TACTILE MODELLING

Tactile-based instruction is a powerful and inclusive teaching method for children with visual impairments or blindness. It enables them to physically perceive movements, facilitating understanding and skill development that verbal explanations alone may not achieve.

What Is Tactile Modelling?

Tactile Modelling, often known as the hand-under-hand technique, involves the instructor performing the movement while the student places their hands underneath or on the instructor’s body to feel the motion directly. Alternatively, the instructor may guide the student’s movement from behind, allowing them to sense the flow, direction, rhythm, and coordination of the action in real-time.

This method helps the child build a kinesthetic and spatial understanding of the movement; complements verbal cues, making instructions more accessible; and is particularly effective for dynamic or complex movements such as those in athletics or swimming.

In Tactile Modelling, it is important to:

• Always explain beforehand what you are about to do and ask for the child’s consent to touch or guide them.
• Let the child explore freely with their hands, allowing them to feel your muscles move, the direction of the action, how you hold or use an object.
• When demonstrating from behind, guide the motion slowly, ensuring the child can follow the movement naturally without discomfort.
• Pair tactile modelling with clear verbal descriptions to reinforce understanding.

For children with partial or minimal vision, position them close to the instructor during demonstrations. Encourage them to combine visual observation with tactile and verbal cues for a more complete learning experience.

In the first video, observe how the instructor demonstrates correct arm motion for running. A guide assists the child from behind, helping them replicate the rhythm and form of the movement.

In the second video, the child with residual vision follows the instructor closely, observing and feeling the movement to enhance understanding.

Coactive Movement

Coactive Movement is a teaching approach in which a child acquires motor skills more effectively by experiencing the instructor’s movements firsthand. This method is especially beneficial when the child is smaller than the instructor, paraeducator, or peer. During coactive movement, the child is positioned so that their moving body part makes contact with the corresponding part of the instructor’s body. While similar to tactile modelling, coactive movement involves dynamic, full-body interaction that allows the child to replicate the movement in real time.

The difference in limb size between an adult and a young child can make peer-based tactile teaching particularly advantageous for some learners. For more detailed examples, refer to Table 3: Examples of Coactive Movement on pages 39-40 in Gross Motor Development Curriculum for Children With Visual Impairments (Lauren J. Lieberman and Pamela S. Haibach, 2016).

Coactive movement can also be adapted for the entire class by pairing students together for shared activities. This inclusive strategy promotes participation among children with visual impairments without singling them out. For example, students can pair up and dance side by side, shoulder to shoulder.