Kathleen Farrand, Editor for the Council for Exceptional Children’s Division on Visual Impairments and Deafblind Education Journal, Visual Impairments and Deafblind Education Quarterly, informed me that she is interested in publishing an article in the Summer issue about a deafblind high school life skills resource teacher who uses my braille manipulatives during her lessons while students use my student versions. The teacher in the article is an amazing person and very inspirational because of the dedication to her students. Stay tuned!
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I am pleased to stated that I am meeting with Emily Wilson, FAAST Program Specialist, at Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology in Tampa at 9:00 on February 9th. Sharing ideas is the main goal of this demonstration. Every time I visit assistive technology centers and school districts, I always gain additional information to provide strategies to use with my students at Elm Street Elementary in Rome, Georgia.
I had an article about my math manipulatives and teaching strategies published on FAAST’s website in October 2014. It is going to be exciting to demonstrate my ideas in person!
Kimberly Berry, AT Teacher at ABLE TECH, Oklahoma State University, will be demonstrating some of my student and braille math manipulatives at two upcoming sessions with her colleagues on January 16th. I really appreciate her help, especially considering the distance from Georgia to Oklahoma. January 16th is going be a great day… I will be teaching in Rome, Georgia while educators in Oklahoma will be learning new teaching strategies to address the Common Core at the same time! TGIF in more ways than one!
I was just informed that Julia Pearce, Assistive Technology Specialist at the Utah Center for Assistive Technology, is going to join me and Jennie Gibson, Associate Director at the Utah Parent Center, on December 30th at 10:00 at the Utah Parent Center in Salt Lake City. I really appreciate Ms. Gibson and Ms. Pearce for scheduling a demonstration during the holidays!
After sharing information with Laura Brown, Exceptional Children Services Coordinator, Hillsborough County Public Schools, has invited me to Tampa to do a demonstration with her colleagues on February 9th. This will be a quick trip, but it is very important because it will give many options for teachers and administrators to teach their students rigorous math standards and differentiate instruction. I like to visit school districts and assistive technology centers in person because teachers and administrators can ask me questions face-to-face. It also allows me to be able place a face with a teacher if he or she should call or email me about how to use the manipulatives more effectively.
I discussed my low vision and braille manipulatives with Bonnie Lucas, Visually Impaired Seniors Coordinator for the Alaska School for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Ms. Lucas requested images, directions, and information for my low vision and braille manipulatives to share with her colleagues in many parts in Alaska. She also mentioned how my manipulatives could help adults with life skills. Due to the distance between Alaska and Georgia, I really appreciate her help!
Before I publish this post, I have one last thing to say….The possibility of helping students and adults about 3,000 miles away while I teach at Elm Street Elementary in Rome, Georgia would be a great feeling. Hopefully it will work out!!!!!
Slide-A-Round Math Manipulatives has donated 43 manipulatives to help students in Guatemala. A member of my church, Hector Navarrette, has organized a mission trip to his native country. Because education materials are very scarce, Hector took several different kinds of Slide-A-Rounds with him. With the manipulatives, teachers will have durable visual aids to support their instruction. Teachers can have their students orally express their answers, and they will not need paper and pencils to solve math problems. Many teachers use the strategy of drawing number lines in the United States. Because many schools in Guatemala often lack basic necessities for teaching and learning, such as paper and pencils, I am sure the Slide-A-Rounds will very beneficial for the students and appreciated by their teachers. Students will be able to see, touch, and explain how they found their answers.
Have a safe mission trip! I am sure you are going to make a positive impact on the spiritual life of many children as well as their academic progress.
I am very appreciative of Jennie Gibson, Associate Director of the Utah Parent Center, for scheduling a demonstration on December 30th at 10:00. Because I am still teaching in the classroom, I want to make the most of my opportunities to meet with parents, teachers, and administrators whenever possible.
I want to thank the International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairments for posting my link as resource on their website. I am ready to help students around the world with their education.
After contacting Dr. Barbara Wrushen, Special Education Supervisor for Knox County Schools, in Knoxville, TN, we were able to correlate our schedules. Dr. Wrushen suggested that I plan on demonstrations for her teachers in her district on November 21st and November 22nd. I will update my website when locations, dates, and times become available.