Games

Social and emotional wellbeing is so important for blind and visually impaired children and young people that can not pick up on visual social cues. Games can provide a great opportunity for them to play with their sighted peers as well as having a fun element to their specialist interventions. Some games can be purchased in an adapted format and others can be adapted with some creative thinking. Here are a few examples below - with more to follow later!

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Playing Cards

Who doesn't love a game of cards? These braille playing cards are great and the student can learn how to use them and what the braille stands for during an intervention, learn some games or tricks and then play with their friends.

Don't forget to teach the understanding of the different suits with the use of swell paper images or cut out shapes when introducing these cards.

Shut the Box

This classic game can easily be adapted with sticky braille labels for each number with tactile dice.

Also good for mental maths.

Snakes and Ladders

This adapted version of snakes and ladders has embossed snakes... and ladders! With braille on the numbered squares, pegs for playing pieces and a braille dice.

Embossed graph paper board with braille co-ordinates. One grid has green foam rectangles of different lengths for the ships and the other has blu tak markers to keep track of the guessed co-ordinates. The blu tak is either a solid blob or a line depending on if it was a hit or a miss.

Battleships

This home-made version of battleships uses two tactile graph grids with braille labels for the co-ordinates. One board is used to play battleship pieces made from foam sheets the other is used to track the co-ordinates guessed to your opponent. The 'hit' or 'miss' is marked using blu tak in either a solid blob or a line (alternative markers would also work e.g. sticky gems).

This also gives the student an opportunity to use the embossed graph paper with confidence which can help with further learning in maths.

Rectangle electronic game with ten large round buttons that light up red during the game one by one. A digital counter tracks the number pressed correctly before the time runs out. It also has a speed setting for increased challenge.

Light Reaction Game

This light up version of 'whack a mole' is fun for children and young people with low vision. It can help to stimulate their visual pathways and they can challenge themselves by beating their high score. There is also a speed setting to create more or less challenge.

Nine braille Uno cards laid out in 3 x 3 formation showing the braille in top left (and bottom right) corner of each card.

Uno

This braille version of Uno is always a winner with students I work with. Once they have mastered the braille code on each card and what they represent, then the competition starts! Another great game that can be shared with their sighted peers.