It was the summer of 1880. A healthy baby
girl was born in a small town In Alabama. Her parents loved her dearly and named her
Helen Keller. But one day, the baby became ill and day after day, her fever
stayed high. Everyone in the family tried to help her to get better, but all they could say
was, "There is nothing more we can do. The baby may not live."
Helen lived. But she was not the same after
her illness. “Something is very wrong.” her mother said. At last they found out what was wrong. The child could not see or hear.
The baby grew into a little girl. Her parents
felt sorry for her. Helen often cried and held on to her mother. "Give the poor child what she wants," her father would say.
Though Helen could not hear or see, she was a
bright little girl. Some people thought Helen could not learn anything. Her mother did not agree. "Helen is very smart," she said
and added, "the problem is, how can we reach her? She is locked up inside herself."
Helen began to grow wild. She would not let
anyone comb her hair. Her clothes were
always dirty. She was often angry. Sometimes she even lay on the floor and
kicked her feet.
Her parents thought that they should find a teacher for her. Miss Sullivan, a young teacher agreed to help
Helen to learn to see the world. Miss Sullivan gave Helen a doll. "D_O_L_L" spells doll. She spelt
the word with her fingers into Helen's hand.
She made the letters with special hand signs.
Helen copied her teacher and spelt D_O_L_L too, but she did not understand what she was
doing. Helen liked Miss Sullivan. She was strict but kind. She spelt a lot of words for Helen, on her
hand, day and night, to make Helen understand.
One day, her teacher made Helen put her hand
into running water. Then, she spelt W_A_T_E_R. Suddenly Helen understood that W_A_T_E_R meant something
wet, running over her hand. She understood that words were the most important things in the world. Words would tell her everything to know.
wet, running over her hand. She understood that words were the most important things in the world. Words would tell her everything to know.
