Very soon after they discovered what else was wrong with baby Helen. The dinner bell had rung, but Helen no longer reacted/turned towards the sound. They shouted, they whispered, they clapped, but poor Helen did not react. Their baby Helen was now deaf as well as blind. Her mother then wondered how her baby girl would thrive in her dark silent world.
Dia: 2
The loss of her sight
Helen, Helen baby, what wrong?!
[Blank stare]
Before Helen was 2, she got really sick and ran a high fever and there were few medicines to cure sickness. The illness is now believed to be Scarlet fever. Then suddenly her fever broke, and her family thought she was fine, but then soon discovered she wasn't. She lost her sight when she was only 19 months (1 year and 7 months) old. Her mother realized it when giving her a bath.
Dia: 3
The Story of Helen Keller
How did she do so much with so little?
Dia: 4
Baby Helen
Helen Keller was born June 27, 1880 in Tuscumba, Alabama. Her parents were Arthur Captain Keller and Kate Keller.
Dia: 5
Adaptions
Helen would always follow her mother around holding onto her skirt. Helen noticed different smells and felt different vibrations as people and things moved around her. Helen used signs to communicate. By the time she was 5, Helen had made over 50 signs for things she wanted, and also signs representing family members. Helen threw tantrums when realizing that she couldn't talk/move her lips to speak and when she didn't get her way. Other relatives told her mother to put her away but she didn't want to do that to her daughter. She knew Helen was smart, she just needed to find a teacher.
Dia: 6
Pure Greatness
At the age of 7 she met her first teacher and life long companion, Anne Sullivan, who taught her language, including reading and writing. She taught her to speak using the Tadoma method. She became the first deafblind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree. She worked for AFB from 1924-1968 and during which she traveled to 35 countries all over the world teaching. She also wrote a total of 14 books along with hundreds of speeches and essays.