[Nfb-krafters-korner] Half way done!

Sun Nov 7 18:17:37 UTC 2010

Just for clarification, I didn't want you to think that I was no longer 
going to be guiding Will.  Of course, when we're in crowded areas or 
crossing streets or any time else I will.  I just thought from time to time, 
on quiet places or maybe as we walk in the park that it might be a good 
idea.  No, I wouldn't do that to him though...not guide him.
Sorry about the mixup.
I'll be seeing him this afternoon.
Dick

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Annette Carr" <amcarr1 at verizon.net>
To: "'List for blind crafters and artists'" <nfb-krafters-korner at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, November 07, 2010 5:41 AM
Subject: Re: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Half way done!

> Dick,
>
> You are doing just fine.  I would not worry about pushing him to use more
> then his finger tip today.  Let him get used to this and at some other 
> point
> move to multiple fingers or even the entire hand if the project calls for
> it.  Maybe making the home made dough holiday ornaments might be a great 
> way
> to get his entire hands into it.  Let him help make the dough so that he 
> can
> experience the ingredients changing from one state to another.
>
> I think it was great that you were willing to drive back to your nephew's
> house and get his cane.  I do not advocate that you get a second cane to
> keep at your house.  This will be teaching him to rely on you instead of
> becoming independent.  When you pick him up, just go down the checklist of
> things that he needs to bring with him that day when he walks out the 
> door.
> Eventually you ask him to tell you what he needs to remember to bring with
> him.  If you see that he does not have the cane in his hand, ask him if he
> is forgetting something.  If he can't remember, give him a clue such as 
> "it
> is long", it is white", "it has a black handle", "it has a red tip", etc.
> Don't be afraid to describe it by its colors.  There is a good chance that
> his teachers and other children around him will describe it in that way. 
> By
> the way, making him learn what color his things are (coat, hat, shoes,
> boots, backpack, class binder, etc.) is very important for the same 
> reasons.
> Knowing what color clothes he is wearing is important.  Too often someone
> will say "you in the blue shirt...".
>
> Now as far as folding versus straight canes.  The cane is not only a way 
> for
> a person who is blind to navigate safely through their environment, but it
> is also  for letting others know that those of us using the white cane 
> will
> not see them.  So if your cane is folded up in your backpack, purse or 
> under
> your chair while you are sitting in a restaurant, the waitress and food
> servers have no idea that you can't see them waiting to take your order ,
> filling up your water glass or putting your food down.  When a blind 
> person
> learns how to keep their cane standing up against them while they are
> carrying on their activity, they have an identifier that hopefully others
> will recognize.  Now there are times when it is just not possible to keep
> that cane up and visible and it needs to be laid down or set aside.
> Unfortunately, there are situations when it is just not possible to keep 
> the
> cane right where the user can touch it and find it themselves when they 
> need
> it.  Often sighted people think they are helpful and say "I'm just putting
> it over here".  I'm sure you can figure out why this phrase is not helpful
> to someone who can't see.  So, my personal preference is to use a folding
> cane that I can leave unfolded when needed, and fold it up and keep it in 
> my
> possession when needed.  There is nothing wrong with a person who is blind
> owning both a straight and a folding cane.  However with that said, it 
> might
> get a bit expensive keeping a growing boy in the appropriate sized canes. 
> I
> no longer have a straight cane, but I do have 3 folding canes and a dog
> guide.  It is all about having the right tools for the job.
>
> I hope that I have given you some food for thought so that you can figure
> out what is the best plan of action for your nephew.
>
> Annette
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org
> [mailto:nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Dick Carlson
> Sent: Sunday, November 07, 2010 1:33 AM
> To: List for blind crafters and artists
> Subject: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Half way done!
>
> Oh boy!  What a day.
> I had my nephew here for a good bit of the day and we had us a time.
> Trust me...there were times when I'm sure he thought his uncle Dick was 
> nuts
> and at one point probably even mean.  That's OK though.  He knows I care
> about him and want the best.
>
> First of all, I know what Willy's getting as one of his Christmas 
> presents.
> He's going to get a straight cane that doesn't fold...maybe even two, one
> for my house.
> He conveniently forgot to bring his cane today.  He has one of those 
> little
> folding canes and I thought it was in his backpack.
> He learned that sometimes, there are few obstacles that get in the way of
> him walking freely.  He wanted to go to the park today and swing. 
> However,
> when I found out he didn't have his cane, we talked about how he was 
> ALWAYS
> going to use it when he was with me and anywhere else.
> So, we actually drove back to his house and got his cane.
> We came back and then went for our walk.
>
> I'm very tempted to try making him use it on his own now when we walk
> together.
>
> Then came the arts and crafts.  You guys are going to need to keep on
> inspiring me to keep these ideas happening!
>
> Willy wanted to work on the picture.  He knew where the materials were and
> went straight for the table3 and began handing me different things.  I
> stopped him and asked where and how he was going to put them on.  He had a
> puzzled look on his face because he's generally been handing them to me 
> and
> telling me where they can go and then I end up using that glue stick and
> putting them on for him because he found it hard to use it.  He asked for
> the stick that pastes and I told him we didn't have it any more.  I then
> said that he was going to begin putting the stuff on himself and that we'd
> do some together.
> He wanted to know how, and I showed him the bottle of Elmer's glue.  He
> wasn't sure what he was going to do with the bottle, wso we discussed how 
> we
> were going to try something new2.  I then said the feared word..."Messy!"
> He's been taught not to be at all messy at home.
>
> I began trying what you guys suggested and squirted some glue on a piece 
> of
> paper so that he can use his fingers.  I decided not to just put a little
> bit that would dry quickly.  I put a good mound there.  I then told him to
> just put his finger in it and put it on the first scrap of paper we'd 
> paste
> on the collage.
> He wasn't sure about it but did it though.  You should have seen him 
> simply
> barely use his finger tip...almost his nail.  He found it wasn't working 
> so
> well and asked why not.
> I then suggested he use more of his finger and more glue.  In a gentle but
> nudging way, I took his finger and dragged it and pushed it around in it.
> He wasn't sure if he liked it or not but then I showed him what to do.
>
> I think when we work on it tomorrow some more, he'll get more of the hang 
> of
> it, don't you?  We did get some stuff put on the collage and talked about
> the various things we were putting on.  We also just cut some strips of
> paper out because he wanted to put them around the collage as well.  OK.
> Sure.
>
>
>
> So, now that I've begun getting him exposed to this stuff, am I doing OK 
> so
> far?  What do I do to proceed with this and do more of it tomorrow?  He 
> was
> not reluctant to doing it but was uncertain about getting that one finger
> dirty.  In fact, he made3 sure it was that one finger, for the most part.
> In fact, I'm kind of tempted that when we work on it tomorrow to also join
> him and show him that I can do it too and get my "hands dirty" so to 
> speak.
> Hmmm, getting his hand dirty or at least involved more than just one 
> finger
> might not be such a bad idea.  I don't know.
>
> We finished art time for a while and actually did some singing.  He loves
> music!  Neither of us play instruments and we found it was a bit hard to
> sometimes sing songs without an instrument or something with which to keep
> time.  Hey, music is also art, right?  We had a little lesson in rhythm.
> Willy had a bit of a clapping lesson!  I didn't really know he hadn't been
> taught to clap right, so we worked on singing and clapping for a little 
> bit.
>
>
> We then went for a hamburger before taking him home.
>
> Dick
> PS. More collage work tomorrow!
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