Transition is a change from one setting or situation to another. Two basic rules about change: 1. Change is often hard for people. We are comfortable where we are and resist change. 2. Change happens. Rarely can we stay in the same situation. For our children with deafblindness, transition or change can be especially hard. They are most comfortable with established routines. See the section on routines for suggestions to help when making changes in routines.

They are many different transitions that happen to our children and to ourselves. Moving is a big change. Finding your way around a new neighborhood, school and even your house can be very difficult. Going to different medical professionals is another. One mother said, “I hate having to retrain another medical office. It takes a long time for them to get to know my son and all the issues we face”. There is a link to a fact sheet in this section that gives helps for successful medical appointments. Changes in home and school are also happening. Going to a different room, waking up at a different time, going to an assembly instead of PE, birthday parties, etc. For all transitions we need to get all the information we can, talk to other people who have gone through the transition and prepare in every way possible.

Some of the biggest transitions are: from early intervention to preschool (three years old), preschool to school (five to five) and getting out of school (twenty-three years old). These transitions have legal requirements. Those requirements are listed in links at the end of this section.

There are some tools that can help the transition process. Person centered planning or Personal Futures planning are excellent tools to aid in any transition. They both create a vision or map on paper of the child, including strengths, weakness, dreams, nightmares, goals, what works, what doesn't work and etc. They can be used for all ages. Everyone understands the child better, knows things that they need to work on and what future goals they are working toward. Often IEP goals are written directly from the “maps” of the child. The process of creating the “maps” or profiles can help to make a team become stronger. Everyone on the “team” doesn't need to understand the maps process. All you need is one person to be the facilitator. That is the only one who needs to understand how to do a “mapping session”

Portfolios are another effective tool to help the transition process. It is similar to making a resume of the child. It can include pictures, history, goals, medical interventions necessary, a dictionary (see next paragraph), what things not to do, what things to do, friends, emergency procedures and phone numbers, etc. “I'm Moving On' is from New Mexico Deaf-Blind Services. It is a transition book ready to have pictures and wording added. The table of contents is listed here so you can get an idea of things to put in a portfolio:

Who I Am
About My Transition Book
This Is How I Get Around And The Places I Go
My Family
My Favorite Person
My Legal Guardian Is
My Case Manager
My Past Assistants
My New Assistants
My Team
How Do I Know If The People Who Work For Me Are Doing A Great Job?
What Do I Do If The People Who Work For Me Are Not Doing A Great Job?
My Feelings
My Health
My Medicines
My Medical And Emergency History
My Emergency Procedures
My Teams Use These Words Frequently
My Stuff
My Future Transitions

Every portfolio will look different and have the things that apply to that child in it.

Dictionaries – When we don't know what a word means, we look it up in the dictionary. There may be communications that the child does that are not easy for others to understand. They can't go to a “regular” dictionary and find out what something means. Creating a dictionary of the child's specific communicative actions or vocalizations and what they mean can be very helpful.

Here are some additional transition links:

“Person Centered Planning” is the most effective transition tool that I have ever seen used.

“Planning and Supporting a More Active Life at Home” is from the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired

“Transition Requirements” is all about transitions and what the legal requirements are.

“Early Transitions for Children and Families” is from ERIC ( Education Resources Information Center .

“Strategies for Successful Medical Appointments” – A California Deafblind Services Fact Sheet

See also “Doors” in the Concept Development Section

DISH stands for Deafblind Intervention Strategies for the Home,
click here for the intro and index page