Special Needs
Find support for parents of children with special needs. Learn how to advocate for your child, raise funds for needed equipment and find helpful organizations.
Filter by: Advocacy, Assistive Technology, Autism, Schools for the Blind, Support, Visual Impairment
Visual Impairment
12 Tips for an Accessible Zoo Visit for Kids who are Visually Impaired
Can the zoo be accessible for a blind child? Of course! Find tips from moms on how to make your visit to the zoo meaningful and enjoyable.
Autism, Behavior
Raising A Sensory Smart Child
For children who struggle to process everyday sensations and exhibit unusual behaviors such as avoiding or seeking out touch, movement, sounds, and sights.
Toys, Visual Impairment
10 Questions to Ask When Purchasing a Toy for a Child who is Blind
The next time you're in a toy store or department store looking for toys for your child who is blind or visually impaired, keep these 10 questions in mind!
Math and Science, Visual Impairment
Rainbow Activities for Blind Children
How do you explain a rainbow to a child that has never seen one, let alone never seen colors? It may seem complicated to talk about colors with your blind...
Holiday Crafts and Ideas, Visual Impairment
Buyer’s Guide to Beeping Easter Eggs
We've sifted through the web and browsed our local stores to bring you this list of where to find beeping and noise-maker Easter eggs for your blind child.
Advocacy, Visual Impairment
Person First Language: “Child Who is Blind” or “Blind Child”
Have you thought about how you refer to your child? Do you say, "my blind baby" or "my baby who is blind"? Does it matter?
Assistive Technology
Hueyify: Making the Internet Accessible to Everyone
The Hueyify software allows any user to customize any webpage to their personal preferences, including color, font size, layout and more. Talk about an accessible web!
Math and Science, Visual Impairment
Accessible STEM: An Introduction to Light for Blind Children
Introduce the scientific basics of light to your child through hands-on activities like exploring your home and other familiar places, along with tactile worksheets.
Visual Impairment
Making Swim Lessons Accessible for Blind Children
Find tips on how to make a swimming lesson accessible for kids who are blind or have other disabilities. Great ideas for parents or swim instructors!
Special Needs, Support
If you had a magic wand that could “cure” your child’s disability, would you use it?
I recently asked this question to a group of special needs moms: "If you had a magic wand that could 'cure' your child's disability, would you use it? Why or...
Light Play, Visual Impairment
Suncatcher Activities for Kids with Visual Impairments
Suncatcher art projects make great hands-on activities for children with visual impairments considering their tactile traits including different textures and raised-line graphics.
Adoption and Foster Care, Visual Impairment
Adopting a Visually Impaired Child from China: Our Story
MaryAnne Roberto shares her story of adopting two boys who are blind through Bethel China. Shane and Vincent have different stories, but they are all part of one big family!
Sleep, Special Needs
Creative Care Safe Spaces: Beds and Sensory Spaces for Special Needs Kids
This company based in the UK makes solidly constructed spaces and beds to keep special needs children safe in their rooms.
iPad Apps and Accessibility, Visual Impairment
Be My Eyes App: Lend Your Eyes to the Blind
This iPhone app allows visually impaired users to connect with sighted users in real time in order to receive assistance with simple tasks.
Advocacy, Visual Impairment
Awareness T-Shirts for Kids who are Blind or Visually Impaired
Check out these childhood blindness Awareness T-Shirts from Eye Power Kid's Wear! Express yourself and raise awareness for your cause!
Assistive Technology, Special Needs
Dollars & Sense: Navigating the AT funding stream
This search engine helps identify funding sources for a range of assistive technology. Although geared toward residents of Georgia, much of the information is applicable everywhere.
Assistive Technology
ModularHose allows you to turn almost anything into a handsfree device
This cool system uses flexible hose and a multitude of components to customize a way to attach items hands-free to your wheelchair or other place you might need it.
Health & Nutrition, Visual Impairment
Top Medical Breakthroughs in Vision in 2014
There have been a lot of medical advances in curing blindness in the past 12 months. Read about the most exciting breakthroughs in gene therapy, stem cells, artificial retinas and...
Toys, Visual Impairment
Top 10 Accessible Toys for Blind Kids
We recently ran a contest asking families to share their favorite toys for their kids who are blind or have other special needs. Here are the top 10 as voted...
Assistive Technology, Eye Conditions and Syndromes
New Gadget Addresses Tunnel Vision
There's a company that's working on a visor to help those with tunnel vision to see the full picture of what they could see without tunnel vision. It's still in...
iPad Apps and Accessibility, Visual Impairment
Breakthrough App Reads Print for the Blind
This cool new app lets you use your smartphone to translate printed material into spoken words, letting the user "read" virtually anything. The app is available on iTunes and was...
Assistive Technology, Visual Impairment
Seeing Through Sound
This technology takes sound to create "images" in the brain, by using a camera, special software, and headphones.
Visual Impairment
Lenz Frenz
These very cute stuffed animals have a hiding spot in their backs where children can safely store their glasses.
Health & Nutrition, Visual Impairment
3D Printing Cells is a New Step in Finding a Cure for Blindness
Researchers are using 3D printers to create artificial retinal nerve cells. They hope this will lead to using this to replace damaged retinal cells and ultimately cure retinal blindness.