Infants and toddlers with visual disabilities are automatically eligible for early intervention services in Virginia. The resources and information found here are intended to help practitioners learn more about supporting young children with visual disabilities and their families.
VA Dept. for the Blind and Vision Impaired
The Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired (DBVI) is committed to providing quality services to assist Virginia's citizens who are blind, deafblind or vision impaired in achieving their maximum level of employment, education, and personal independence. The department provides an array of specialized services to blind Virginians of all ages to assist them in attaining the skills, confidence and positive outlook that are critical to independence.
The Virginia Deafblind Project
Partnership for People with Disabilities at VCU
The Virginia Project for Children and Young Adults with Deaf-Blindness is committed to supporting families, early intervention providers, and service providers as they work to improve outcomes for infants and toddlers who experience both vision and hearing loss. For information about this project, visit the website using the link above or click here to review a flyer.
Eye Terms and Definitions
Lisa Auwarter, MSEd, Educational Coordinator, VDBVI
March 2013 Talks on Tuesdays Webinar
This handout includes a list of common terms and definitions that parents and practitioners might see on eye reports.
Family-Centered Practices for Infants and Toddlers with Visual Impairments (external website)
Division of Visual Impairment/Council of Exceptional Children
This position paper provides a comprehensive overview of developmental needs and recommended practices for supporting the development of young children with visual impairments.
Resources for Parents of Young Children with Visual Impairments
Lisa Auwarter, MSEd, Educational Coordinator, VDBVI
March 2013 Talks on Tuesdays Webinar
This list includes links to organizations, references for books, manuals, and newsletters, listservs, blogs, and other family resources.
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Deaf-Blindness for Early Intervention Practitioners
VA’s Integrated Training Collaborative | Partnership for People with Disabilities at VCU
This course offers Early Intervention providers with content that focuses on (1) the identification of infants and toddlers with combined vision and hearing loss (deaf-blindness), (2) key instructional strategies, and (3) developmental domains. The selection of resources was guided by the Council of Exceptional Children’s Division for Early Childhood (DEC) Recommended Practices. Time to complete: 1 hour
Virginia’s Part C Early Intervention Vision Screening Process (external website)
Dept. for the Blind and Visually Impaired (DBVI)
This 5 part training series has been developed by the Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired to help identify possible vision problems (Parts 1 & 2) and to clarify the suggested methods in Virginia's Early Intervention Vision Screening process (Parts 3, 4 & 5). Use this training package to learn or review at your own pace.
Early Intervention and the Importance of Vision: Visual Development and Assessment of Vision in Infants and Small Children
Linda Lawrence, MD
CVI Scotland
US Pediatric Ophthalmologist Dr. Linda Lawrence gives a talk to empower parents to seek as much information as possible when it comes to understanding their child's vision, especially with very young pre-verbal children and complex non-verbal children. This presentation is also useful for early interventionists and others seeking information about visual development and assessment.
Visual Behaviors and Red Flags: An Overview of Cortical Visual Impairment and Considerations for Making an Accurate Diagnosis
VA’s Integrated Training Collaborative | Partnership for People with Disabilities
Presented by Julie Duranda, Ed.D. and Dawn Hendricks, Ph.D.
Cortical visual impairment (CVI) occurs when there is damage to the visual cortex rather than the eye. It may occur in children who have had asphyxia, hydrocephalus, trauma, mitochondrial disorder, infection, and a variety of other causes. The visual behaviors of children with CVI, such as light gazing, looking away when reaching for an object, looking away from faces, and visual inattention are sometimes confused as off-task behavior, disinterest, or red flags for autism. During this webinar, you will get an overview of behaviors of cortical visual impairment that tend to present similar to characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorders, discuss items on ASD screening tools that may need special consideration for children with CVI, and offer three basic strategies for working with young children with CVI. Click the link above to visit the 2017 Talks on Tuesdays Archive and scroll down until you find the webinars.
Visual Impairments and the Effect on Development
VA’s Integrated Training Collaborative | Partnership for People with Disabilities
Presented by Lisa Auwarter
This webinar provides an overview of visual impairments in infants and toddlers, the effects of visual impairment on development, and strategies to support development. Click the link above to visit the 2013 Talks on Tuesdays Archive and scroll down until you find the webinar.
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VA’s Early Screening Tool, Parts 1-4 (YouTube)
Video Series | VA Dept. for the Blind and Visually Impaired
These free videos discuss and demonstrate early vision screening and are available on the VDBVI’s YouTube channel.
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