STAR (ages 5 – 13) from June 14th to July 23rd
Transition (ages 14 – 22) from June 21 to August 13th

The purpose of our Transition Program is to provide students ages 14 to 22 with the experience needed to live independent, successful and fulfilling lives. Multiple sessions are offered to students monthly as well as a focused eight week summer program. From work experience that suits the individual’s interests, personal and home management, assistive technology training, orientation and mobility, field trips, to community integration; the experiences and opportunities are unforgettable. In addition to developing independence in all areas of life, we also learn how to succeed together and build meaningful relationships with our peers. These skills combined create an unstoppable team!

If you would like more information or are interested in joining, please contact Abigail Miller, Transition Program Coordinator.

Little Lighthouse

The Little Lighthouse Blind Babies program at Miami Lighthouse gives blind and visually impaired babies and toddlers the opportunity to begin discovering our world. Ordinarily more than 80 percent of early learning is visual, so these children need special attention from birth onward. Miami Lighthouse also provides a supportive and instructional environment for moms and other caregivers.

Direct Intervention Services- Support program that provides in-home intervention for children ages birth to five with a visual impairment that impedes their ability to function independently and learn incidentally through vision. Individual services are identified in each child’s individual service plan resulting from assessment and parent information.

Consultative Services- Support services available to assist families in identifying and/or accessing needed resources to promote growth and development of child and family well-being.

Playgroup- Playgroups are held at the Miami Lighthouse once a week and designed to provide participating children with further opportunity for skill and social development.

Family Support Groups- Family support groups are available on a monthly basis and cover a variety of topics. The group seeks to provide peer support as well as community resources.

Professional Training- Professional development workshops are available to the community and include information on different eye conditions, identification of possible visual impairments, classroom modification and adaptation, compensatory skill development, and available resources.

For more information please contact Children’s Services.

Click here to view a video about the Blind Babies program

The STAR Summer Program

The Summer Training and Recreation Program (STAR) is a six week summer camp providing services to blind or visually impaired children ages 5- 13. The program offers fun, engaging, and enriching activities including literacy, physical fitness, social skills development, art and music.

This year’s 2010 summer program will include yoga, dance & movement, rowing and much more.

For more information please contact Children’s Services.

Family Support Days

These events provide fun and informative activities for our children and their families and caregivers. Families and caregivers are educated on issues concerning their children who are blind or visually impaired and advised of community resources. Social activities are also planned to involve all family members.

Summer Activities

STAR and Transition summer campers had a busy summer!

STAR kids enjoyed many outings, like horseback riding, courtesy of Harvey and Ellen Amster, where the children got to touch, and ride the horses. Each of them also received a horseshoe from the blacksmith. It was a very exciting day. The kids also made trips to the local pool…

In addition, the kids enjoy music time, arts and crafts, games, and reading on a daily basis, all of which help to better their motor skills and social awareness.

The kids also loved their trips to the Miami Children’s Museum, the animal farm, the beach, the movies, and many more exciting places!

The Transition group has a lot of exciting activities going on as well! This year they have gone to a U.S. Coast Guard Station, collected and donated food for recent natural disaster victims to a local fire station, visited C.B. Smith park, went kayaking at Shake-A-Leg and learned Martial Arts just to name a few.

We also have created our “Transition Village” which is a mock community in which the students had to fill out applications and interview for the positions of their choice. They also create and log inventory of their own stores, handle and budget their own Transition money and bank accounts and sell to the STAR kids who have raised Transition dollars for good behavior. The students love it because it provides a fun way to experience sales, running a business and managing and organizing their own money.

If you would like any more information on our programs, please do not hesitate to contact us. We are constantly learning and growing together, and we would love for you to join us!

Tango gives the kids the opportunity to work in close proximity to their dancing partner, where it is necessary to be mindful of one’s own movement as well as his or her partners, and move together. They are learning to feel the rhythm of the music and are also gaining better kinesthetic coordination. The wonderful instructors from the Shimmy Club help to make this a great experience.

Transition students have also been busy in the music studio, working on creating beats and R&B songs that they perform for the Lighthouse staff and clients at events like special lunches and the talent show.

Both transition and STAR students participated in the talent show, where they displayed singing, rapping, dancing, and even joke telling! It was a great exhibition of the talented people we have learning and growing at the Lighthouse.