Adapting Word Games for Students with Visual Impairments
Submitted by Liz Eagan on Dec 09, 2014
You can buy Bananagrams and Applegrams, and, with a little bit of adapting, a whole new world opens up!
I put braille on the front of the tile where the print letter is showing and I put magnets on the backs of the tiles. I go to the dollar store and pick up a cookie sheet and BOOM....ready made activities.
Variations:
For the younger students, the class may be working on matching letters or writing letters. Pull this out and the student can match using Wikki Stix or thin strips of paper, as in the above photo. Or the student can sort through a group of letters and find the letters the class is working on. The possibilities go on and on!
For the older kids, ready-made scrabble game! We don't use the points, but in several classrooms I've been this type of activity being used to review vocabulary words.
Personally, I prefer the Appletters, as the tiles are slightly bigger and the letters are larger. The larger letter has worked really well in the past for my students with low vision. No adapting has been necessary unless I wanted to add the magnets to them! I've also added Velcro to the backs per teacher request. I've found by using the magnets, my students with motor issues are able to use them more easily than with Velcro.
