Wednesday was an overcast and somewhat dreary day. The stories flew about previous experiences so we were walking in with our preconceived notions and unease already. 10 year olds are intimidating. 25 10 year olds are downright daunting…or so we thought. We heard them coming down the hall with their teacher emphasizing her instructions on their behavior specifically what NOT to do. We looked at each other and smiled with trepidation realizing we had to show no fear. We decided to take our cue from their instructor and went to work having the kids set up the chairs. Our first success, they listened and followed our instructions to the letter.
We sat the kids across from each other in 2 rows, one row with blindfolds and one without. We were going to have them step into the shoes of a person who was blind and a person who would guide. They donned their blindfolds and we handed out the Braille cards to their guides. They were instructed to had the cards to their person who was “blind”. The kids who were “blind” had to ask yes or no questions to figure out what was in their hands. Their guides could only answer accordingly. Once they figured out what was in their hands, they were to raise their hands. The clamor of discussions to unravel the mystery in their hands went on for 5 minutes. Those that discovered it beamed with pride. Those that didn’t were impressed with what they didn’t figure out and even more so when they realized they got to keep it. We demonstrated the different degrees of blindness and the light in the room t
hat became the kids realization of this could have lit up the building. It’s a true wonder when you are lucky enough to share something with someone they sincerely didn’t know and truly appreciate learning. We furthered our enlightenment with little tidbits of wonder at what the blind community is capable of. We expanded the kids world to realize they experience similar interactions at stop lights with the beeping sound to signal safety crossing the street, at elevators when they see and can feel the Braille used to determine the direction of the elevator or gender of the bathroom.
hat became the kids realization of this could have lit up the building. It’s a true wonder when you are lucky enough to share something with someone they sincerely didn’t know and truly appreciate learning. We furthered our enlightenment with little tidbits of wonder at what the blind community is capable of. We expanded the kids world to realize they experience similar interactions at stop lights with the beeping sound to signal safety crossing the street, at elevators when they see and can feel the Braille used to determine the direction of the elevator or gender of the bathroom. They realized they knew more than they thought and the “click” of that light of realization going on was music to their minds! They were enraptured by Helen Keller’s life and stepped into her darkness when we read about her climbing a tree for her pleasure at nature and a sudden storm trapping her there. Her rescue by her friend Annie was a relief to the faces that listened. We asked them questions to guess at her life’s timeline and they hollered their responses desperate to be heard if their answer was right.
We could have stayed for hours with the questions they had. I could have sat on that floor and continued delving into their world for the rest of the day. I thought so proudly of how I was going to educate these kids in a creative way about the blind community. That may have happened to a couple of the kids but I walked away wanting more. Their thirst for knowledge and bright minds with all the different ways to look and ask their questions allowing us to draw them out was a true honor. I think they had more of an impact on me than I on them. What a gift! When can I do this again?Sarah Schraven
Services Manager, Projects
National Industries for the Blind
First-person account of her volunteer experience through United We Serve and NIB
