Helen Keller was born in Alabama in 1880. When she was twenty months old, she got an illness. After her illness Helen could not hear or see. She was deaf and blind. Helen was a difficult child. Her parents did not know what to do.
Finally, when Helen was seven years old, her parents got her a special teacher. Her name was Miss Anne Sullivan. Miss Sullivan worked with Helen all day. She took Helen's hand and spelled a word in her hand. Helen soon learned to say what she wanted in this way.
In 1900 Helen entered Radcliffe College. Miss Sullivan sat next to Helen in class. She spelled all the words into Helen's hand. Miss Sullivan also read to Helen all the time. At that time there were only a few books for the blind. These were Braille books. They had a special alphabet made with dots that blind people could read with their fingers. Helen graduated from Radcliffe with honors, or very high grades.
Helen wrote books like The Story of My Life and Midstream--My Later Life. She also wrote magazine articles and spoke all over the country. She learned to speak. It was not easy to understand her. Miss Sullivan repeated what Helen said. Helen spoke about the deaf and blind. People everywhere became interested. There was new hope for the deaf and blind.
1. At what age did Helen get her illness?
a. When she was 20 years old.
b. When she was almost 2 years old.
c. When she was 5 years old.
2. What did Helen’s parents do with their difficult child?
a. They brought her to the special school.
b. They found a teacher for her.
c. They tried to cope with her by themselves.
3. How did Helen understand people?
a. They wrote what they were saying on her hand.
b. They explained it with different touches.
c. She had never communicated with others.
4. How did Helen read special books for blind people?
a. With her palms
b. With her tongue
c. With her fingers
5. What did Helen do for blind people?
a. She opened a hospital for blind people.
b. She wrote books for them.
c. She gave money for the blind.
6. Who helped Helen with her speeches?
a. Her mother
b. Her friend from the college
c. Her first teacher
7. What is the synonym for the word ‘deaf’ (paragraph 1)?
a. Unhearing
b. Without hands
c. Mute
d. Stupid
