Blind woman answers questions from kids at primary school
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Vlogger Siobhan Meade, who is completely blind after losing her sight at aged 16, was in the hot seat, answering everything the little ones put to her and her guide dog Marty.
Asked by one of the kids if she could dream, she said: “I do dream and I dream in colour.
“That means when I’m dreaming, I can see, which is really cool.”
The young children couldn’t hold back their excitement as they asked Siobhan how she knew where her dog had been for a poo – and just how does she pick it up?
“Marty has a special pen where I can take him to go to the toilet, and I have a special command I have to give for him to go to the —
“But I don’t want to say it too loud because I don’t want him to go to the toilet in here. That wouldn’t be nice, would it?” Siobhan joked.
The video comes after a survey, commissioned by Guide Dogs, found 32 percent of children want to know what a person who is blind or visually impaired sees when they dream.
The study of 1,000 children aged six to 11, and their parents, revealed a host of other questions kids would like to know the answer to.
These include “how much can you see?” (34 percent) and “how do you choose your clothes?” (33 percent).
Along with, “how do you recognise people?” (32 percent) and “do you understand what colours are?” (30 percent).
Despite their curiosity, 44 percent of parents polled said their little ones have never asked them about disabilities – such as being blind or visually impaired.
And over half of youngsters (57 percent) admitted they were worried about talking to people who are blind, or people with a visual impairment, about their disability.
But 85 percent of parents polled, via OnePoll, agreed their kids spending more time with people of their age who have disabilities would lead to greater equality and less stigma.
Siobhan Meade said: “Those without disabilities are naturally curious about how those with disabilities live their lives – not just kids, but adults too.
“However, adults are perhaps more likely to feel uneasy addressing people from the blind or visually impaired community, possibly due to limited interaction with people with those impairments.
“This is why meeting the children is so important – it’s a really wonderful opportunity to shape perceptions in a positive and accurate way, and of course, introduce them to Guide Dog Marty.”
Lisa Petrie, head of children and young people service development for Guide Dogs, added: “Vision impairment is a massively growing issue in the UK.
“Every day 250 more people join the two million already living with sight loss, and this number is set to double by 2050.
“Guide Dogs is here to help people with sight loss live the life they choose. This is part of the motivation for us visiting the school.
“We want to raise awareness and educate on the breadth and depth of our services, that go far beyond our beloved guide dogs.
“We are working tirelessly to increase awareness of the work we do and the support we offer to the public, including young people.”
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