# Tools for Assessment and Development of Visual Skills

# SQUIRE ToAD'S PUZZLE BOOK

Elaine Kitchel, M.Ed. Project Leader

LaRhea Sanford, Ed.D, Consultant

Rebecca Burnett, Ed.D, Consultant

Erica Rucker Project Assistant

Grateful Acknowledgement is Hereby Given to:

David McGee, Technical Research
Frank Hayden, Technical Research
James Robinson, Technical Research
Tom Poppe, Model Maker
Cary Crumpton, Planning Advisor
Lila Adkins, Large Print
Steve Paris, Production Advisor
Anna Fox, Cost
Phyllis Williams, Inventory
David Hines, Engineering
Tony Grantz, Sales
Pat Packer, Braille

Steve Mullins, CD Production
David Manteuffel, Purchasing
Larry Skutchan, Programming
Sandy Maerz, Purchasing
Jack Decker, Vice President
John Aicken, Educational Research
Valerie Cox, Educational Research
Bisig Impact Group, Graphic Design
Matthew Smith, Educational Research
Erica Rucker, Educational Research
Rita Mudd, Braille Transcription

and

M. Beth Langley, M.S.
Millie Smith, M.Ed.
Tristan Pierce, M.A.
Rebecca Burnett, Ed.D.
LaRhea Sanford, Ed.D.

for providing talent, expertise, knowledge, and hard work on the ToAD project.

Important Notice

Squire Toad's Puzzle Book should be used either for functional vision assessment or vision development activities for a given student. It should never be used for both purposes for an individual child.

It is also recommended that very young and multiply-involved children spend no more than 20 minutes in one sitting on Squire Toad's Puzzle Book.

All materials contained in Squire Toad's Puzzle Book are copyrighted and owned by the American Printing House for the Blind. No copying or distribution of these materials can be conducted without express written permission of the American Printing House for the Blind, 1839 Frankfort Ave., Louisville, KY, 40206-0085.

Squire Toad's Puzzle Book

# Introduction

Squire Toad's Puzzle Book is an accessory to ToAD: Tools for Assessment and Development of Vision. There are many activities of visual development for which Squire Toad's Puzzle Book may be used, the most basic ones are delineated on the pages opposite the puzzles themselves.

The photos, illustrations, and puzzles in Squire Toad's Puzzle Book have been developed to help students achieve the following visual and perceptual skills:

- Visual fixation and attention
- Shift of gaze
- Left-to-right eye movement
- Scanning
- Visual discrimination of pattern, size, directionality, color, shape, figure/ground, and other attributes
- Matching
- Sorting
- Object permanence
- Depth perception
- Identifying objects and images
- Identifying parts of a whole

The first five photos and illustrations in Squire Toad's Puzzle Book have been designed mainly for students who are developmentally very young. They can be used as part of the TADPOLE activities. The rest of the puzzles are mainly for students aged 3-6 with visual impairments who do not have other complicating factors.

The images and concepts embedded in Squire Toad's Puzzle Book have been developed to provide high contrast images in colors and patterns designed to build visual and perceptual skills. These images and activities have been tested on real students with visual impairments and meet APH's tested criteria for image clarity and contrast for documents to be used by persons with low vision. It is hoped teachers and interventionists will find Squire Toad's Puzzle Book useful as they work toward assessing and developing the skills of their students.

Elaine Kitchel, M.Ed.
Low Vision Project Leader
American Printing House for the Blind

## Dedication

This book is dedicated to all those teachers who have, for decades, made their own kits of materials to perform functional vision assessments and vision development activities for students with visual impairments. Many of these imaginative individuals have provided help their students could have acquired nowhere else. They have contributed profoundly to the body of information that provides the foundation for ToAD.

## Toad Skills and Tools

Physiological
| Fixation | Pursuit | Shift of Gaze | Cross Mid-line | Eye-hand Coordination (cause/effect & activation) | Field of Vision | Scanning | Convergence
--- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Foam Puzzles | X |  |  |  | X |  | X |
ToAD Triangles | X |  |  |  | X |  | X |
Toad Flashlight & Attachments | X | X | X | X |  | X | X |
ToAD String Light | X | X |  | X |  |  |  |
ToAD LED Keychain Light | X | X |  | X |  | X |  |
ToAD Match'n Sort Cards | X |  | X | X |  |  | X |
ToAD Pom-pon | X | X | X |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Bowls and Balls | X | X | X | X | X |  |  |
ToAD Bell Bracelet and Puppet | X | X | X | X | X | X |  | X
ToAD Gift Bags |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Tangle Toys/Foam Squares |  |  |  |  | X |  |  |
Slinky |  | X |  |  | X |  |  |
ToAD Mirror | X |  |  |  | X |  | X | X
ToAD Swirly Mats | X |  | X | X | X | X | X |
Squire Toad's Puzzles | X |  | X | X |  |  | X |
Tasha Tadpole's Puzzles | X |  | X | X |  |  | X |

Perceptual
| Depth Perception | Visual Memory | Object Recognition (3-D) | Object/Shape Recognition (2-D) | Figure Ground Discrimination | Size Discrimination | Shape Discrimination
--- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Foam Puzzles | X | X |  | X | X | X | X
ToAD Triangles |  | X |  | X |  |  |
Toad Flashlight & Attachments |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD String Light |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD LED Keychain Light |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Match'n Sort Cards |  | X |  | X | X | X | X
ToAD Pom-pon |  |  | X |  |  |  |
ToAD Bowls and Balls | X |  |  |  | X |  | X
ToAD Bell Bracelet and Puppet |  | X |  | X |  |  |
ToAD Gift Bags |  | X | X |  | X |  |
ToAD Tangle Toys/Foam Squares | X |  | X |  | X |  |
Slinky |  |  | X |  |  |  |
ToAD Mirror |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Swirly Mats |  |  |  |  | X |  | X
Squire Toad's Puzzles |  | X | X |  | X | X | X
Tasha Tadpole's Puzzles | X | X | X | X | X | X | X

Cognitive
| Object Permanance | Imitation of Action | Identifying | Sequencing | Matching | Sorting | Photograph Recognition | Color Discrimination
--- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | ---
Foam Puzzles | X | X | X | X | X | X |  | X
ToAD Triangles |  |  |  | X | X | X |  | X
Toad Flashlight & Attachments |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD String Light |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD LED Keychain Light |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Match'n Sort Cards |  |  | X | X | X | X | X | X
ToAD Pom-pon |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Bowls and Balls | X | X |  |  | X |  |  | X
ToAD Bell Bracelet and Puppet |  | X | X |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Gift Bags | X |  |  |  |  |  |  | X
ToAD Tangle Toys/Foam Squares |  | X |  | X | X | X |  | X
Slinky |  | X |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Mirror |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
ToAD Swirly Mats |  | X |  |  |  |  |  | X
Squire Toad's Puzzles | X |  | X | X | X | X | X |
Tasha Tadpole's Puzzles |  |  | X | X | X | X | X | X

## Getting Ready

To use Squire Toad's Puzzle Book you will need:

- A comfortable, quiet corner
- A black or white cloth
- An appropriate magnifier prescribed by your student's clinician, if your student uses a magnifier
- Adequate non-fluorescent lighting. (Most fluorescent lighting contains UV and blue light which causes glare problems for students with visual impairments.)
- Adequate alignment and support for the student who has physical disabilities or is developmentally very young
- Certain puzzles require black, white, or red construction paper.
- One puzzle requires the use of the ToAD Mirror.
- Certain puzzles require the use of a real spoon.
- Squire Toad's Puzzle Book

Also useful:

- APH Invisiboard
- Little treats or puppet

# Smiling Face Photo

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard. Be sure to have the ToAD mirror handy during this exercise.
2. If the student has physical disabilities, or is developmentally very young, make sure he is aligned and supported and ready to use his vision.
3. Place the Smiling Face Photo on a simple, black or white background cloth in front of the student, about 16 inches away from him.
4. Give the student sufficient time to visually explore the photo. For students with CVI, this may take a minute or two.
5. Note whether the student reacts to the photo by smiling, reaching out, crying, or exhibiting subtler behaviors that indicate he is seeing the photo. Depending upon the student's vision, it may be advisable to move the photo closer or farther away.
6. If the student does not seem to be aware of the photo, then use the ToAD mirror to show him his own face, starting at a distance of 16 inches from his face. Note if the student reacts to the image of his own face. If he does not, vary the distance. When he does react to his own image, then try again with the photo. If he does not react to the image of his own face, give him time to rest from the activity and try again at a later time.
7. The Smiling Face Photo can be used to teach the parts of the face or to talk about smiles and other facial expression.
8. Once the student reliably reacts to the Smiling Face Photo or another image of a face, he is ready to move on to the Spoon Photo.

# Spoon Photo

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard. Be sure to have a real spoon handy during this exercise.
2. If the student has physical disabilities, or is developmentally very young, make sure she is aligned and supported and ready to use her vision.
3. Place the Spoon Photo on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student, about 16 inches away from her.
4. Give the student sufficient time to explore the photo. For students with CVI, this may take a minute or two.
5. Note whether the student reacts to the photo by smiling, reaching out, crying, or exhibiting subtler behaviors that indicate she is seeing the image in the photo. Depending upon the student's vision, it may be advisable to move the photo closer or farther away to get a response.
6. If the student does not react to the Spoon Photo, place a real spoon on top of the spoon in the photo. Note if the student reacts to the real spoon. Let the student hold or touch the real spoon and help her place it on top of or beside the spoon in the photo. Use the word "spoon" often while demonstrating the similarities between the real spoon and the Spoon Photo.
7. It may help to give the student a bit of dry cereal or banana in the real spoon and allow her to feed herself.
8. When the student consistently recognizes or interacts with the Spoon Photo, she is ready to go on to the White Spoon Drawing.

# White Spoon Drawing

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard. Be sure to have a real spoon and a piece of black paper handy during this exercise.
2. If the student has physical disabilities, or is developmentally very young, make sure he is aligned and supported and ready to use his vision.
3. Place the White Spoon Drawing on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student, about 16 inches away from him.
4. Give the student sufficient time to explore the drawing. For students with CVI, this may take a minute or two.
5. Note whether the student reacts to the spoon in the drawing by smiling, reaching out, crying, or exhibiting subtler behaviors that indicate he is seeing the spoon in the drawing. Depending upon the student's vision, it may be advisable to move the drawing closer or farther away to get a response.
6. If the student does not respond, place a real spoon on top of, or near the spoon in the drawing. Note if the student reacts to the real spoon. If he does not, place a bit of dry cereal or banana in the spoon to elicit a response. When he responds, let him feed himself the treat using the spoon.
7. Point out the similarities between the real spoon and the spoon in the drawing, saying "spoon" often.
8. If the student does not consistently respond to the spoon in the drawing, he may not be able to differentiate the spoon from the background containing the yellow squares. Cover the yellow squares with black paper and try again. If the student responds when the yellow squares are blocked out, give him praise. Let him rest; then repeat the exercise. After he reacts to the spoon without the yellow squares, uncover them and see if he still reacts to the spoon.
9. Repeat this exercise until he can consistently recognize the spoon even with the background noise of the yellow squares. When he can, he is ready to go on to White Spoon Puzzle #1.

# White Spoon Puzzle #1

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard. Be sure to have a piece of black paper handy during this exercise.
2. If the student has physical disabilities or is developmentally very young, make sure she is aligned and supported and ready to use her vision.
3. Place the White Spoon Puzzle #1 on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student about 16 inches away from her.
4. Cover the line of small images at the bottom of the page with a piece of black paper. Give the student sufficient time to explore the puzzle. For students with CVI, this may take a minute or two.
5. Note whether the student reacts to the spoon image in the puzzle by smiling, reaching out, crying, or exhibiting subtler behaviors that indicate she is seeing an image. Depending upon the student's vision, it may be advisable to move the puzzle closer or farther away to get a response.
6. Ask the student to point to, or otherwise identify the spoon. If the student reacts to, or identifies the spoon, uncover the line of small images at the bottom of the page. Ask the student to find the spoon in the line of images at the bottom of the page. If she cannot, point to each of the images going from left-to-right, naming them. When the small spoon is reached, point out how the small spoon looks like the big spoon in the center of the puzzle. Then identify the last image in the line. Point to the big spoon. Ask the student to identify the little spoon.
7. Repeat step #6, resting when needed, until the student can identify both spoons in the puzzle. Give praise for a job well done. Your student is now ready for White Spoon Puzzle #2.

# White Spoon Puzzle #2

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard. Be sure to have a piece of red construction paper handy during this exercise.
2. If the student has physical disabilities, or is developmentally very young, make sure she is aligned and supported and ready to use her vision.
3. Place the White Spoon Puzzle #2 on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student, about 16 inches away from her. Cover the line of small spoons at the bottom of the puzzle with a piece of red construction paper.
4. Give the student sufficient time to explore the puzzle. By now, most students should be able to recognize and react to the spoon in the center of the puzzle. For students with CVI, this may take a minute or two.
5. Note whether the student reacts to the puzzle by smiling, reaching out, crying, or exhibiting subtler behaviors that indicate she is seeing the spoon image. Depending upon the student's vision, move the puzzle closer or farther away to get a response.
6. When you are sure that the student is seeing and responding to the spoon, remove the piece of red construction paper, uncovering the line of spoons at the bottom of the page. Moving from left-to-right across the bottom of the page point to each spoon and say the word "spoon." Talk about how there are many spoons on the page.
7. Ask the student to find the little spoon that is just like the big spoon. This may be very difficult for some students. Therefore, this puzzle may be used to teach directionality. It may not be useful to use the words "left" and "right," depending upon the developmental age of the student. However the words "up," "down," "this way," and "that way" could be used to describe directionality.
8. For some students, especially those who are developmentally very young, finding the spoons on the distracting red background may be the limit of their abilities. Use professional judgement in determining if the student is able to go beyond the White Spoon Puzzle #2 to the higher level puzzles in Squire Toad's Puzzle Book.

# Butterfly Figure/Ground Puzzle

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard.
2. Place the puzzle on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student. Have black construction paper handy.
3. Give the student sufficient time to explore the puzzle. Then explain in simple terms that you are going to play a game together.
4. Say something such as, "We are going to point to all the butterflies on this page. Can you point to a butterfly?"
5. Keep giving cues to the student until she locates all the butterflies on the page. If the student has trouble, isolate a single butterfly using black paper to block out the others. Once the student can identify a single butterfly, try to expand the working field to include two butterflies. Keep expanding the field until all butterflies can by located by the student.
6. Once the student can consistently locate the butterflies on the page, she is ready to move to the next puzzle.

# Snow Scene Seek-and-Find Puzzle

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard.
2. Place the puzzle on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student. Have black construction paper available. Block out everything but the line of small images at the bottom of the page.
3. Give the student sufficient time to explore the items. Help him name them: thermometer, sock hat, snow shovel, penguin, mitten, hat. When he is done, explain in simple terms that you are going to play a game together.
4. Say something such as, "We have looked at the little pictures at the bottom of the page. Now we are going to find the same pictures up in the big picture." Uncover the big picture and give the student sufficient time to explore it.
5. Point to the first little picture and ask the student to name the item. If he has difficulty, help him name the items. Then ask the student to find one that is just the same in the big picture. If the student has difficulty, show him the big picture only a quarter-page at a time using black paper to block out the rest. Once he is able to locate the items using this technique, see if he can find them in the entire picture.
6. Repeat item five until the student has gained proficiency in finding the small items in the big picture.
7. Once the student can reliably perform this task, he is ready to move to the next puzzle.

# Elephant and Dog Missing Pieces Puzzle

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard.
2. Place the puzzle on a simple black or white cloth background in front of the student. Have black construction paper available. Block out all but the little pictures at the bottom of the page.
3. Help the student name the pictures at the bottom of the page: dog's tail, dog's collar, dog's bone, elephant's eye, elephant's tail, elephant's leg, dog's nose.
4. Say something such as, "We are going to look at the little pictures at the bottom of the page. Then we are going to point to the spot where they should go."
5. Point to the first little picture at the bottom of the page. Ask the student to again name the item. Help her if she has difficulty. Once identified, ask the student to find where it should go in the big picture. If the student has difficulty, you may want to show her only half of the big picture, at a time using black paper to block out the rest. Once she is able to locate the items using this technique, see if she can find them in the entire picture. Items: dog's tail, dog's collar, dog's bone, elephant's eye, elephant's tail, elephant's leg, dog's nose.
6. Once the student can reliably find where the missing pieces go, she is ready to move on to the next puzzle.

# Frog Pond Seek-and-Find Puzzle

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard.
2. Place the puzzle on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student. Have black construction paper available.
3. Explain in simple terms that you are going to play a game together.
4. Give the student some time to visually scan the puzzle. When he has finished, say something such as, "We are going to look at the little pictures at the bottom of the page. Then we are going to name them and find the same pictures up in the big picture."
5. Point to the first little picture and help the student name it: dragonfly. Sometimes when items are out of context they are more difficult for the student to identify. Ask the student to see if he can find one that is just the same in the big picture. If the student has difficulty, show him only half of the big picture at a time using black paper to block out the rest. Once he is able to locate the items using this technique, see if he can find them in the entire picture. Items: dragonfly, fish, lily pad, turtle, frog.
6. Repeat item five until the student has gained proficiency in finding the small items in the big picture.
7. Once the student can reliably perform this task, he is ready to move to the next puzzle.

# Boy and Dog Seek-and-Find, Figure/Ground Puzzle

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard.
2. Place the puzzle on a simple black or white cloth background in front of the student. Have some black construction paper available.
3. Explain in simple terms that you are going to play a game together.
4. Say something such as, "We are going to look at the little pictures at the bottom of the page. Then we are going to name them and find the same pictures up in the big picture." This puzzle is a little more complex than the previous seek-and-find and figure/ground puzzles. Allow plenty of time for the student to visually scan and process what she sees.
5. Point to the first little picture and help the student name it if she does not quickly identify it. Ask the student if she can find an item that is just the same in the big picture. If the student has difficulty, show her only half of the big picture at a time, using black paper to block out the rest. Once she is able to locate the items using this technique, see if she can find them in the entire picture. Items: butterfly, turtle, nose, net, shoe, grass.
6. Repeat item five until the student has gained proficiency in finding the small items in the big picture.
7. Once the student can reliably perform this task, she is ready to move to the next puzzle.

# Cat and Girl Missing Pieces Puzzle

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard.
2. Place the puzzle on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student. Have some black construction paper available.
3. Give your student some time to visually explore the puzzle. When he has had sufficient time, explain in simple terms that you are going to play a game together.
4. Say something such as, "We are going to look at the little pictures at the bottom of the page. Then we are going to point to the spot in the big picture where they should go."
5. Point to the first little picture and help the student name it: wagon wheel. A few of the items may be difficult to identify when they are out of context. Once the items are identified, ask the student to see if he can find where it goes in the big picture. If the student has difficulty, show him only a half-page at a time using black paper to block out the rest. Once he is able to name and locate the items using this technique, see if he can find them in the entire picture. Items: wagon wheel, girl's foot, cat's paw, girl's eye, butterfly, cat's bow, cat's tail, cat's eye.
6. Once the student can reliably find where the missing pieces go, he is ready to move on to the next puzzle.

# Zoo Seek-and-Find Puzzle

1. Make sure the student and you are in an environment that is quiet and has few distractions. A black corner can be devised using the APH Invisiboard.
2. Place the puzzle on a simple, black or white cloth background in front of the student. Have some black construction paper available.
3. Explain in simple terms that you are going to play a game.
4. Say something such as, "We are going to look at the little pictures at the bottom of the page. Then we are going to name them and find the same pictures in the big picture." This puzzle is a little more complex than the previous seek-and-find puzzles. Allow plenty of time for the student to visually scan and process what he sees.
5. Point to the first little picture and ask your student to name it. Some of the items are exotic, so he may need help naming them. Once they are named, ask the student if he can find one that is just the same in the big picture. If the student has difficulty, show him only a quarter-page at a time using black paper to block out the rest. Once he is able to locate the items using this technique, ask him to find them in the entire picture. Items: hay, egg, beak, koala, balloon, zebra, cap.
6. Repeat item five until the student has gained proficiency in finding the small items in the big picture.
7. Once the student can reliably perform this task, he is ready to move to more complex tasks. It is advisable to build your own puzzles using photographs, pages from coloring books, and drawings of your own. Adhere to simple principles, don't try to tackle more than one concept at a time and the students you teach will have many successes.

Squire ToAD's Puzzle Book
Copyright, 2007 all rights reserved.
American Printing House for the Blind, Inc
Catalog No. 1-08512-05