Since his birth, Lucas can neither see nor hear. If other children don’t want to listen, run away, or the ears to keep. In the case of Lucas, it’s different, for him, the hands are the key to the world. With hand movements and his conversation partner, things, and activities – describe similar to the sign language. Only the nine-year-old doesn’t see the movements, but felt. He wants no contact, withdraws his hands.
Today, Lucas wants to listen. The Boy with the bright blond short hair is promoted cut since his birth from würzburg blind Institute. For five years he lives in a residential facility, together with four other boys from Bavaria.
Kindergarten teacher Stefanie Comforter leads Lucas into the living room. She goes behind him and gently holds him by both arms. After a few steps, Luca dissolves, along touched the wall and walks alone in the kitchen. Comforter prepares him a box of food, which they carry together to the table.
Lucas to announce that he can now eat, she puts her hands under his. the hands of the speaker, the tactile sign is always down and takes his Hand to his mouth, the gesture for eating. Then she strokes her Hand over his. Lucas understands that He needs to lubricate his buns.
Lucas has also acted in the eating of his day
Successively takes Lucas, the items from the box, feel the bread bag and the sausage pack holds very close to his left eye. “On the left eye of Lucas has a tiny Sight, with which he can still perceive colors,” says Comforter. Because the eyesight is less than two per cent, he is, by Definition, blind. Also the orange juice considered Lucas to be very close. When Pouring he keeps his Finger in the glass to the point up to which he wants to fill it. His movements need time, are recorded.
About 9,000 deaf-blind people live, according to an estimate by the Federal Association of the deaf-blind in Germany, the Bavarian Blind and visually impaired Federal speaks of more than 370 deaf-blind in Bavaria. How many there are exactly, is not statistically recorded.
Lucas is signing the food of his day. In school, he was Swimming. On his fingers, he counts five more times to sleep, then he is allowed back into the pool. Lucas’ sign part is easy to understand how the “nods Yes”: a fist in the head. In part, he and his managers created their own characters.
Each Person in Lucas’ environment gets a gesture. His roommate Patrick has short fringy hair. The gesture for him to Swipe across the forehead. “It is particularly important detection bracelets are for Lucas, to them, he sensed people,” said deaf-blind assistant Tabea Sadowski. You taught your students a large part of the tactile Gebärdens.
The body as a unit
Your protege has to implant a so-called cochlear, the audio signals to the brain transmits. Since three-quarters of a year, Lucas can hear something, but its managers are not sure whether he is already able to distinguish language from other noises. Even he sometimes Sounds.
In Lucas’ WG the children due to their severe disability, little contact with each other – the nine-year-old is one of two boys not to sit in a wheelchair. All have their own rooms, with Lucas a wall bars depends on it. “Because we know that Lucas, despite his deafblindness very careful and coordinated, he has to get the wall bars”, explains Frederik Noted, the head of the youth housing.
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This feature also highlights Barbara Büchner. You trained Lucas’ mobility – exercises with him to navigate. “Lucas is very curious, which is unusual for deaf-blind children,” she says. Life without the two most important senses – Lucas can. He uses his body as a unit. Also his white cane helps him. Lucas was to measure everything.
The way to school, the nine-year-old knows by heart, his memory replaced his eyes. The room of the teacher, he recognizes the “feel” of wood symbols on the doors. In the beginning, Lucas had been the only amaze hard for the long stick, told Büchner. “We then turned into a glowing Laser sword that has him fascinated.” There are such creative ideas to give the Lucas quality of life. And, above all, his urge to meet, to discover continuously New.