ABSTRACT
Legal blindness is not the same as total blindness. The National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities identified terms associated with visual impairments within the context of the educational system. Children and adults also can acquire a visual impairment after birth due to a wide spectrum of disorders. Teachers or caregivers often are the first to notice that a child is having diffculty seeing or functioning in her environment due to a possible visual impairment. The vision teacher and the orientation and mobility specialist are the best sources for obtaining information on modifications and/or accommodations that people can use in the classroom. Professionals can support families who have children with visual impairments by describing strategies for adapting toys, equipment, and furniture in the home. Most preschool classrooms will not have access to Braille materials for children who are legally blind, although some public school classrooms may have such materials.
