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Chapter 11: Orientation

How a child learns to know where she is

A child who can see uses her eyes to know where she is and where objects are. A child who cannot see well needs to know these things too, but she must learn to use her other senses. When she does, she will be able to move around her home and later become active in the community. To learn how to orient herself:

You can help your child learn orientation skills by: (1) teaching her about her body and the way it can move, (2) helping her develop her senses, which give important information about her surroundings, and (3) thinking about things around your home or neighborhood that she can use as landmarks.

BODY AWARENESS

A child learns the names of the parts of her body by watching and imitating other people. A child who cannot see well will learn the names of different parts of her body when you teach her to use her sense of hearing and touch. For activities that help a young baby learn about her body and develop her senses, see Chapter 5, "Activities for the Young Baby." Many of these activities are also good for older children.

To help your child learn the names of different parts of her body

Make up games in which you ask your child to do things with different parts of her body and with your body. To give you some ideas, here are a few examples:

Ask your child to touch part of her body and then touch the same part on your body.

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