Paul V. Sherlock Center on Disabilities

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RI Services to Children and Youth with Dual Sensory Impairments

Eligibility Criteria | Dual Sensory Links | Assistive Technology

This initiative provides family and professional support, coordination of services, information, technical assistance, and training to children with dual sensory impairments, from birth through 22 years of age.

Family Support:

Parents are often overwhelmed with the complexity of their child's life. Some parents benefit from identification of their child/s strengths, coordination of services and assistance during times of transition (such as entering a school program, changing classrooms, and moving into the adult world). This project supports each family throughout their child's education, and helps families make realistic decisions regarding their child's participation in current and future settings.

Child Support:

Children with dual sensory impairments often require specialized communication systems, which focus on a child's strongest sensory systems. This federal project works with the child, and those who support the child, to identify and utilize communication systems, mobility systems, learning styles, material and curriculum modification, and alternative assessment techniques.

Professional Support:

Project staff provides the educational community with ongoing education through personal classroom contact, in-services for teachers, and related staff, and university courses within the Department of Special Education at Rhode Island College. The focus of professional support includes:

The unique needs of children and youth with vision and hearing impairments techniques on the successful inclusion of students with dual sensory impairments in general education settings.
Information and access to resources, which support families and educators in the area of recreation, communication, assessment, and program planning.

Goals:

empower families of children with deaf-blindness to assist their children become active participants in home, school, and the community.
provide technical assistance to professionals working with children dual sensory impairments, birth through two years of age, as a means for increasing the capacity of the local early intervention agencies to provide quality supports and services.
provide technical assistance to professionals working with children with dual sensory impairments, ages 3 - 22, to increase the capacity of local educational agencies to provide quality services in natural, home-school settings.
increase the availability of information, technical resources, pre-service training, and in service training for both parents and professionals.
support children with dual sensory impairments in preschool and school services which are delivered in inclusive environments, with goals similar to peers without disabilities

Adapted Literature, Lessons, & Story Boxes

The Sherlock Center’s DSI Program has adapted a variety of popular children’s literature using ‘ Writing with Symbols’. Stories are presented using simplified language accompanied by pictures and/or symbols. These abridged versions are intended to help include a child with significant disabilities in the general education classroom. They are not meant as a substitute for the complete version of a story.

Copies of adapted literature are available for loan through the Sherlock Center Resource Library. Some titles are available in electronic format and can be downloaded directly from this website. Stories adapted to PowerPoint include sounds/music and allow a student to “click” along using a computer and mouse/switch.

Click HERE for a list of available titles and formats. We are continually adding to this list.

Informational Brochures

Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to open PDF documents. If you would like to download a free version of Acrobat, click HERE

English 13 kb (PDF)
Portuguese 15 kb (PDF)
Spanish 13 kb (PDF)

Release Form

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