ELIYA - Association for Blind and Visually Impaired Children

ELIYA - The Association for Blind and Visually Impaired Children - was established in 1982 and remains today the only organization in Israel specializing in early intervention programs for infants, toddlers and preschoolers with blindness or visual impairment. In addition, approximately a third of ELIYA's beneficiaries cope with multiple developmental challenges in addition to being blind or visually impaired. This requires a unique approach and the use of specific treatment methods in order to provide suitable care which can provide for these children's complex needs. Today, ELIYA delivers programming to 150 children through five regional service centers in Petach Tikva, Jerusalem, Beer Sheva, Rehovot and the recently established center in Haifa. Our Day Care Rehabilitation Centers offer services to blind and visually impaired children from the age of 6 months to 6 years. Our mission is to assist these children in optimizing functioning capacity and independence skills and prepare them for future participation in mainstream education and society or further special education frameworks when needed. In 2019, we succeeded in integrating 80% of the special needs children suitable for integrated settings into the mainstream education system. Additionally, ELIYA assists parents of children with visual impairments and developmental challenges to cope with their child's disability and build resources and strengths that will support their child's progress and healthy emotional development. Our unique professional strength lies in improving vision function and providing vision stimulation to help children use their residual vision more effectively and enhance functioning capacity. Teaching children skills such as scanning, tracking and focusing is an essential element of our rehabilitation programs, and is successfully achieved through play and hands-on engagement.