Children’s Programs
Miami Lighthouse Academy
Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired - in collaboration with Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Early
Steps and the Early Learning Coalition - offers an inclusion environment for pre-kindergarten, and a kindergarten,
first grade and second grade for blind and visually impaired students. As a certified Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten
(VPK) Provider, the Miami Lighthouse Academy pre-kindergarten enrolls students with and without vision impairment
promoting an inclusive program and resulting in a sense of belonging for all children and families. In support of
our mission, children without vision impairments are selected to aid the learning environment for children with
vision loss.
Miami Lighthouse Academy is a national Accredited Professional Preschool Learning Environment (APPLE center).
Using the evidence-based HighScope Curriculum, blind or visually impaired students are supported in a print/braille
rich environment. Miami Lighthouse is the first vision rehabilitation educational institution in the U.S. using the
international HighScope Curriculum, and this is the first time that HighScope has been applied to blind learners in
a fully inclusive model. Click here to read
more about the HighScope Curriculum.
Learning in all classrooms is conducted by Florida-certified early childhood teachers, Florida-certified teachers of
the visually impaired and teaching assistants. Currently, research faculty from the University of Miami is
conducting a four year longitudinal study of the participating children and families as we help prepare them for
mainstreaming into our public-school system.
For more information please contact our Program Coordinator at (786)362-7483.
Blind Babies Program
Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Inc. offers early intervention and parent
education through a home visitation program
to blind or visually impaired children from birth to age 5. The Blind Babies Program home
visitation, supports families, empowers parents,
and supports blind children's readiness to learn.
Miami Lighthouse offers weekly playgroups at our state-of-the-art facility where learning is
fostered through active play.
Through a family-centered approach, our programs support the social, emotional, physical, cognitive,
and linguistic needs of blind
or visually impaired children. Families come together weekly resulting in a strong emotional support
network for parents and
caregivers. Saturday parent braille courses and support groups on a variety of topics, including
understanding your child's eye
condition and preparing for your child's Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meeting are also
available.
Bright Beacons
Literacy and technology are keys to self-sufficiency and societal integration for individuals with visual
impairments. The Bright Beacons enables visually impaired school aged children to access high-quality core and
expanded core curriculum. Expanded Core Curriculum foundational skills are essential for student success at school
and home.
Summer CAMP Programs
Summer camp promises to be a fun seven weeks designed to support literacy, physical fitness, and social skills by
integrating the expanded core curriculum and evidence-based literacy programs. Opportunities for camp include an
early intervention based camp for children with visual impairments ages 1-4 and a school aged camp for children with
visual impairments and their siblings in Kindergarten through 5th grade.
For more information please contact Krizia Perez, Manager of Children's Programs 786.362.7481.
Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired is committed to serving the needs of children with visual
impairments. It is with great sadness that a visual impairment or blindness in a child is often the result of
neglect or abuse. If it were not for this unfortunate circumstance the child would have developed with “normal”
vision otherwise. Our Blind Babies Program has seen many cases of shaken babies and blind children being cared for
in the foster care system due to neglect, abuse, or abandonment over the course of years. Our Miami Lighthouse
Learning Center for Children™ is a resource for these children and the unfortunate circumstances they find
themselves in. As a program that serves children and families of low socioeconomic backgrounds we often assist
families enrolled in our programs dealing with homelessness access resources for housing while we continue to
support the early intervention needs of the child who is blind.
The Miami Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired Children’s
Summer Program and Babies Early Childhood Development Program are
partially funded by The Children’s Trust. The Children’s Trust is a
dedicated source of revenue established by voter referendum to improve the
lives of children and families in Miami-Dade County.
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