Hi Sumara, I recently went through the job search process and considered a number of different jobs. Though I have not done a ton of itinerant teaching (I just started that last week, actually), I have had a number of conversations with people who have done it for a long time. I have learned something from the veteran itinerant folks that I?m hoping is meaningful to share with you. Here is basically what some have told me: Even if I cannot get a student to use the sleepshades and even if I cannot get them to use a proper cane, I am still confident that I am a better teacher for the students than a custodial orientation and mobility specialist. Structured Discovery is not something we do, it is how we do everything that we do. Even though there is a pretty well-defined set of conditions which exist in an optimal Structured Discovery teaching environment, it is our gut-level belief in the capacity and normality of blind people that makes our teaching what it is. Even without sleepshades, a student can still be the subject of experience rather than the recipient of second-hand wisdom passed down from an instructor. Now, my employer may function differently from yours, but I am under the impression that I can get as much teaching time authorized as the student wants and I am free to do. This may not be your situation. Green as I may still be, I would really try to start with the basic cane technique and mental mapping and then move on to the applications that she wants, with the justification that those skill sets are prerequisite for success with higher level tasks and that the student came to me because she was not functioning optimally with the vision that she had, not just because she wanted to prepare for the future. I am eager to read what others have to say still, and I am also eager to learn of your results! Yours, Justin Justin M. Salisbury, MA, NOMC, NCRTB, NCUEB Opportunity Ambassador National Federation of the Blind Email: President at Alumni.ECU.edu LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-salisbury ?Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.? William Butler Yeats From: NOMC [mailto:nomc-bounces at lists.nbpcb.org] On Behalf Of Maurice Peret Sent: Monday, October 03, 2016 8:57 AM To: Sumara.Shakeel at dhs.state.nj.us; NOMC at lists.nbpcb.org Subject: Re: [Nomc] use of sleepshades in itinerant teaching Hi Sumara, Great question. Like you, I have had numerous opportunities to provide training in itinerant situations. While SDCT is provided optimally under sleepshades, the gold standard, I have found there to have been a few rare occasions when this approach simply didn?t work. In assessing my modified approach, I came to the conclusion that the goal is not the sleepshades, in and of themselves, reminiscent of Ken Jernigan?s ?Nature of Independence.? If the sleepshades become an artificial barrier to learning, I simply observed their learning techniques under a variety of situations and either introduced sleepshades under task specific scenarios, provided environmental opportunities to learn nonvisually, such as night travel or indoor travel in dark places like theaters, or abandoned the sleepshades altogether in favor of more customized training needs. I emphasize again that these situations have been extremely rare. I hope that helps. Maurice From: NOMC [mailto:nomc-bounces at lists.nbpcb.org] On Behalf Of Sumara.Shakeel at dhs.state.nj.us Sent: Monday, October 03, 2016 2:28 PM To: NOMC at lists.nbpcb.org Subject: [Nomc] use of sleepshades in itinerant teaching I was glad to have a recent request from a student for instruction with the use of sleepshades, but was at a loss for a teaching approach after observing her performance with them. My student is an 87-year-old woman who is highly organized and has an immaculate home. Although I think she is almost obsessed with preparing for complete vision loss, I do encourage her to learn non-visual skills which can, of course, serve her in the present. I am an NOMC working as an itinerant rehab teacher, and my student?s most recent lesson was with cleaning (specifically vacuuming) skills. I initially encouraged her to use her sleepshades from the very start, and she found her vacuum cleaner which she plugged into the outlet after some time. She then proceeded to move a few chairs away from her dining table so she could clean beneath it, but quickly became much disoriented. After attempting to problem-solve with her through the challenge of locating a chair which was only inches from her (yes, she was that disoriented), I suggested we do the actual vacuuming under sleepshades and perhaps have a very simple O&M lesson during the following visit. However, she again became disoriented within just a few minutes of vacuuming. I would have suggested removal of sleepshades under rare circumstances when I taught cane travel many years ago, but I was at a complete loss here, as I have never seen someone so disoriented in her own home. My guess is that she was so much at a loss because she didn?t have the opportunity to develop basic skills with the use of sleepshades?this was like one of those blindfold simulations that don?t accurately capture the experience of blindness. I want to encourage the continued use of sleepshades, but don?t have the luxury of working frequently enough to develop and build skills as I would have at a training center. Are there itinerant instructors who can offer some suggestions? Sumara ________________________________ This E-mail, including any attachments, may be intended solely for the personal and confidential use of the sender and recipient(s) named above. This message may include advisory, consultative and/or deliberative material and, as such, would be privileged and confidential and not a public document. Any Information in this e-mail identifying a client of the Department of Human Services or the Department of Children and Families is confidential. If you have received this e-mail in error, you must not review, transmit, convert to hard copy, copy, use or disseminate this e-mail or any attachments to it and you must delete this message. You are requested to notify the sender by return e-mail.

Thank you all for your suggestions. My student has had no lessons using sleepshades until the one I discussed. However, as I indicated, she herself requested to learn non-visual techniques in anticipation of total blindness. Sumara From: NOMC [mailto:nomc-bounces at lists.nbpcb.org] On Behalf Of Jedi Moerke Sent: Monday, October 03, 2016 8:00 PM To: nomc at lists.nbpcb.org Subject: Re: [Nomc] use of sleepshades in itinerant teaching I am an itinerant instructor in Oklahoma. Maybe the best place to start is by having her just sit with the sleep shades and listen to her environment. Get a sense of the space of the room and what's in it. Build success. I think the simple mobility lesson in the home is a great idea. Like most people, she probably gets around her house pretty well at night without thinking about it or turning on the lights. Maybe start there? Have her practice getting around her home several times with the sleep shades and teach her techniques blind folks use in that kind of situation on a regular basis. Then, incorporate the vacuum. Maybe start in a wide open space and teach her the fan method or the grid method? Which ever you think is best. The grid method is great because you cover a larger area in less time. But the fan method works well for folks who get disoriented because they stand in one place and fan out from there and just do overlapping fans. Start with the small room first so she gets used to it. Or part of a room. Or maybe even just start with a throw rug if she's really confused. Maybe have her go around the room with a cane to get a sense of the layout before actually vacuuming. Would teaching indoor mental mapping skills be helpful? Labeling the walls based on cardinal directions and using larger pieces of furniture as landmarks. Maybe turn on a radio or the television to give her a sense of direction. Hope that helps. Sent from my iPhone On Oct 3, 2016, at 1:28 PM, > > wrote: I was glad to have a recent request from a student for instruction with the use of sleepshades, but was at a loss for a teaching approach after observing her performance with them. My student is an 87-year-old woman who is highly organized and has an immaculate home. Although I think she is almost obsessed with preparing for complete vision loss, I do encourage her to learn non-visual skills which can, of course, serve her in the present. I am an NOMC working as an itinerant rehab teacher, and my student?s most recent lesson was with cleaning (specifically vacuuming) skills. I initially encouraged her to use her sleepshades from the very start, and she found her vacuum cleaner which she plugged into the outlet after some time. She then proceeded to move a few chairs away from her dining table so she could clean beneath it, but quickly became much disoriented. After attempting to problem-solve with her through the challenge of locating a chair which was only inches from her (yes, she was that disoriented), I suggested we do the actual vacuuming under sleepshades and perhaps have a very simple O&M lesson during the following visit. However, she again became disoriented within just a few minutes of vacuuming. I would have suggested removal of sleepshades under rare circumstances when I taught cane travel many years ago, but I was at a complete loss here, as I have never seen someone so disoriented in her own home. My guess is that she was so much at a loss because she didn?t have the opportunity to develop basic skills with the use of sleepshades?this was like one of those blindfold simulations that don?t accurately capture the experience of blindness. I want to encourage the continued use of sleepshades, but don?t have the luxury of working frequently enough to develop and build skills as I would have at a training center. Are there itinerant instructors who can offer some suggestions? Sumara ________________________________ This E-mail, including any attachments, may be intended solely for the personal and confidential use of the sender and recipient(s) named above. This message may include advisory, consultative and/or deliberative material and, as such, would be privileged and confidential and not a public document. Any Information in this e-mail identifying a client of the Department of Human Services or the Department of Children and Families is confidential. If you have received this e-mail in error, you must not review, transmit, convert to hard copy, copy, use or disseminate this e-mail or any attachments to it and you must delete this message. You are requested to notify the sender by return e-mail. _______________________________________________ NOMC mailing list NOMC at lists.nbpcb.org http://lists.nbpcb.org/listinfo.cgi/nomc-nbpcb.org This E-mail, including any attachments, may be intended solely for the personal and confidential use of the sender and recipient(s) named above. This message may include advisory, consultative and/or deliberative material and, as such, would be privileged and confidential and not a public document. Any Information in this e-mail identifying a client of the Department of Human Services or the Department of Children and Families is confidential. If you have received this e-mail in error, you must not review, transmit, convert to hard copy, copy, use or disseminate this e-mail or any attachments to it and you must delete this message. You are requested to notify the sender by return e-mail.