Social Skills: Elementary Years

Course No. SSK-321

Audience
Professionals working with a blind or visually impaired child during the elementary or middle-school years.

Course Description
This course in the Social Skills series examines the impact of visual impairment on the development of social skills during the elementary and middle-school years. It suggests ways to teach children the skills they need to interact with family members, teachers, classmates, and friends. The goal of this course is to give parents and teachers the information they need to help the child establish and maintain positive relationships.

Media
print and braille, with video available in VHS format only

Organization
The course is based on the study guide Focused On: Teaching Social Skills to Visually Impaired Elementary Students, its accompanying video, and the age-specific activity book.

Credit
1 CEU

Prerequisites
Social Skills: Foundation

Overview
Eight assignments are submitted to the instructor.

Grading
pass/fail

Maximum Completion Time:
4 months

Supplementary Course Materials
Release Form

Objectives and Content

After completing Lesson 1, the parent or professional will be able to

establish reasonable expectations for the child in the home environment
discuss what can be expected of the child at school or in the community

After completing Lesson 2, the parent or professional will be able to

identify the child’s strengths and weaknesses in the area of social skills
discuss strategies that promote positive social interactions

After completing Lesson 3, the parent or professional will be able to

describe behaviors that the child needs to work on
explain how the adults can work together to ensure consistency when teaching social skills

After completing Lesson 4, the parent or professional will be able to

discuss the structured training strategy for teaching social skills
develop the child’s social skills through peer support

After completing Lesson 5, the parent or professional will be able to

identify activities that children this age typically enjoy
discuss how you can help the child use gestures and nonverbal cues

After completing Lesson 6, the parent or professional will be able to help the child

explain the visual impairment in succinct and simple terms
identify ways to capitalize on his or her strengths to gain self-confidence

After completing Lesson 7, the parent or professional will be able to

identify role models and mentors who can help refine the child’s social skills
list questions that the child can use to discuss social skills with role models and mentors

After completing Lesson 8, the parent or professional will be able to help the child

use self-evaluation strategies to improve social skills
enlist the assistance of adults to facilitate self-evaluation

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