Helen Keller Centre

More Information:
Founded: 1890s

Beginnings:
An English missionary named Mary Lovell opened Palestine’s first home for blind girls in the late 1890s. This was renamed after Helen Keller visited the School in the 1950s.

Activities

• Education
  Classes are small to allow teachers more time with each child. Regular curriculum subjects are taught with the addition of Arabic Braille. Mobility training is also provided.

As well as all the usual curriculum subjects, the children learn other skills that will help them to lead independent lives such as:

• mobility training in daily living skills
• gymnastics and athletics to competitive levels.

When students reach the age of 12, they are encouraged to join mainstream school. They continue to receive support from the Centre’s staff, who work closely with the student’s new school.

• Computer literacy
  The Centre has special computers that can talk and print in Braille, as well as talking calculators and typewriters. Having good computer skills means that students are more likely to find employment when they leave.
  
  
• Additional programmes
  The Centre has a training programme for university students studying Social Work and Special Education. It also runs summer camps each year, giving visually impaired children the opportunity to get to know sighted children from the local area. BibleLands’ volunteers help to lead this summer camp.
  
  
• Working with families
  The Centre provides a unique counselling service for students’ families, helping them to accept and cope with their child’s disability.

Downloadable documents:

Click here for a printable factsheet on the Helen Keller Centre

Click here for an article about the Helen Keller Centre (from our 2007-2008 Annual Review)

Visit the Helen Keller Centre website