Kindergarten – FAQ

The second edition of BOP-K is very different from the previous version of the program. This revision is more comprehensive, aligned to current grade-level literacy standards, and built around authentic children’s literature. The lessons provide a balance between fiction and informational text for young children. The program also includes more extensive phonics activities, the reading and writing of numbers, an introduction to punctuation, and a focus on meaningful student writing using invented spelling.

Yes. Building on Patterns is written with the understanding that instruction in reading and writing through braille will be delivered by a qualified teacher of students with visual impairments. It is critical that this instruction be provided by someone who knows the braille code and who is also a knowledgeable and reflective teacher.

Yes. Generally, the Learning Media Assessment dictates whether a student should be taught braille. In cases where members of the Individualized Education Program (IEP) team may still be undecided about the child’s primary learning media, BOP-K can be used in conjunction with a print curriculum to provide rich and varied experiences that allow the child to use both vision and touch for initial approaches to reading and writing instruction. Following exposure to and instruction in braille and tactile graphics, the teacher can closely observe the student’s response to multisensory materials to help inform the decision about appropriate media.BOP-K may also be used alongside a print curriculum for young beginning readers who may benefit from braille in the future due to an unstable eye condition or other concerns about their ability to access decreasing sizes of print. Because BOP-K is geared to young children, it is not appropriate for older students with established print literacy skills who are transitioning to braille as a primary or secondary reading medium.Students who are dual-media learners each have their own individual needs. Teachers may benefit from reaching out to other TSVIs who have experience working with dual-media learners.

For students with other learning needs, some TSVIs have found that an individualized approach such as I-M-ABLE (Individualized Meaning-Centered Approach to Braille Literacy Education) offers a functional, motivational means of introducing braille and fostering language connections before transitioning the student to a more traditional curriculum like BOP-K when they are ready. Some teachers use more than one type of program in conjunction with one another for early braille instruction.APH Resources for I-M-ABLE:

• I-M-ABLE Kit
• I-M-ABLE Book
• Students Using I-M-ABLE course on the APH Hive

Working with students who have other learning needs can present unique challenges. In addition to familiarizing themselves with existing programs such as BOP-K and I-M-ABLE, teachers may benefit from reaching out to other TSVIs who have experience with non-traditional learners.

You will need a BOP-K Student Kit for each student and a BOP-K Teacher Kit. Each lesson contains a list of specific “Materials Needed.” However, the following items are used so routinely that they are not included in those lists:

• • Braillewriter (used in every lesson)
  • Braille paper (used in every lesson)
  • Reading mat (used in most lessons)
  • APH Swing Cell (used in most lessons)
  • APH Word PlayHouse
  • Assorted APH Feel ‘n Peel Stickers
  • Types of tactile markers
  • Braille Adhesive Labels
  • Blank cards for letter/word/number cards
  • Materials for making tactile graphics

Teacher Kit

• Quick Start: This guide identifies the materials in the kits to start with for you and your student’s educational team, including the family, to learn about the BOP-K program and help them to work with you and your young braille reader.
• TSVI Booklet: This introductory booklet offers some background information about the program and things to think about before you begin instruction.
• Print Teacher’s Manual: The Teacher’s Manual for the program is contained in 11 print volumes.
• Assessment Booklet: This booklet introduces you to the assessment procedures and forms for BOP-K. It is a companion resource to the Assessment Binder, which includes copies of all the forms used in the program. Copies of each form can also be found on the Kindergarten Teacher Resources page.
• Bows and Hats Stencil: This stencil is for Lesson 5.

Student Kit

• • Student Storybooks (34, Note: There is no student storybook for Lessons 1 or 2.)
  • Workbooks (8, Note: There are no workbook pages for Lessons 1, 2, 9, or 29.)
  • Print Children’s Books (10)
  • Braille Children’s Books (11, Note: For Lessons 1–2, the print text for Bus Friends is in the teacher’s manual.)
  • Worksheets (12 in Set 1, 39 in Set 2)
  • Additional pre-made materials
    • For Lessons 1 and 2: Set of pages for Nice to Meet You book
    • For Lesson 9: Set of pages for 1 2 3 Balloons book
    • For Lesson 20: Set of 9 sheets for Word Wall
  • Manipulatives Pack
  • Tactile Stickers
  • APH Individual Calendar Kit
  • Curvy Path Game Board
  • 9-Square Game Boards (2)
  • Color Time coloring book
  • Binders
    • Look It Up Book
    • My Reader
    • Assessment Binder
  • 9” x 11” Dividers (15)
  • Kindergarten Teacher Booklet
  • Parent Booklet
  • Set of Print Parent Letters (34)

BOP-K is a comprehensive literacy program designed to contain most of the materials needed to carry out the activities in the lessons. The “Materials Needed” and “Teacher Preparation” sections of each lesson also make it easier for the teacher to get everything ready before the lesson. Each lesson begins with learning objectives, then includes the following instructional content sections:

• Speaking and listening—including interactive read-alouds using high quality children’s literature, vocabulary, and listening comprehension
• Phonological awareness—rhyming words, syllables, phoneme identification, segmenting and blending sounds
• Reading—phonics, letter and number recognition, student storybook, My Reader poems and songs
• Writing—phonics, practice exercises, guided, modeled/interactive and independent writing, name writing, and review of writing
• Specialized skills—such as tactile graphics and concept development
• Enrichment activities incorporating arts and crafts, games, and music

In addition, Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC) activities that support developing ECC skills, including Recreation and Leisure, Concept Development, and Orientation and Mobility, are embedded throughout the lessons.

The order of letter introduction in BOP-K is designed to facilitate tactile discrimination. The program presents similar and reversed letters — such as h, d, f, and j — at widely spaced intervals, allowing time for each letter to be well-learned before the next potentially confusing one is taught. In the same way, the BOP-K letter sequence separates the introduction of vowels. The vowels i and a are taught in the earlier lessons since their short sounds are easily distinguishable. The remaining vowels appear a few lessons apart with multiple opportunities to practice their short sounds in phonemic awareness and phonics activities. Finally, the sequence of letters in BOP-K begins with the most useful alphabetic wordsigns for writing simple phrases and sentences, such as go, you, can, like, and a. This enables the child to read continuous text right from the beginning of instruction, promoting tracking and word recognition skills within a motivational context.Order of letter introduction: g c y i l a h w x n d t u p s m r e f b k v o j z q

Integrating BOP-K into the general education class requires consideration of which activities the child would most benefit from and which can enhance participation with peers. Some elements of BOP-K are best presented in a pull-out, one-to-one setting, while others lend themselves to a push-in setting. Opportunities for push-in include calendar time, reading groups, read-alouds, buddy reading, writing activities, and literacy centers, among others, depending on your individual students’ strengths and needs. Successful integration relies on frequent, ongoing communication and collaborative planning with the general education teacher. More detailed information on combining the BOP-K program and the general education class can be found in the Teacher Resource “Blending BOP-K With the General Education Curriculum.”More detailed information on combining the BOP-K program and the general education class can be found in the Teacher Resource “Blending BOP-K With the General Education Curriculum.”

No. When teaching BOP-K, the emphasis should be on moving the child at a comfortable pace, rather than rushing through material. Lessons may take longer than a week, and it is not necessary for a student to complete all activities when they have mastered a particular skill. Some skills are introduced towards the end of the program that are not expected to be mastered in kindergarten. However, upon completion of the BOP-K program, the child will have acquired the necessary literacy skills to begin first grade.

Kindergarten children come to school with different levels of school experience and braille knowledge. Here are some suggestions:

• • Move through the program sequentially. (Don’t skip ahead if the child has not completed a lesson.)
  • Watch carefully for signs of fatigue or frustration. BOP-K is an individualized program that allows flexibility, for example you might skip a phonics activity for a skill the child has already mastered or slow down and reteach a concept where needed.
  • If your student does not complete the BOP-K program by the end of kindergarten, we recommend all lessons be covered before moving on to BOP First Grade. Not every activity from every lesson is critical, but the primary components of braille reading and writing will help the student to achieve expected literacy standards.

No. The children’s picture books are for the teacher to read aloud. Kindergartners will listen to the stories, hear modeled think-alouds, make predictions, answer comprehension questions, retell, and explore the print and braille copies. Use these books to start a library of children’s books for the home or classroom. Files to create braille labels for the print children’s books are available for download.The braille-only student storybooks and workbooks are for the child to read; they give practice with book handling, tracking, tactile graphics, and reading continuous text.

Interactive reading is a systematic approach to reading aloud using research-based techniques. During an interactive read-aloud, children participate actively in the listening experience, guided by a skilled adult reader. The reader makes comments, explains concepts and vocabulary, asks open-ended questions, and uses think-alouds to model higher-level thinking skills, such as prediction and inference (e.g., “I wonder why …”). These strategies occur throughout the reading so that children begin to develop good comprehension skills and remain engaged from beginning to end. See also Interactive Reading on the Teacher Resources page.

BOP-K assessments are informal measures designed to provide an enjoyable, positive experience for the child. Assessment activities and data collection are either included as part of an instructional lesson or written in a multi-day assessment lesson format. The assessment lessons use activities that are similar to those in the instructional lessons and are often related to the theme of a unit or lesson. Assessment components:

• Baseline information collected in Lessons 1 and 2
• Weekly reviews of letters, numbers, phonics skills, and reading familiar text
• Moving-On Checklists to monitor progress after each lesson
• Quarterly Checkups for a cumulative assessment, with forms including a summary sheet for TSVIs to fill out and share with teachers and families.
• Forms for ongoing monitoring of specific skills, such as name writing and alphabet recognition

Copies of all the assessment forms are available in the teacher resources tab on this website. If the child’s IEP goals require slightly different data for progress reports than is measured in BOP-K assessment forms, the forms can be adapted as needed.

As mentioned in the TSVI Booklet, the involvement of parents and family members is critical to a child’s enjoyment and success in acquisition of literacy skills. There is a Parent Booklet given to the family at the beginning of the school year and a letter sent home each week to introduce the coming activities and suggest ideas to support learning. Print copies of the parent letters are included in each Student Kit, but they can also be downloaded and tailored for the child’s family.

Yes. BOP-K offers opportunities for same-age peers to work with the TSVI and child with visual impairments in various activities and games. This helps the child to feel more engaged in the classroom.

This decision was made by the TSVIs who authored BOP-K. A kindergartener is not expected to read these books. The main purpose of the read-aloud books at this level is to help the child develop the understanding that what the teacher reads aloud is linked to the braille on the page. It is recommended that the child be allowed to keep these braille books so they can read them when they get older.Two additional factors played a role in the decision to produce these books in interpoint braille. First, it was felt that kindergarteners would benefit from exposure to the typical format with braille text on both the left and the right sides of a two-page spread. Second, single-sided braille would have doubled the number of pages, making several of the books awkwardly thick and heavy for a kindergarten student to handle.

Many items in the Student Kit are consumable, such as the worksheets, workbooks, calendar kit, and coloring book. It is also recommended that braille books from the kit—including the student storybooks, the braille copies of the eleven read-aloud books, and the My Reader binder of stories and songs—be sent home when they are no longer being used in school. This will help the child build a home library of braille books to enjoy reading now and in the future.

The scope and sequence of each level of BOP, from Prekindergarten through Second Grade, is based on general education standards and best practices for a specific grade level. For example, the literacy skills and objectives in BOP-K reflect those in typical kindergarten programs; specialized instruction related to braille reading and writing is integrated within this grade-level framework. In general, the activities found in each level of BOP—such as read-alouds, student storybooks, songs, and games—are appropriate for children at that grade level. Identifying each level of BOP by grade allows you to gauge your student’s performance in comparison with that of peers at that grade level. In addition, it ensures that the activities will be age-appropriate and engaging for the child. This does not mean, however, that a specific level or component of BOP may not be used with a child who is a year or two older than the usual age for that grade. Each child’s situation is unique, and you are encouraged to use your own judgement when choosing instructional materials.