[blparent] Advice on playing with cane

[Brandy W]

Remember that children play what they see. That is how they figure out their 
world. I've had children as old as 10 play blind. Just as children play 
mommy, chef, teacher etc. they play blind. It is normal play. I would 
encourage you to order a toddler sized cane from the NFB store and let her 
play till her little mind has enough. This way you can let her know we 
aren't going to play cane right now because mommy needs her cane, but you 
may play with your cane. You can either bring her little cane, or let her 
know she can play with it at home. You will be able to teach her that it is 
a tool and she may play with hers and only hers. Although she does it 
properly she is still 2 and could accidentally hurt someone with a large 
pointy object.

Bran



"When we treat children's play as seriously as it deserves, we are helping 
them feel the joy that's to be found in the creative spirit. It's the things 
we play with and the people who help us play that make a great difference in 
our lives."
- Fred Rogers

Brandy Wojcik
Discovery Toys Educational Consultant and Team Leader
www.playtoachieve.com
(512) 689-5045

Looking for team members nation wide!
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Bridgit Pollpeter" <bpollpeter at hotmail.com>
To: <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Thursday, September 29, 2011 2:25 PM
Subject: [blparent] Advice on playing with cane


> Penny likes to play with my husband and mines white canes. We usually
> keep them in the corner by the door. At home, she tends to leave them
> alone until we go bye-bye. She'll run to the door, grab the canes and
> hand them to us, or hand one to one of us and keep the other. Outside or
> at stores, though, she likes to use one by herself or "help" one of us
> cane.
>
> She's not actually trying to help us, but just wants to cane. She's uses
> proper cane technique and rarely uses the cane in an inappropriate way
> like swinging it around. I use a 63 inch cane, and Ross uses a 65 inch
> cane, so they're pretty long for a two-year-old, though Pen is tall for
> her age.
>
> When at the park or on walks, Pen finds the biggest stick or branch she
> can and uses it as her cane. She even knows it is called a cane and uses
> the word when referring to the canes. While grandma and grandpa watched
> her one night, grandpa was going to take for a ride to get some ice
> cream. When they were leaving, she put her sunglasses on, grabbed a play
> flute my mom has, said, "Cane" and walked to the door tapping the flute
> shoulder-to-shoulder.
>
> My question is this: How do I balance her growing independence and
> curiosity while keeping myself safe and not introducing ideas like mommy
> and daddy need extra help? I don't want her inundated with these ideas,
> that blind people require assistance, but I don't want her thinking
> she's doing something wrong when she canes.
>
> We've explained, as best you can to a two-year-old, that the cane isn't
> a toy, and obviously she sees us use them, but I know this can be a fine
> balance.
>
> When my nephew was her age, I was just starting to lose my vision.
> Caiden naturally started trying to act as a sighted guide when we were
> outdoors or at restaurants. It was cute, but I also didn't seriously
> rely on a toddler as sighted guide. However, allowing him to hold my
> hand and try to lead me around ended up with adverse effects. He's now
> seven and still thinks he should help me. We've had discussions about
> this, and being older, he's comprehending that he doesn't have to help
> Bridgey and Ross around. Nonetheless, he ended up engrained with the
> perception that blind people require extra help often.
>
> So I don't want Pen inadvertently picking up bad concepts. Just
> wondering if anyone else has dealt with this situation.
>
> Sincerely,
> Bridgit Kuenning-Pollpeter
> Read my blog at:
> http://blogs.livewellnebraska.com/author/bpollpeter/
>
> "History is not what happened; history is what was written down."
> The Expected One- Kathleen McGowan
>
>
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