Compensatory Skills 
for Visually Impaired Students and Their Families

What are  Compensatory Skills?

• Independent Living Skills                  
• Recreation and Leisure Skills
• Self-Advocacy Skills
• Career Awareness  
• Social Skills
• Orientation and Mobility Skills
• Organizational Skills
• Transition Checklist  Resources
• Self Determination

It is critical that the visually impaired child not only hears about things within the world, but also has hands on experience to gain complete understanding.
Skills that children with visual impairments may need extra assistance in learning.  Most children learn these skills incidentally by visually observing and imitating many basic concepts. 

Basic concepts are a foundation for understanding content in core curriculum areas such as science, social studies and literature.  Without these basic experiential concepts, students will have difficulty in the academic setting.

In addition, many of these skills and concepts are necessary for successful transition into post-secondary education and the workforce.  To become independent, contributing members of society, the student needs to be able to negotiate the environment without assistance and to have the social skills required in the competitive world of work.