awareness with a blind lunch

In the canteen, Tuesday is… Hey, what is it anyway? It’s not easy for the 1,000 schoolchildren from 15 schools in the city, 12 public and 3 private, to know what dish is hidden on the plate. They participated in a blind lunch as part of International Disability Day. The City of Tours set up this operation with the Valentin-Haüy association and the Institute of Rehabilitation and Education for Communication, Hearing and Sight (Irecov), in Tours-North, as it does every two years. At the Michelet school, only the second service was concerned to only address “grown-ups”.

Grated carrots not left

“Children wear a blindfold to eat dishes that are easy to recognize. Beforehand, the team of teachers prepared the intervention with a little training,” explains Anne Gaëlle Hochart, from the City’s education and food department.

The children arrive, sit on tables with only the cutlery. The blindfold is put over the eyes, as for a long haul. It didn’t take long for the grated carrots to be identified. Aurélie Ardouin, teacher, can’t believe it: they eat their entire plate. “They usually leave them. » Achille recognized them immediately, “to taste”.

The main course arrives: cauliflower with eggs. The City had taken care to avoid dishes with sauce. The dish was also recognized easily, but not easy to cut the eggs. “We were explained how to slide the knife across the plate to recognize, by the screeching sound but also by the sensation, the sharp side. To drink, you have to use your finger, go around the glass to locate it,” explains Clovis, surprised by all these sensations. Teachers have also advised thinking of your plate like a dial.