![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/133\/2017\/09\/Tactile-periodic-table-008.jpg\")
<\/a>Dr. Shauna Hiley and Katie Jenkins ’12<\/p><\/div>\n
Techniques class while also serving as a personal assistant to a visually impaired \u00a0student in a biology lab. Jenkins and Dr. Hiley, professor of chemistry, decided to work together over the summer to create a tactile periodic table.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe both learned a lot beyond the construction of it,\u201d said Dr. Hiley. \u201cIt really hit home the importance of universal design (accessible to all, not just people with disabilities).\u201d By keeping that in mind, she said, the tactile periodic table is helpful to sighted students, as well.<\/p>\n
The periodic table, which Dr. Hiley calls \u201cthe most important tool in chemistry to explain the physical and chemical properties of elements,\u201d used four different shapes of jewels and different colors to denote metals, metalloids, nonmetals and noble gases. (Hydrogen stands alone with a heart-shaped jewel.) Sighted students can easily spot the groupings and the reasoning behind them because of the jewels.<\/p>\n
Additionally, each element shape is listed with its atomic number and name in Braille, which was printed by Missouri Western\u2019s Adaptive Technology Services.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the positives of working on this project and as a personal assistant was that I had to learn to be a better auditory communicator, and I really had to listen,\u201d said Jenkins, who teaches at Mid-Buchanan High School. \u201cThe whole process made me a better teacher.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pair also created an Aufbau board to help students understand the Aufbau principle of how electrons move to energy levels.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe idea is to come up with creative solutions to bring science to everyone,\u201d Dr. Hiley said. \u201cWe ignored the disability and focused on accessibility.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What do you get when a student who is a lab assistant to a visually impaired person starts talking to a professor who is all about accessibility? You get a tactile periodic table, complete with three-dimensional \u201cjewels\u201d to designate the elements\u2019 properties. In spring 2012, Katie Jenkins \u201912 was enrolled […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[19,26],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1830"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1830"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1830\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4341,"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1830\/revisions\/4341"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1830"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1830"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.missouriwestern.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1830"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}