One of my students with multiple disabilities and blindness is reading Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons. I created a book that is more interactive than the print version used in the classroom. He can explore the braille and tactile pictures in the book as the teacher reads aloud.
- Plastic Pages from the Symbols and Meaning Kit (SAM) available from APH
- Very large buttons (mine are 3D printed to avoid a choking hazard)
- Sticky-backed braille label sheets
- Velcro
- Textured paper
- Large binder rings or a 3-ring binder
The title page and the last page have a textured cat made from plastic sheet from the Carousel of Textures available from APH. I focused on the salient features of the cat of whiskers and a tail.
The middle pages have buttons on each and the braille storyline. Velcro the buttons so that at the end of the storyline the student can POP! one button off as you read the story together.
The text/braille needed for the book:
- (Cover) Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons
- (Page 1) My buttons, my buttons, my 4 groovy buttons. POP!
- (Page 2) My buttons, my buttons, my 3 groovy buttons. POP!
- (Page 3) My buttons, my buttons, my 2 groovy buttons. POP!
- (Page 4) My button, my button, my 1 groovy button. POP!
- (Page 5) My button, my button, still have my belly button.
- I made an extra button that can be used to represent the book activity for object calendar systems.
- Here is a video of the story:
- This book could be used as a math activity as all of the buttons can be removed.
- Place the rough side of the Velcro on the buttons so that they will stick to the All-in-One board or Invisiboard available through APH.
- The activity can be adapted for student who use a switch to communicate by programming the switch with the “song” from the story book.
