Social Skills

for Children with Visual Impairments or Blindness

Because so much social behavior is learned through observation, children with blindness or visual impairments need some assistance to find their place in the social world. In this section parents will find suggestions to help their children make friends, play with others, develop a sense of autonomy, and learn how to interact and reciprocate. This section also presents information on behavior problems and their interventions.

Social Skills for Children and Youth with Visual Impairments, Perkins School for the Blind
Tom Miller’s webcast demonstrates strategies for teaching social skills to students who are visually impaired or deafblind on a level equivalent with their peers.

Helping Young Children with Sight Problems to Make Friends, Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB)
Marilyn Webb, Teacher of the Visually Impaired, presents useful recommendations on helping young children make friends.

Helping Your Child to Meet Others, Family Connect for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments
This article has practical suggestions for parents of preschoolers for developing social skills.

Learning to Play with Other Children, Family Connect for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments
This article discusses the importance of play in the development of social and language skills.  It lists specific suggestions for encouraging social interaction in the first year, with other toddlers, through parallel play, and pretend play.

Parent's Perspective: Fitting In, Family Connect for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments
Parent Susan Singler shares ideas to foster acceptance of her blind toddler in the community.

Playing with Other Children, Family Connect for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments
This article outlines ways in which parents can help their children to find playmates and make friends.

Tips on Nurturing Your Child's Social-Emotional Development, Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families
This article from the National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families offers suggestions for "promoting children's healthy social-emotional development from birth to three."

Encouraging Social Skills in Young Children: Tips Teachers Can Share with Parents, Department of Family and Child Development, Auburn, Alabama
Jacquelyn Mize and Ellen Abell "review current thinking about young children's peer relationships and offer ideas and practices that teachers can suggest to parents concerned about their children's social development."

Research: Social Skills

Play Behaviors and Social Interactions of a Child Who Is Blind: In Theory and Practice, Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness
"This case study describes the play behaviors and social interactions of a preschool-age girl who is blind.… The results reinforce the variability of social competence skills in young children with visual impairments." (requires Adobe Acrobat Reader)