[Blindmath] 9th Grade Standards that are difficult for my vi student

[Mary Woodyard]

Ben,  You post is most helpful and I will definitely contact you offline.  I
looked up the standards and really it is the entire Geometry Unit that is a
challenge.  With respect to triangle centers, he had a surprisingly easy
time differentiating auditorially between incenters, orthocenters,
circumcenters and centroids. However, when he had to look at diagrams of the
above mentioned figures and figure out which type of center it was - it was
much more difficult.  He just has a hard time visually deciphering what he
is looking at.  This same principle applies pretty much to all math - but
any place where the visual nature is more pronounced - he has to learn it
orally and then associate the visual representation with the auditory
definition that is in his head.  

 

With respect to graphing - using large print graphs and contrast - he can be
surprisingly good.  The hardest part for him is visually interpreting
functions of the graph.  He can determine functions and patterns easily when
he sees them in a chart.  When he looks at a graph, interpreting whether a
pattern or the slope is positive or negative can be much harder particularly
if the question reads "Which line is positive for the x and negative for the
y?"  Then the chart may have 4 or 6 lines to choose from.

 

Determining the distance of a point from a line has also been a harder
concept for him.  He does well with knowing how to change the slope if the
line is parallel or perpendicular.  It is just stepping through all of the
steps to get the original equation, determine the slope, get the 2nd
equation, solve for y, solve for x and then find the distance between the
two original points that is hard for him.  In his school, if you make any
mistakes - you get no credit.  I can't wait to see what 10th grade brings!

 

This year they were required to know the function notation and visual
representations of linear graphs, absolute value graphs, radical/square root
graphs, reciprocal/rational/inverse graphs and cubic graphs.  They also had
to know the domain, range and solution of each.  Again - if he was just
given an equation - he would know what it was and how to determine the
patterns.  But to look at a graph and come up with the correct equation is
much harder for him.  He is getting it - but we'll be working on it this
summer.

 

I will email you offline - but wanted to throw these examples out for others
to think about.  The other thing he has run into in Georgia is that if he
asks to have something read to him orally - they cannot read conditional
signs.  They say it will make his test nonstandard and endanger him getting
a regular diploma.  This has been puzzling to me as he does have pretty
usable vision.  What does a student in Georgia do without usable vision for
oral testing?  Even if the test is Brailed there are probably areas that
need to be clarified.  Do students in Georgia who need all parts of a math
test read to them just get a conditional diploma?