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12 Secrets to Parenting a Blind Child

Parents and Child Shadow

While the following list is certainly not comprehensive, it is a pretty good set of guidelines for parenting a blind child. It’s based on a great many conversation with “successful,” blind adults and asking how they were raised. I think everything on this list would be good parenting practice for any child, but these are things that are especially important if this child is visually impaired.

Advocating or Aggravating

Confused looking red gumby-type character

What exactly does it mean “to advocate” and how do you do it? Clearly, advocacy has become one of the popular buzz words among disabled people in recent years. I’ve noticed, however, that while blind students and their parents are encouraged to advocate for their needs, very little attention is paid as to what to do and not do. At … Continue reading

Do You Work?

Home office

People who study this sort of thing report that the most important question and the one that is most frequently asked when people first meet is “What do you do?” This is useful information when trying to quickly decide if this is someone you want to know better or whether you need to start thinking of a tactful excuse to … Continue reading

Do You Dream?

Do You Dream?

Most of the questions people are dying to know about being blind are the sorts of things you would guess. My favorite, because the answer is far from obvious, is “Do you dream?” Interestingly, at least in my experience, this is something children are more interested in than adults. Closely related to this is a second question: Do you know … Continue reading

Can You See Anything?

Can You See Anything?

Virtually all of us, as small children, are taught not to ask why Uncle Fred is so fat or the next door neighbor has so many wrinkles. I’ve noticed that even people whose social skills are fairly appalling have generally mastered this lesson. I clearly remember the day when, at about age six, I asked my mother why “Aunt Mary … Continue reading

Must-know National Resources for Parents

Clear sight through eye glasses

If you, your child, or a family member are new to vision loss, the following is a brief list of several of the most widely known and best respected organizations providing assistance to people who are blind or visually impaired. This is just to get you started; we’ll suggest many more in future posts. The American Foundation for the Blind … Continue reading

Gift Ideas for the Visually Impaired

Gift Ideas

If you think shopping for that hard-to-please someone is a challenge, what do you do if the person on the gift list has little or no vision? The following short list of suggestions may help get you started. Braille watch. It’s not necessary to read a word of Braille to use a Braille watch. The hours or the five minute … Continue reading

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