Blind Childrens Center

4120 Marathon Street, Los Angeles, California 90029 (323)664-2153

A family-centered agency serving children with visual impairments

Program Description

The Therapeutic Support Services are a critical adjunct to both the Infant Program and the Educational Preschool. Therapeutic Support Services serves between 85 to 100 children annually. The Services provide the physical, emotional, social support and education for both the parents and children. They ensure that the children acquire the skills they need to attain independence, reach past their challenges and be prepared for their future education.

Problem/Need
Up to 80% of all learning in the first years of life is acquired visually, primarily through imitation and exploration of the immediate surroundings. These tasks are accomplished with little effort by typically developing sighted children. Without specialized therapeutic services, children who are blind or severely visually impaired would not develop fundamental mobility and spatial orientation skills. They would not learn to move independently in their environment. Also, the lack of critical learning skills such as pre-Braille and Braille would put them at a disadvantage for the rest of their educational years. Without intervention, it is extremely unlikely that these otherwise competent children would be prepared for entry into public school or for adapting to diverse life experiences.

The overall goal of therapeutic services is to increase the independence, self-confidence and self-image of the child who is blind or visually impaired. These specialized services also teach parents skills to support their children’s development.

To these ends, the program has the following objectives for parents and students:

95% of parents will learn skills to support their child’s development and well-being.

98% of parents will report feeling more confident in raising their blind children.

95% of babies/toddlers will achieve individually appropriate gross motor skills, such as reaching, crawling, trailing and walking independently.

95% of children will display an increase in their willingness to venture into new spaces.

98% of babies/toddlers will be willing to experiment with new textures and tastes.

95% of students will be ready to use a cane to increase mobility by four years of age.

90% of students will learn pre-braille activities by age four.

85% of students will learn beginning Braille by age five.

Program activities
Adaptive Services, used by the Center’s Teacher of the Visually Impaired, Rosalinda Mendiola, B.A., on a one-to-one basis and employed by the classroom teachers, focus on a child’s fine motor skills (use of hands) and lay the groundwork for Braille

Parents are instructed how to put Braille signs around the house, such as on the television, a chair or the refrigerator, identifying each object. Staff also uses a computer program to translate books into Braille for parents to use at home.

Literacy Preparedness At the preschool level, literacy is taught and experienced through the exploration of books and by listening to stories. Writing occurs in the form of inventive scribbles on a page to which the child adds meaning. The alphabet becomes more meaningful as recognition of letters occurs and words eventually become tools of communication.

Literacy, as taught to and experienced by most preschoolers, is primarily visually acquired. Children who are visually impaired or blind must acquire literacy skills in an entirely different way.

Many of the Center’s students learn Braille before they leave the Center to attend primary school. They have a marked advantage over children who have not gained pre-Braille and Braille skills. The skills they learn at the Center significantly impact their success throughout their school years.

Orientation and Mobility (O&M) training, provided by Bianca Ciebrant, M.A., COMS, Orientation & Mobility Specialist, for infants and toddlers is divided into four categories, reaching, crawling, walking and cane use. Parents are taught skills that reinforce, at home, what the child is learning in the classroom.

O&M services are part of the Infant and Preschool Programs at the Center five days a week and individual sessions are scheduled up to three times a week. To reinforce what is learned at the Center, in-home visits are made.

Speech and Language services are provided by Elizabeth Gallardo, Speech & Language Specialist. They include assessment, testing and referrals for hearing and speech therapy.

Occupational Therapy (OT), is provided by Jill Brody, Licensed Occupational Therapist. OT services are an integral part of both the Infant and the Educational Preschool Programs.

OT focuses on a child’s gross motor abilities, oral motor functioning, feeding, fine motor skills, social skills and sensory processing.

The Center’s occupational therapist provides individual sessions for parents and their children on a weekly basis as needed. Teaching parents is the key to a child’s success, particularly in these early years.

In the Center’s Preschool (ages 3 to 5 years), children may be seen individually or in small groups. The Occupational Therapist continues to help parents reduce their anxieties about movement and allow their children to actively explore the world. After participating in therapeutic services, three to four year olds can find their way to very challenging movement and activities and will climb and swing with confidence.

Evaluation
Evaluation of each child’s progress through participation in the Center’s Therapeutic Services is the responsibility of the lead specialist in each field, who then reports to the Director of Education and Family Services. Outcomes are measured through the ongoing and year-end reviews of the child’s Individual Family Service Plan (IFSP) for ages 0 to 3 years and the Individual Educational Plan (IEP) for ages 3 to 5 years. Additionally, the team meets on a biweekly basis to discuss specific problems and to adjust the services as needed to optimize each child’s progress. The program’s limitations are based on each child’s diagnosis and capabilities. Not all of the children will be capable of reading Braille for instance. However, the services are specifically designed for each child so that he or she may reach his or her fullest potential.

Budget
The annual budget for the Therapeutic Support Services is $213,045.

Future Funding
The Therapeutic Support Services are integrated into the Center’s Annual Budget and are supported by volunteer and staff fund raising efforts with contributions from individuals, foundations, corporations, civic groups and through special events.

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