See the blind, hear the deaf See the blind, hear the deaf (February 06, 2004)

Fair increases disabilities awareness
by Teresa C. Brown

Frustrating. That is how Deborah Rodriguez described a training exercise that simulated being blind, deaf and unable to speak.

Wanting to share that experience and to increase empathy toward individuals with special needs, Rodriguez, a junior at Foothill High School, held a Disabilities Awareness Fair at Lydiksen Elementary School last week for dozens of children throughout the district.

Rodriguez organized the fair targeting students in third, fourth and fifth grades as part of a project to earn her Gold award, the Girl Scout equivalent of a Boy Scout Eagle. Held in the school's multipurpose room last Thursday, 12 different booths, manned by fellow Girl Scouts or friends and family members, were set up for hands-on demonstrations. Many were designed to simulate disabilities such blindness, hearing loss or impairment or motor skills disabilities.

Some of the booth ideas came from Rodriguez's experience as a summer counselor at a disabilities camp, where training included going through simple exercises to help the counselors experience disabilities temporarily.

At one station, children were served cookies, applesauce and a drink. However, they were blindfolded, not allowed to speak and could only use one arm. The demonstration simulated loss of sight, deafness and having one arm. Using one hand and blindfolded, Emily Hubbard, a Donlon Elementary fourth-grader, struggled to peel off the top from a single-serve applesauce cup. Once she finally managed to open the cup, her next hurdle was feeding herself.

Rodriguez recalled a similar experience at the camp. It was frustrating, she said. With another counselor acting as an interpreter with disabilities, Rodriguez used sign language and asked repeatedly for cereal for breakfast. The interpreter kept relaying the wrong message and Rodriguez was served a danish.

Among the booths at Rodriguez's fair, one focused on life in a wheelchair. One at a time, children took turns in a wheelchair, wheeling themselves through a simple obstacle course, weaving through cones and over a rug before finally wheeling up to a chair, where assistants stood by to lift the child out of the wheelchair and on to another chair. The exercise gives children a chance to feel how difficult it is to maneuver in a wheelchair as well as getting help to leave the chair to use the restroom.

The project took Rodriguez 106 hours to complete, including the time she spent raising money to accumulate $700 to buy materials, prizes and refreshments for the fair.

One of the motivations behind the fair was Rodriguez's personal experience, or lack of, with people with disabilities. She recalled seeing children in special education at Lydiksen when she was a student there. The students were kept separate from everyone else, she said. After working at the camp, she realized there was no reason to be afraid of people with disabilities and she wanted others to know that.

"I wish I had been friends (with the children in special education) and tried harder," she said. Not wanting others to miss out on a special friendship, Rodriguez shared her wish through the fair.

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