Welcome Back to School!
Welcome Back to School
This Curriculum is designed for students in elementary school who are Blind or Visually
Impaired with additional disabilities who are not following the standard course of study.
Unit Introduction
It is important to start the school year with an introduction or review of the classroom and school
campus and also to introduce or reintroduce school personnel. An additional goal of this unit is
to introduce, teach, and reinforce the daily routine of the classroom and orient the students to
the classroom (find cubbies/lockers, work stations, locations in the school building). This is also
a good time to introduce authority figures and rules at your school. Assure students that this is a
place where they are welcome, and where they can make new friends. Discuss the importance
of playing and working safely so everyone can have fun and learn.
Unit Objectives:
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As a result of touring the classroom, students will become familiar with the
classroom and understand where to locate stations and materials within the
classroom.
As a result of touring the school campus, students will understand the school
layout and where the office, nurse’s office, main exits, cafeteria, playground,
gym and any other regular visited areas are within the school.
As a result of meeting school personnel, the students will understand that
workers in the school have different responsibilities. Students will identify
classmates, teachers, school personnel the students may have contact with
and related service staff.
Following discussion and role playing, the students will be able to identify
classroom rules.
Students will identify ways they can help contribute to the classroom
organization and cleanliness by assisting in chores.
Welcome students to the new school year! Assure students that you have planned many fun
and exciting activities for the school year and are looking forward to a great school year
together. Lead the students in a discussion about coming back to school. Are they excited about
the new school year? Are they nervous? Discuss how it is normal to have mixed emotions about
the new school year. You may share some of your own feelings as a model.
Introduce the unit by presenting materials related to the unit on a tray to keep materials from
rolling away and to provide a defined space for exploration. Encourage students to explore the
materials visually and tactually. Ask the students to either verbally identify the objects or to
obtain objects upon request. Present print/braille labels of each object presented. Encourage
the students to read the words by using strategies to sound out the words. Discuss what each
object is used for. Challenge students to predict the topic based on the objects presented. For
students with low vision, encourage the student to use their magnifying glass or provide various
powered magnifying glasses and if available, an electronic magnifier. For students who do not
have usable vision, encourage them to tactually explore the materials and provide them with
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Welcome Back to School!
additional descriptions of the materials.
Some possible materials include, but are not limited to:
colored pencils
colored pens
crayons
erasers
highlighters
index cards
lunch bags
lunchboxes
notebooks
pencils
rulers
various markers
Vocabulary Building (Introduce Vocabulary Words)
Present students with pre-printed cards (Use a simple, bold font such as Arial and in a large
enough font for comfortable distance viewing. Add braille as needed.) with vocabulary words
related to the unit. Present each word and assist as needed in sounding out the word. When
possible, pair objects or pictures with each vocabulary word (e.g., slide show, PowerPoint,
photo, etc.). Provide a brief verbal description of each word.
Possible Vocabulary Words for this unit include but are not limited to:
abacus
gym
music
art
janitor
nurse
book
library
paint
computer
lunch
pencil
crayon
menu
principal
secretary
snack
teacher
therapist
Vocabulary Web
Inform the students that these words have things in common and can be grouped together by
what they share in common. Present a simple web with headings of categories. Have students
take turns coming to the front, reading the word and placing in the category where it may
belong. If the student has difficulty, encourage them to request help (differentiated learning: “I
need help” programmed on a switch” or allow the student to select a peer to help them).
Sometimes a word could belong in more than one category. When this happens, allow students
to select where they would like it to go, or write the word on two cards and place it in both
categories.
Possible Web Categories include:
 Locations in the school: art, bathroom, bus drop off, cafeteria, computer lab, elevator,
office, nurses station, gym, hallway, library
 People at School: teacher, speech and language pathologist, occupational therapist,
physical therapist, teacher of students with visual impairments, cafeteria workers, janitor,
nurse, principal, secretary
 Locations in the classroom: art, writing, circle/meeting, math, science, computer,
bathroom, desk, sink
 School Supplies: books, crayons, notepads, pencil, eraser, markers, tape, glue, ruler
 Food related: lunch, snack, lunch bag, menu
During this activity, students may generate words that are not printed on the cards. If the words
are related to the topic, write the word on a card and place it in the correct category on the web.
If the students think of additional categories, add those categories as appropriate, or encourage
the student to use those ideas for further study and research.
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Riddles
Help students develop familiarity and understanding of the materials and vocabulary by
presenting the students with riddles and encouraging students to touch or tell the object:
 By name (ex. Find the box of crayons.)
 By description (ex. Find the one that is a large rectangle)
 By function (ex. Find the object that is used to wipe your face when you eat.)
 By texture (ex. Find the one that feels round with a point on one end.)
School Riddles
Following classroom discussions about areas within the school and people who work at the
school, encourage students to determine the person or place based on the description. Make
the riddles more challenging for some and easier for others.
Ex.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
This vehicle takes people to school. (school bus)
This is where you go to eat at school. (cafeteria)
This is where you go if you get sick at school (nurses station).
This is who is the leader of the school (principal).
This is the area of the school where you can find many books (library).
Feely Bag
Encourage students to reach inside a bag and try to identify objects related to school. Once the
students have identified the objects, extend the activity by encouraging the students to match
the item to the printed word. Encourage students to have more time exploring the details of the
materials. Additionally you may consider providing two of each item and encourage the students
to locate the matching object.
Fill-in-the-Blank
Present students with simple sentences about the objects. Omit the object words from the
sentence and encourage the students to collaboratively or independently complete the
sentences by selecting the word paired with the object that would complete the sentence. Adjust
the complexity of the sentence to challenge but ensure success.
1. An (eraser) is a tool you use when you make a mistake when you are writing.
2. You can carry your lunch to school in a (lunchbag).
3. You can wipe your hands and face with a (napkin) when you eat.
4. You can color pictures with (crayons/markers).
5. You can use a (ruler) to measure how long something is.
6. You can take notes or write in a (notebook).
Name Match
Prior to this activity, record greetings by key school employees and specialists. Also be sure to
take a picture of each person. If you are able to obtain recordable buttons (or use a recordable
photo album), have a button or recording attached to each person's picture. Display the
pictures of peers, key school employees, and therapists/specialists on the board or in a photo
album. Prepare print/braille labels of each person's name as they are known to the students
(some staff may go by first name while others go by their last names). Be sure to laminate the
cards to ensure durability and attach Velcro for repeated matching opportunities.
Present cards with the school employees/therapists names printed/brailled on them. Play the
recorded greetings from the staff one at a time. Encourage students to identify the person in the
audio recordings and the picture (if the student has usable vision). Next, pronounce the person’s
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name. Encourage the students to locate the printed name. Stress the beginning sound of the
person’s name to assist students in identifying the beginning letter of their name. Then locate
names that begin with that letter. If there is more than one name that begins with that letter,
continue by determining the next sound/letter combination in their name. Once the student has
found the printed/brailled name, place it by the picture. Continue until all names are matched.
Build Connections
Once the students have had time to discuss the topic, have the students discuss their
experiences related to the topic. Write the students ideas and experiences on a board or poster.
Reflection & Further Study
Have students reflect on what they have learned during unit discussions and activities.
Encourage the students to share or write one thing they have learned. How can what they
learned be used in real life? Is there anything they want to learn more about?
Encourage students to gather more information about an area related to school that interests
them. Allow the students to individually choose an area of study, or provide a choice of preselected areas. Encourage the students to form questions about the topic. Assist the student in
writing or dictate the questions for them. Assist the student in using resources (online,
newspaper, menu, etc.) to locate the answers to questions and recording the answers. Have the
students reconvene and present their topic, questions, and findings to their peers.
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Reading Foundations
These activities, accessible to students who are blind and visually impaired and their sighted
peers, are designed to build students' phonological awareness, phonics and word recognition,
understanding and knowledge of concepts of print, the alphabetic principle, and other basic
conventions of the English writing system. Developing a strong reading foundation is a
necessary part of reading program in order to develop proficient readers. Choose from the
following activities, with the Welcome Back to School! unit, to meet your students unique
learning needs.
Activities to Develop Listening Habits
What's That Sound?
To prepare for this activity, record sounds throughout the school: drinking fountain, toilet
flushing, water running in sink, door shutting, sounds of kids playing on playground, ball
dribbling, sound of kids playing in gym, sounds from the cafeteria, etc.
Talk to the students about the importance of sounds and how they give us information. Listen to
prerecorded sounds of places within the school building or sounds you may hear at school.
Have students locate the object or printed word to match the activity. Ask students to name the
sounds that they hear. End the activity by summarizing the importance of sounds and how they
convey meaning.
Voice Match
Record students, teachers, therapists, and other school employee voices using your iphone,
ipad or other recording device. Play the recordings for the students and encourage them to
identify the voices.
Sequencing Sounds
Take the students on a tour of the school to refresh their memories or simply to greet those they
haven't seen since the previous school year. Bring along a set of recordable buttons such as
these from Learning resources.
Record the voices of people you meet or sounds from locations you visit on each button. Upon
returning to the classroom, have the students listen to recordings from activity/experience.
Encourage the students to place the buttons in the order in which they heard the sound. Extend
the activity by removing one of the buttons. Have the students listen to the remaining buttons
and determine what button is missing.
"Teacher" Says Listening
Students practice directional and body concepts by playing Teacher Says (ex. Teacher Says,
put your fingers on your ears, etc). Begin by having the students face the leader. Have the
leader give one-step directions for the students to follow. If the leader says “teacher says" first,
then the students should follow the direction. If the leader doesn’t say “teacher says", then the
students should NOT follow the directions. If the leader doesn’t say “teacher says" but a student
do the direction, he/she has to sit down. The last student standing wins. Have the leader
request that the students move body in relation to objects (ex. Teacher says put the pencil on
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your shoulder). You may choose to use your name instead of "teacher" (ex. “Mrs. Johnson (or
other name) Says”).
Have students place their fingers on: ears, eyes, nose, mouth, chin, hair, hand, feet, brain,
heart, stomach, shoulders, knees, elbows, ankles, wrist, etc. Make the activity more challenging
by having the student put hand on foot, elbow on knee, nose on knee, etc.
"I'm Going to School"
Sitting together as a group, have the students take an imaginary trip to school. The first student
will share an item to bring on the trip (e.g., "I'm going to school and I'm going to bring a
notebook'). The second student will repeat the last student's item and then share their own (e.g.,
"I'm going to school and I'm going to bring a notebook and a book bag). Continue around the
circle until someone forgets a previously mentioned item. You can then choose to end the
game, or start a new trip. Extend the activity having each item be named in alphabetical order
(ex. Apple, bookbag, cookie, dice, etc.)!
Modification: If students are unable to recall items, adapt the activity by presenting items and
encourage the student to select or touch the items in the correct order or provide hand under
hand assistance to touch the items in the correct sequence.
Musical Patterns
Have students clap or use musical instruments or mini lunchboxes to tap out the rhythm in
songs related to the unit. Alternatively, clap a pattern for the students and have them imitate the
pattern.
Possible songs related to the unit:
Children's Songs:
Good Morning – Greg & Steve Vol.. 2
So Happy You’re Here – Hap Palmer – So Big
The More We Get Together – Raffi, Silly Songs
We’re All Together Again – Greg & Steve Vol 5
Pop Culture Songs:
Be True to Your School - Beach Boys
Welcome Back (from Welcome Back Kotter) - John Sebastian
Rhyming Awareness Activities
Rhyming
Identify words that rhyme with words related to school. Make a chart with a few of these words
at the top. List words that rhyme.
Ex.
School: Cool, drool, fool, rule, mule, tool, fuel, pool, spool, rule, preschool, footstool, molecule,
ridicule, whirlpool
Bell: cell, dell, fell, gel, sell, tell, well, yell, swell, spell, shell
Bus: fuss, plus, thus, discuss
Car: are, bar, char, far, jar, par, star
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It Rhymes With...
Place school related materials in a lunchbox. Give rhyming riddle clues to students. Have them
guess what is in the lunchbox based on the rhyming clue. I have something that rhymes with
"_____".
Ex.
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I have something that rhymes with stencil. (pencil)
I have something that rhymes with ran. (crayon)
I have something that rhymes with darker. (marker)
I have something that rhymes with chaser. (eraser)
I have something that rhymes with took. (book)
I have something that rhymes with cooler. (ruler)
I have something that rhymes with vapor. (paper)
The Rhyming Game
You may remember this song like game from your childhood, typically sung using people's
names. Replace the names with school related words.
Pencil, pencil, bo-bencil, banana-nana fo fencil, me my mo mencil, PENCIL!
Eraser, eraser bo-racer banana-nana fo racer, me my mo macer, ERASER!
Marker, marker bo-barker banana-nana fo farcer, me my mo marker, MARKER!
Book, book bo-book, banana-nana fo fook, me my mo mook, BOOK!
Phonemic Awareness Activities
Hot Potato
Have the students sit in a circle. Provide them with a lunchbox with objects from the unit. Begin
passing the lunchbox around when music starts playing. After a few seconds, stop the music.
Have the student who is holding the lunchbox reach in and pull out an object. The student say
the name of the object and then say the beginning sound of that word. Continue until all the
students have had a chance to name an object.
School Blending Guess
Have students blend and identify a school related word that is stretched out into its basic
component sounds. Provide words from the unit (bus, car, van, bell, class, etc). Tell the
students that you are going to say a word using "snail talk", a slow way of saying words (e.g.,
/bbbbeeeellllll/ for bell). Encourage the students to determine what word is being said.
School Syllable Count
Prepare cards with the classroom centers/stations, materials, and/or school locations written on
them or use the vocabulary cards from the unit. Have students clap out the syllables in the
words. Sort the words by the number of syllables in the word. Have the students compare and
determine which syllable count they has the most words.
Cafeteria (5), gym (1), computer (3), manipulatives (5), art (1), library (3), etc.
Game Board Fun
Locate a game board with spaces to move and pawns. Create “playing cards” that are phrases
or sentences related to the unit. Have the students take turns reading the phrases and
sentences. Once the student has read the phrase or sentence, have him count how many words
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Welcome Back to School!
their phrase or sentence had. This number is the number of spaces they can move on the game
board. If a student is unable or needs help reading their card, they are only able to move the
number of spaces as words they could read. The game continues until someone reaches the
end.
Scrambled Fact Sentences
Present students with pre-written fact sentences related to going to school. Read the sentences
together in choral reading several times to improve fluency and word recognition. Assist the
students in cutting the sentence(s) into individual words, or provide pre-written/cut sentences.
Mix the words up (but ensure they are all still oriented correctly) and encourage the students or
groups of students to put the sentence together into the original order. Vary the complexity of
the sentences to challenge each student, but ensure success. Encourage students to generate
their own simple sentences related to the topic. Support them in forming a variety of sentence
types: declarative, interrogatory, exclamatory, or imperative. Provide assistance in generating
new sentences as needed. Some possible sentences include:
Declarative
1. We ride a bus to school.
2. We follow the classroom rules.
3. We eat lunch in the cafeteria.
Exclamatory
1. I love school!
2. School is fun!
3. Don’t run in the hall!
Interrogatory
1. Where is the bathroom?
2. When do we go home?
3. What is for lunch?
Imperative
1. Please, help me.
2. Wash your hands.
3. Be kind to everyone.
Phonics & Word Recognition Activities
Case Match
Using bus shaped die cuts, print/braille the uppercase alphabet on one set of die cuts and the
lowercase alphabet on a matching set of buses or other school related die cut shape.
Encourage the students to match the uppercase to the lowercase letters.
Adaptation: Encourage student to match objects or pictures with the same beginning letter.
A-Z at School
Provide a stack of school related words written in print/braille. Challenge the students to sound
out the words and place the word in alphabetical order. Go around the school and place
print/braille labels at the correct locations with the students.
A=art room, b=bus stop, c=cafeteria, d=desk, e=elevator, f=floor, g=gym, h=hallway, j=janitor,
l=library, m=music room, n=nurse, p=principal, r=restroom, s=secretary, t=teacher's lounge,
x=exit signs, etc.
Adaptation: Locate objects/pictures of theme related items and present these to the students
paired with an auditory description. This is a lunchbox. Lunchbox starts with the letter "l". "L"
says "lllll". Can you touch the lunchbox ? Encourage student to touch the picture of the lunchbox
in order to advance to the next picture (may be presented on iPad).
Classroom Alphabet Hunt
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Welcome Back to School!
Have students search the room for materials and places that begin with the letters of the
alphabet. Create labels for the items/places, accentuating the beginning letter.
Door, Clock, Paper, Table,
Build-a-Word
Provide the students with vocabulary words from the unit along with needed letter tiles in
print/braille. Encourage the students to create the word(s) using their letter tiles. Alternatively,
present a choice of three letters for the student to choose from as a letter is requested in order
to build the word. Enhance the activity by discussing the letter sounds each letter makes and
words that begin with that letter.
Adaptation. Provide students with objects or pictures of unit related items. Discuss the sound
the initial letter makes and compare to other words that begin with the same sound.
Word Family Sort (rimes)
Attach word family cards (-ag -ack,-ell, -ill) to the outside of containers/boxes/bags. Pair the
containers with an object/picture that can represent that word family (Objects can represent the
word even if they are representations, just be sure to explain the connection.). Provide students
with a collection of related word family word cards to sort into the corresponding containers.
Schoolb-ag.
Bag, brag, flag, gag, hag, lag, rag, sag, snag, stag, swag, tag, wag, zag, beanbag, dishrag,
handbag, mailbag, sandbag, schoolbag, washrag, zigzag, litterbag
Sn-ack.
Back, black, crack, jack, lack, pack, quack, rack, sack, shack, slack, snack, stack, tack, track,
attack, backpack, backtrack, callback, comeback, feedback, payback, setback, thumbtack,
unpack
B-ell.
Cell, dell, fell, hell, sell, shell, smell, spell, swell, tell, well, yell, barbell, doorbell, eggshell,
farewell, inkwell, lampshell, nutshell, retell, stairwell, unwell
Sn-ip.
Chip, clip, dip, drip, flip, grip, hip, lip, ship, sip, skip, slip, snip, strip, tip, trip, whip, zip, courtship,
filmstrip, friendship, hardship, nonslip, township, fingertip
Word Jumbles
Provide students with letter tiles forming various vocabulary words. Encourage students to
rearrange the tiles to form as many new words as possible.
Cafeteria café, ate, tear, tar, cat, tea, tee, eat, fat, rat, fit, far
Computer cut, cot, rut, put, more, come
Notebook note, book, bet, net, not, too, ton, bone, boot
Onset-Rime Partner Up
Create a set of cards with school related words and pictures/objects/tactile graphics. Leave off
the first letter or letter blend at the beginning of each word and replace it with a Velcro dot.
Provide students with letters and blends to match that will create the correct word.
Ex. Sch-ool, p-en, stu-dent, mar-ker, pa-per, mu-sic, pen-cil, b-ag, l-unch
Sort by onset
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Provide students with lunchboxes labeled with onsets to focus on. (Choose onsets that your
students need to practice.) Provide students with words written on cut outs that use these
onsets. Encourage students to read the word and use it in a sentence before placing it in the
correct lunchbox. If students need help, allow them to ask peers for assistance or assist them in
using strategies to sound out the word(s).
Words we know
Present students with vocabulary words they know from the unit. Prepare cards ahead of time
that allow the initial consonant or initial consonant blend to be removed. Have students use
consonants and consonant blends printed on cards to create new words. Provide shakers or
musical instruments for each student. Encourage students to take turns selecting consonants
and blends from the draw pile. If they created a real word, have the students shake the shakers
signifying it's a real word. Encourage students to use the word in a sentence. Write/braille the
new word and place the words on the word wall.
Ex.
Sn-ack. Back, black, crack, jack, lack, pack, quack, rack, sack, shack, slack, snack, stack, tack,
track,
B-ell. Cell, dell, fell, hell, sell, shell, smell, spell, swell, tell, well, yell
L-unch. Bunch, crunch, hunch, munch, punch
Compound School Words
Discuss with students how compound words are made when two words are put together to form
a new word. Inform students that they are going to play a game with compound words. Provide
each student with part of a compound word. Have each student read their word out loud prior to
the activity. Next have students find a peer that has a word that can be added to the beginning
or end of their word to create a new word. Select known or common words. After students make
a match, provide them with new cards.
Ex.
back-pack
lunch-box
school-house
book-bag
note-book
school-work
book-case
play-ground
side-walk
book-shelf
play-things
upper-case
hand-book
school-book
waste-basket
lower-case
school-bus
Prepositional Shake
Prepare a lunchbox for each student. Fill each lunchbox with unique materials that sound fun
when they are shaken. Encourage students to chant or sing songs that direct them to shake
present in relation to their bodies.
Ex. Sing to the tune of "Shake Your Sillies Out":
We're gonna shake, shake, shake
Our lunchboxes,
Shake, shake, shake
Our lunchboxes,
Shake, shake, shake
Our lunchboxes,
Shake them (preposition)our (body part)
(behind our backs, over our heads, between our legs, etc.
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Parts Of Speech
School Mad Lib
Prior to the activity, prepare a print out of the Mad Lib using print and braille if there are any
current or future braille readers. leave enough space to fill in the blanks. Consider preparing it in
a way that it can be used multiple times (e.g. laminate and attach Velcro). Tell the students that
you are going to make a silly story about school. To do this, you will ask them to provide a part
of speech. Go through the Mad Lib and ask students to provide you with nouns, verbs,
adjectives, adverbs, exclamations, etc. Use an existing school related Mad Lib or create your
own.
Ex.
I was very (emotion) about going back to (place). I wondered what I would do and if I would
have any (plural noun). I (past tense verb) to (place) on the school (noun). I sat next to my friend
(name). We (verb) the whole way to school. When we got there, the teacher was waiting in the
(noun). She seemed very (emotion) to see me. I think my first day is going to be (adjective)!
Parts of Speech Sort
Provide a collection of adjectives, adverbs, verbs and adverbs related to the unit. Create a chart
and encourage students to read the words and place each word in the correct column.
Ex.
Noun (A noun is a type of word that represents a person, thing, or place.)
straw, napkin, lunchbox, chalk, crayon, marker, paper, etc.
Verbs (A verb is a type of word that describes an action or a state of being.):
ride, work, study, write, read, learn, etc.
Pronoun (A pronoun is a substitute for a noun.)
I, me, she, hers, he, him, it, you, they, them, etc.
Adjectives (An adjective is a word that describes a noun.)
all, every, good, best, worried, far, close, straight, yellow, etc.
Adverbs (An adverb is a word that tells “how,” “when,” “where,” or “how much”.):
after, awful, carefully, daily, hourly, often, today, tomorrow, tonight, etc.
Prepositions (A preposition shows how something is related to another word. It shows the
space, time, or logical relationship of an object to the rest of the sentence.)
above, side, beside, by, down, inside, like, next, outside, etc.
Conjunction (A conjunction is a word that joins other words, phrases, clauses or sentences.)
and, as, because, but, or, since, so, until, while
Interjection (An interjection is a word that expresses emotion
oh, wow, ugh, hurray, eh, and ah
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Welcome Back to School!
Language Arts
Literature Related To School:
Stories
If You Take a Mouse to School – Laura Numeroff
My Teacher Sleeps in School – Leatie Weiss
The Kissing Hand – Audrey Penn
Will I have a friend? – Miriam Cohen
The First Day Jitters – Julie Danneberg
Poetry
Arithmetic – Carl Sandburg
Songs
Children's Songs:
Good Morning – Greg & Steve Vol.. 2
So Happy You’re Here – Hap Palmer – So Big
The More We Get Together – Raffi, Silly Songs
We’re All Together Again – Greg & Steve Vol 5
Pop Culture Songs:
Be True to Your School - Beach Boys
Welcome Back (from Welcome Back Kotter) - John Sebastian
Informative Text Related To Unit
School Alma Matter
School Menus
Student Handbooks
Yearbooks from previous years
Writing & Communicating Activities
Weekly Newsletter
Help students create a weekly newsletter. Tell students that a newsletter is a way to
communicate with their families and tell them about what happens at school. Encourage
students to include the weeks highlights, upcoming events, and any requests.
Journal
Encourage students to begin a journal that they can add to each day. Some students will have
more success writing about their day and what is familiar to them. For others, provide possible
topic starters such as: activities they did in school or preferred/non-preferred activities. Modify
the activity for students who are non-verbal and unable to write. Take pictures of their day using
an ipad and group the photos using an app such as Pictello.
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
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Welcome Back to School!
Summer Reflection
Have students write about their favorite summer activities or vacations. Provide assistance in
dictating and summarizing when needed. Encourage students to bring in objects and/or pictures
from vacations or that depict activities. Allow students to present their writing to their peers
along with the pictures and objects. Encourage students to ask the presenter questions about
their activities.
Station Signs
Have students help create signs for each classroom station. Provide posters/boards for each
classroom station with names printed/brailled on each one. Have the students help determine
which objects best represent the center to attach to the sign that will help them identify them.
Going to School Experience
Encourage students to share with the class their experience of coming to school. Prompt
students as needed to include what they packed in their backpacks and how they arrived at
school (bus, van, car, truck). Students may enhance their presentation by sharing personal
items or may use pictures/videos/sounds of what they heard. Allow students to use pictures or
objects representing various stages of going to school, have the students verbally tell or arrange
the pictures/objects in the correct order. For example: put on shoes/coat, put on backpack, ride
in vehicle (tire for object), hang up coat (hook). Identify transportation that students use to get to
and from school.
Literature Connection
Students develop strong reading skills when they are exposed to a range of quality literature
and also read informative text that is relevant to their world. I have provided a possible book, If
you Take a Mouse to School, that can be used with the Welcome Back to School! topic. Some
other possible books are provided at the end. Be sure to select a book that is appropriate for
your student(s).
Book: If you Take a Mouse to School Author: by Laura Numeroff
Introduce the book to the students. Ask if any of the students are familiar with the book. Discuss
why you chose to read this book.
Make Story Predictions
Show the students the front and back cover of the book and read the title with them. Present
students with pictures and objects from the story. Verbally describe the pictures for those with
low vision. Ask students what they might read about in this book. Discuss why you chose to
read this book. Predict the content, events and outcome using title, headings, illustrations, and
objects. Explain that making predictions can help people make decisions, solve problems, and
learn new information. Predictions may change as you read and gather more information.
Model asking questions you may have about the book/topic. Write the questions you or students
may have about the text. Discuss the fact sentences presented earlier. Will any of the
information we learned be in the story?
A Picture (or object) Tells a Thousand Words…
Present students with pictures and objects from the story. Verbally describe the pictures for
students who have low vision or are blind. Encourage the students to predict the content, events
and outcome using title, headings, illustrations/objects. Read the story with enthusiasm and
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
teachingvisuallyimpaired.com
Welcome Back to School!
inflection.
Materials:
a lunchbox, sandwich, pencils, backpack, chalk, eye dropper, a bar of soap, block, clay, paper,
soccer ball, basketball, and a skateboard.
Main Ideas & Details
After reading the story, encourage students to ask questions they may have about the story.
Encourage peers to try to answer the questions. Ask the students questions to demonstrate
understanding of the text. Encourage students to describe the characters and setting:
 What did the mouse act like? The boy?
 Would you like to be the boy in the story? Why?
 Is the story fiction or non-fiction? How do you know?
 Do you think you are similar or different to the character (boy or mouse) in the story?
 Did the character(s) change over the course of the story?
 What was the intent of the author? Was it to inform, provide directions, or to entertain?
Recall items or key points of story
Provide students with the materials from the story along with those not related to the story.
Challenge the students to identify objects from the story and those not from the story. Extend
the activity by asking the students to recall what the mouse did with the items.
Emotions
Discuss any emotions experienced when reading the story. Did you think it was funny or were
you bothered by the events? What was the most (exciting, scary, boring, sad, funny) part of the
story? Do you have a pet you would like to bring to school? How would it make you feel if your
pet caused trouble?
Similarities & Differences
Discuss similarities and differences between other books by Laura Numeroff. Discuss how
Laura Numeroff has written a number of books with the mouse as one of the characters. One of
the more popular books she has written is the book "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie". Read "If
You Give a Mouse a Cookie" to the students and discuss the similarities in the books.
Readers Theater
Using the objects related to the story, have the students take turns acting out the story.
Story sequence
Encourage students to place the objects from the story in the order in which they appeared in
the story. Once the majority of students agree, reread the story and check the accuracy. If the
items were in the wrong order, have the students correct them.
Build a Book and Reenact the story
Assign a page to each student. Have the students copy the words from the page or change the
words to their color and then illustrate their page. Gather the students together and reread the
story, have each student act out their page. Finally, assemble the pages together to create a
class book to be placed in the book area.
Language Development
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Welcome Back to School!
New Words & Phrases
Where there any unfamiliar words and phrases used in the story (this will be unique to your
students)? Can you figure out what the author meant by how it was used in the story or by other
words in the story? Show the students how you can look up unfamiliar words in a dictionary or
on the computer.
Sight Word Search
Reread the story and have the students identify sight words and/or vocabulary words in the
story. As you read the story, stop when you come to a sight word and encourage the students to
read the word.
Word Identification
Hand out word cards (in print and/or braille) and/or objects from the story to the students. Assist
the students in pairing cards with print/braille words to the objects. Read the story again and this
time stop as you come to each item in the story. Ask for the person who has that word/object to
come place it on the word wall for the book.
Informative Text: Yearbooks
Yearbook Introduction
Present the student's with the previous year's yearbook. For students who have minimal or no
vision, describe the information that is found in yearbooks. Discuss or show: what information is
provided, the purpose of the yearbook, how it is laid out, and what types of pictures are shown.
Help students identify unknown words and identify pictures. Identify illustrations including maps,
charts and photographs. Point out the different sections in the yearbook as well as teachers,
and peers.
Possible Questions:
 Who: Who do you recognize in the yearbook? Who's pictures are in the yearbook?
 What: What section(s) of the yearbook were your favorite? What clubs are listed? What
special activities are shown? What sports teams are listed? What areas of the school are
shown?
 Where: Where were the pictures taken?
 When: When were the pictures taken?
 Why: Why would you want to buy a yearbook?
Additional Informative Text:
School Alma Matter
School Menus
Student Handbooks
Yearbooks from previous years
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
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Welcome Back to School!
Mathematics
The activities identified here are designed to help students gain a thorough understanding of
concepts through hands on experiences with materials related to Back to School. All students
need to begin math understanding with real materials. Exploration of materials is beneficial in
supporting all student’s understanding in mathematical and logical thinking. This will also
reinforce concepts being taught throughout the unit and variety of materials to complete math
problems will add variety and help students transfer their skills. Select activities based on each
students unique learning needs.
Numbers & Counting
Object Count
Provide students with a collection of crayons, erasers, or other objects related to school.
Encourage the students to count various sets. Have the students compare sets to determine
which set is greater than, less than or the same as the objects in another group. Count by…
Present groups of crayons to students. Encourage the students to group the crayons together
by 2’s to determine if the amount is odd or even. Have students group and count crayons by 5s
and 10s to 20, 50, or 100 as able.
Bus Stops On My Way to School
Create a poster or file folder titled "On My Way to School". Draw or create a tactual house in the
top left corner of the poster and a school at the lower right corner. Draw or create a tactual road
leading from home to the school. Place 10 "bus stops" using Velcro, along the road. Provide the
students with Velcro numbers 1-10 and encourage the students to label the stops to school in
sequential order.
How Many School Supplies?
Have students determine “how many” in created sets of objects (pencils, erasers, spoons, paper
clips, etc.).. Encourage students to write the number that corresponds to the amount in a set on
cards labeled with object name. Arrange the cards from least to most. Have the students
determine if the amounts are odd or even.
Patterns
Lunch Assembly patterns
Provide students with sandwich parts using tactually and visually different materials to represent
meats, cheese, pickles, lettuce, mustard, bread, etc. as well as empty milk and juice containers,
and chip snack bags. Create sandwich assembly cards that depict what goes on certain kinds of
sandwiches. Provide lunch trays along with mock lunch order requests. Have students fill
orders. For added fun, have the worker ring a bell and announce "order up!" when each order is
complete and accurate. For an added challenge use a timer and challenge students to complete
a certain number of orders within a specified time.
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
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Welcome Back to School!
Operations & Algebraic Thinking
Addition & Subtraction Problems
Ask students addition and subtraction questions using school materials. Ask questions involving
situations where one is “added to,” taken from,” “put together” and “taken apart”. Add and
subtract up to a sum of 5, 10, or 20 as able. Possible questions include, but are not limited to:
If you have 4 pencils and 3 erasers, how many school supplies do you have in all? (change the
numbers to challenge students within their abilities)
If you have 8 crayons and give 4 to a friend, how many crayons do you have left?
Number Lines
Place crayons along a bold line and/or tactual number line from 0 to 10 to determine whether
the number is closer to 0 or 10. Compare to base ten models to help students make the
connection. Use these models to count larger amounts with ease.
Addition/Subtraction Equation Comparison
Using school supplies to create sets, encourage students to compare different equations to
determine if equations are true or false.
2 (pencils) + 3 (erasers) = 4(pencils) + 1 (eraser)
Multiplication & Division
Ask students multiplication and division questions using crayons, pencils or other school
supplies. For example:
If you have 10 pencils and have to put the same amount in 5 classmates pencil boxes, how
many pencils will each student get?
If you want to give 5 classmates 3 crayons each, how many crayons will you need?
Encourage students to either use the objects or base ten models to solve multiplication and
division problems.
Place Value
Using number tiles or cards, encourage students to put together or take apart three digit
numbers into hundreds, tens and ones. Consider using crayon boxes that are labeled
“hundreds”, “tens”, and “ones”. Use crayons to represent numbers.
Measurement
The Length Of Materials
Provide students with pieces of chalk, various size pencils, markers, scissors and crayons.
Encourage students to measure the length using a ruler, yardstick, meter stick or measuring
tape. Encourage other students to identify tools used to measure with. Provide assistance to
students as needed to determine how much longer one object is than another. Create a graph
to represent the data and determine which items are the longest
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Welcome Back to School!
How many Crayons Tall are You?
Encourage students to lay on the ground and have peers measure how tall/long they are in
crayons. Encourage other students to identify other standard/non-standard tools that can be
used to measure with.
Smallest to largest
Compare the materials and arrange from smallest to largest. Encourage students to estimate
length using inches, feet, centimeters or meters (or nonstandard units). Provide assistance to
students as needed to determine how much longer one object is than another. Create a graph
to represent the data and determine which items are the longest.
The Weight Of Materials
Provide students with school supplies. Encourage students to weigh the objects. Compare the
materials and arrange from lightest to heaviest. Encourage students to estimate the weights.
Encourage other students to identify tools used to measure with. Provide assistance to students
as needed to determine how much heavier one object is than another. Create a graph to
represent the data and determine which items are the heaviest.
The Volume Of Materials
Have students determine how many crayons, markers, scissors, pencils, or erasers it takes to
fill a lunchbox. Have students determine which materials it takes more of to fill the lunchbox.
Data Collection
Taste Test
Provide the students with a variety of cookies (following reading, “If you give a Mouse a
Cookie”) and encourage the students to taste each item. PLEASE BE AWARE OF ANY
ALLERGIES & SUBSTITUTE ACCORDINGLY!! Ensure there are enough "safe" foods for all
students to be able to participate. Complete a chart depicting each item. Have students identify
which items they liked and place a smile/frown (or other indicator) on the chart. Keep in mind
that tactual smile/frown stickers are available through quota funds from the American Printing
House for the Blind. Engage the students in a discussion about the different tastes and textures
(salty, sour, sweet, bland, crunchy, soft, etc.). Discuss how results may vary if other classes or
family members completed the graph. Encourage the students to read the completed graph and
develop a summary sheet. What was the most popular item? What was the least popular?
Possible cookies include:
Chocolate chip, M&M, No Bakes, Oatmeal, Nutter Butter, Oreo's, Peanut Butter, Snicker
Doodle, Vanilla Wafers
How did you come to school?
Students will complete a graph on how they came to school. Bus? Car? Van? Walk? If all
students use the same form of transportation, vary the activity by bus number, color of car, etc.
Geometry
School Supply to Shadow Match
Encourage students to match real school related objects to shadows, thermoforms or raised line
drawings of the object.
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Welcome Back to School!
Determine the area and perimeter
Assist students in determining the area of objects using materials presented in the unit. Find the
area of a table, desk, etc. using nonstandard measurement tools such as crayons and
unsharpened pencils. Why are the results different when using different materials? What
standard tool can be used to determine the area and perimeter?
The Shape of it
Identify what shapes objects from the unit are similar to. Create shapes using the objects. Are
the objects similar in shape to cubes, rectangular prisms, cones, cylinders or spheres. Provide
models for comparison. Classify two dimensional shapes by their attributes (quadrilaterals,
triangles, number of sides and angles)
Fractions
Crayon Box Fractions
Provide the number of empty crayon boxes to match the denominator to demonstrate fractions.
Use crayons to represent the numerator. Provide a variety of sets in order to help students
compare greater than and less than. Add and subtract fractions using the models.
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
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Welcome Back to School!
Science & Social Studies
Social studies and science is best taught when students can role-play or go on community
outings to have hands on experiences with environments in the community specific to the
current topic. Incorporating concrete experiences within the natural environment can provide
students with a greater understanding of their world. These science and social studies activities
naturally provides students with the opportunities to develop their tactual exploration and fine
motor skills through the exploration and manipulation of real materials.
Visual Awareness Activities
The following activities are designed to encourage students to visually attend to lights or
reflective materials and to interact with materials or activate switches to activate materials.
Lightbox Activities
Depending on the students abilities, present the following activities for the student.
 Display gel forms on board in school colors.
 Fill Ziploc bags with hair gel or other clear gel substance. Add food coloring and/or
metallic shapes in school colors. Be sure to secure bag with strong tape!
 Present Plexiglas shapes in school colors for students to sort into bowls (clear or of
same color)
Decorate Mobile/Stand
Decorate the mobile or stand by wrapping miniature lights along the bars in the school colors.
Alternate colors depending on students ability to tolerate complexity. Consider attaching a fan to
a switch and encourage student to push the switch to blow the materials, play a school related
song or turn on the mini lights.
Possible Materials to Suspend
 pom-poms in school colors
 old CDs with striped or checkerboard patterns in school colors
 string of metallic beads in school colors
 other materials in school colors that encourage student to reach (consider qualities that
student will attend to)
 Metallic balloons in school colors.
Pat Mat
Obtain metallic balloons in the school colors. Deflate them and fill with plastic grocery bags.
Retape to create a pat-mat.
Mascot Play
Obtain a switch activated toy that is similar to the school mascot or place school colors on a
stuffed animal that is switch activated (ex. Red/white scarf, sweater, hat, etc). Encourage
student to activate switch to make "mascot" move.
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
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Welcome Back to School!
Science
School Pride Wet Exploration
Fill the wet sensory table/container with water and add food coloring in your school color (or
combined colors to create the color). Sprinkle confetti in the school colors. Provide a variety of
scoops, sponges (in school colors), eye droppers and basters for the students to use to transfer
water to a bucket or other container.
School Pride Dry Exploration
Fill the dry sensory table with shredded papers in the school colors. Hide miniature mascots
within the paper for the students to find or other materials in the school colors.
Lunchbox Dry Transfer
Provide students with 2 lunchboxes. Fill one with pencil top erasers (or other item related to the
topic). Encourage students to transfer the items by hand or make it more challenging by having
them use a variety of tools such as tongs or strawberry pluckers.
Crayon Roll
In this activity, encourage students to roll or otherwise move crayons (or other school related
objects) in a given direction on a textured path. Provide various surfaces on the path and have
students determine what surface is easier/harder to roll the object along.
Color Concepts & Color Associations
Discuss the colors of various school supplies. Are they always that color or can they be different
colors? What other materials are the same colors?
Sound Match
Fill crayon boxes (or other container) with objects that create grossly different sounds (bells,
rice, blocks, etc.) Have students match boxes that produce the same sound.
Social Studies
Classroom Orientation:
Take the students on a tour of the classroom. Point out what is available in each area of the
classroom. Point out labels (print/Braille/object) that will help students identify stations and
locations within the room and will help them in putting things away properly. After the
orientation, play a game to challenge students to locate areas (ex. "If I have to go to the
bathroom." "If my hands are dirty." "If I need to hang up my coat.", etc.).
Place a variety of school related objects and materials stored in various locations throughout the
room on a tray and present it to the students. Encourage students to identify the objects.
Discuss the objects and how they relate to school. Encourage students to individually or in
pairs, bring the items to their correct location. This will be individualized to the materials
available in your room, but may include: pencils, crayons, glue sticks, manipulatives, books,
paper, etc.
Play classroom “I Spy” (Or alternatively, I'm thinking of something that...) with
objects/materials/toys found in various centers or common to school. Describe by function. Ex. I
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
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Welcome Back to School!
Spy something that is used to cut; I Spy something that we hang our coat on.
School Orientation:
Take the students on a tour of the school campus, even if they are returning students to orient
or re-orient them to the building. Prior to the orientation, remind students to ask pre-selected
staff members what their names are and what their job is at the school. Introduce students to
the principal and other school personnel they may meet. Record the staff greeting the students.
(ex. "Hello, my name is Mrs. Johnson, the school nurse."). Identify authority figures in the school
and their roles. Also take pictures of each staff member. Consider purchasing a recordable
photo album. Place staff photos in the book along with a recording of them saying their name
and their job title and brief description of what they do. Place printed labels of each staff
members name on the sleeve (pair with Braille if there are any current or future braille readers).
Place the photo album in the book area for students to look at, listen to and enjoy.
During the orientation, be sure to systematically show the students where the playground,
cafeteria, library, music room, gym, art room, principal’s office, nurses office and front office.
Also orient them to the other rooms/areas and to locations they will need to find within the
rooms/areas. As you are walking through the building, identify physical land and water forms
around the school campus. Discuss cardinal directions and left and right as you orient students
to the school building. Identify transportation that students use to get to and from school.
Meet Principal, Therapists & Specialists
Invite the principal and related service personnel to come to the class and introduce or
reintroduce themselves to all the students, tell them what their job is. This would be a good time
to take updated pictures of staff for student schedules. For students with limited or no vision
who use an object schedule, encourage staff to choose an object to represent themselves if
they will be a part of the student's regular schedule. Encourage students to listen attentively to
teachers/therapists/staff as they discuss their school jobs, ask questions. Encourage them to
use active listening skills (body/facial expressions, eye contact, asking or responding to
questions) While therapists and/or specialists are discussing their jobs, encourage students to
listen for information and obtain information from them. Encourage them to display courtesy and
respect during the presentation. Identify similarities and differences in school personnel.
Incorporate staff pictures and/or representative objects into daily schedules.
Share with students that just as it is important for everyone to know where things are located
and how to get around throughout the school building, it is also important to know teachers,
classmates and therapists’ names. Have students answer riddles about therapists, school
personnel, stations, etc. "This person comes to help some students write their name, etc."
Discussion Following School Tour
Following the tour of the school, encourage students to discuss what they saw, heard, touched
and experienced during the tour. Encourage students to provide details and describe people,
places and events during the experience. Play back the audio recording and as you listen,
pause it to have the students identify the sounds. Encourage them to communicate feelings or
ideas related to the experience.
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
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Welcome Back to School!
Tactile Map
Following the school orientation, help students as a whole group create a tactile map of the
classroom and/or school building. Recall with students, the locations within the school that they
visited and need to be depicted on the map. Determine appropriate textures/objects to depict
hall/walkways, rooms that they students will go to, and exits. On a poster board or large board,
create a map of the school.
Class Rules Discussion
In order to help everyone get along and for the class to move smoothly, there are classroom
rules that need to be followed. Discuss the need for classroom rules and discuss the
consequences in violating the rules.
Possible classroom rules include:
 Keep hands to self
 Share
 Use appropriate ways to express wants/needs
 Walk/move safely
 Take turns
 Be good listeners
 Be honest
 Don’t say bad things about others
 Work hard and follow directions
Rule Charades
Have a set of cards depicting classroom rules. Have students take turns acting out action
depicted on the card (provide verbal description of activity for students who have significant
visual impairments). Have peers try to guess classroom rule that is being acted out.
Personal Responsibility Discussion
Discuss that every day we have to make choices. When we make choices, we are responsible
for our own actions. We must respect those in authority and respect the rights of others.
Describe the importance of personal responsibility (doing your best in school). Build on
citizenship traits (fairness, reliability, honesty). Consider introducing a "caught showing good
character chart" to reward responsibility and good character.
If your school doesn’t already participate in the Core Essential Values program, talk to
someone about funding to set up this program. The goal of the program is to create a values
culture. The program partners with your local Chick-fil-a. Downloads are available for teachers,
counselors, principals, and bus drivers to allow the value of the month to be interwoven
throughout the school day. There is also information for home. You will receive redeemable
Value-Able cards to reward kids that display the value!
Important beginning of the year concepts are:
 Treat other right
 Make smart decisions
 Maximize your potential
Have teachers and/or students take turns demonstrating examples of these values!
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Hands-On Units by Carmen Willings
Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
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