Advice for Families with Visually Impaired Children

If you have a child with a special condition, regardless of the nature and degree of that condition, you must first be aware that they have fundamental rights such as living freely and equally, integrating with society, having a say in matters concerning themselves, making choices, participating in social-economic-political-cultural activities, and acquiring knowledge. You should always keep these principles in mind while raising them; because every child begins to acquire the values that shape their personality within the family, and a child raised incorrectly may suffer the consequences throughout their life.

Visually impaired children go through the same stages as sighted children; they exhibit similar behaviors and developmental characteristics. You should be informed about the general developmental characteristics of children, as some families with a visually impaired child may panic, thinking that certain behaviors that are normal for their child's developmental stage are due to their visual impairment. A child who cannot see does not feel the need to reach for objects around them during crawling and walking stages, as they cannot see them, and therefore does not make an effort to do so. At this point, parents have a significant responsibility: you must provide your visually impaired child with information about their surroundings and the objects around them, allowing them to touch objects to expand their world.

Sensory Exploration and Concept Development

If you ensure that your child can touch and hear the things mentioned in all possible situations, they will learn the meanings of the words they hear. For example, when it rains, let them hear the sound of the rain and talk about it; turn on the tap and talk about the water; let them touch a velvet fabric and tell them it is velvet; give them a spoon and explain what a spoon is. Visually impaired children must learn the things that sighted children learn independently with the support of their families. You must provide this support patiently and continuously.

A visually impaired child may often stand with their head bowed. This is because they do not feel the need to lift their head to explore their surroundings due to their lack of vision. To prevent this, you should encourage them to lift and hold their neck up. For example, lay your baby on their stomach and stand high to talk to them, create engaging games with sound-producing toys above them. These simple actions help develop neck muscles and learn to maintain an upright posture.

Physical Activity and Freedom of Movement

You must do everything you can to prevent your visually impaired child from being inactive and bored. Otherwise, inactivity may lead to stereotypical behaviors such as tics, rocking, or repetitive movements in your child. Take them out for walks, take them to the park; allow them to run and slide, paving the way for them to do some things independently.

In this process, you can benefit from sound-producing toys that will increase your child's desire to move. Balls filled with bells or rice, musical toys, or wheeled toys that can be pushed and pulled create targets for your child to follow and listen to.

To ensure your child feels safe, you need to make some arrangements at home. Introduce them to every corner of their room, familiarize them with the house they live in, and avoid frequently changing the locations of items in your home. Install protectors on furniture with sharp corners and remove dangerous objects at your child's height.

Teaching Concepts from Part to Whole

Since visually impaired children cannot see objects at a glance, it is not possible for them to perceive them as a whole immediately. The characteristics of an object must be taught to them from part to whole, as their minds can only perceive concepts in this way. For example, when teaching them a toy, first let them touch the wheels, then the body, and the windows. Then express the whole by saying, "This is a car with wheels, and this has windows." This method concretizes abstract concepts and helps create a clear image in the child's mind.

Body Awareness and Sensory Development

When visually impaired children reach the ages of 1-1.5, it is necessary to teach them about the organs in the body. This should be done through both the child's own body and your own body. The child should first show the organs like arms, legs, and head on themselves, and then on the person in front of them. These exercises develop their body awareness. For your visually impaired child who is just starting to walk, you should get sound-producing, movable, push-and-pull toys made of different materials like wood, plastic, and fabric. Encourage them to walk and teach them movements like running, bending, lifting-extending arms, and bending knees through their own body.

To ensure your visually impaired baby is exposed to different stimuli, you can prepare pillows filled with lentils, beans, or rice and allow them to lie on their back and stomach on these, enabling them to make contact with them. This way, they learn concepts like hard-soft, big-small, etc. by feeling.

When the weather and temperature conditions are suitable, allow your child to walk barefoot on different surfaces both indoors and outdoors. As they walk on surfaces like stones, carpets, marble, gravel, asphalt, sand, tiles, and grass, they will learn about the differences in ground and surface. At the same time, you should also teach them the properties of objects like cold-hot, thin-thick, soft-hard. Then, it is necessary to teach them about the materials made of plastic, wood, glass, and fabric. Such sensory experiences help the child understand their environment and explore it confidently.

Additional Recommendations for Parents

• Be Patient: Teaching a visually impaired child certain things may require more patience and repetition than teaching a sighted child. Remember, this is not a race; it is a process of learning and development.

• Seek Professional Support: Getting help from a specialist (a trainer for the visually impaired or a physiotherapist) can help you guide your child's development correctly.

• Social Activities: Encourage your child to participate in social activities. Sports clubs, music groups, or playdates with other children help develop their social skills.

• Audio Books and Toys: Audio books and sound-producing educational toys enhance your child's imagination and language skills.

In conclusion, raising a visually impaired child is a process that requires patience, understanding, and special effort. However, it should not be forgotten that a loving and supportive family environment is the strongest tool for them to fully realize their potential. With the right approaches, your visually impaired child can also become an independent, successful, and happy individual, just like other children.