- Vision Australia Print Access
- American Foundation for the Blind: Five accessibility actions you can take when moving your class online
- Perkins: Preparing for Virtual Instruction
- RIDBC Professional Learning courses
- Texas School for the Blind: CVI web exercise
- Described and captioned media program: Remote learning with accessible video
- Blackboard: Virtual classroom and district communication resources
- Perkins: Creating accessible charts and graphs
- Australian Disability Clearinghouse
- Paths to Literacy: 56 Tactile Maths Ideas
- IVCEVI: Make Mathematics easy for blind children
- Australian Special Education Principals Association
Resources for Families
- Parent-Created Schedule for Home-Based School Activities from Maths to Literacy for Students Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired
- Stay-at-Home Activities for Children with Visual Impairments
- Chatterpack: Resources, information, and activities for families to support Home Learning
- Amazing Educational Resources: Educational companies offering free subscription due to school closings
- Paths to Literacy: Free Access to Objective Ed Digital Curriculum
- Virtual ExCELL Academy: Rree lessons and activities online for students with vision impairment
- Helen Keller National Centre for Deaf-Blind Youth and Adults
- Paths to Literacy: 56 Tactile Maths Ideas
- ICEVI: Make Mathematics easy for blind children
- Back to front maths: Free accessible primary maths work program for students working from home
- RNIB Messy & Muddy: A guide to outdoor play for children with vision impairment”
- Braille Institute: Braille challenge sample contests
- Paths to Literacy: Tips and Tools teaching beginning braille skills
- Learn braille online: UEB online
- Teaching Visually Impaired: Braille Technology
Other online learning resources
- Khan Academy
- Open Culture
- Open Learn
- BBC languages
- Project Aspiro
- ABC Education
- Australian Children’s Television Foundation
- Outschool
- National Geographic for Kids.
- Time for kids
Useful webinars:
- World Blind Union webinar on home schooling: How to help our children in the time of COVID-19
- DAISY webinar: Helping higher education students with access to accessible course material during the COVID-19 crisis
Online books
- Vision Australia Library
- Bookshare for Students
- Audible
- Kindle Unlimited
- National Emergency Library
- Listening books.org
- Read Free Literature
- Open Library Access
- Project Gutenberg
Accessible Games
- Sonokids website
- Ballyland CosmoBally in Space (NEW)
- Ballyland Stay Still, Squeaky!
- Ballyland Magic
- VO Lab (Ballyland Magic for adolescents)
- Ballyland Rotor
- Ballyland Sound Memory
- Accessibyte