Those who don't have vision problems know and know how to differentiate colors, but how could we describe them to a blind person? When we stop to analyze that not even people with 100% vision see the same tones, this task becomes even more complicated. However, many colors can be associated with smells, tastes, sounds or even feelings. Read on to find some tips on how to describe them to a blind person.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Using the other senses to describe colors
Step 1. Use touch to describe a certain color
Ask the person to hold some objects while explaining their color. The tip is to use items that are almost always that color.
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Ask the person to hold pieces of wood, feel the trunk of a tree, or pick up some dirt. Then explain that all these things are brown.
Say something like, "Brown is like the Earth itself. It's a representation of dead things that grew out of the ground."
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Ask the person to hold some blades or blades of grass. Then explain that both are green. Green is the living part of plants because when they are healthy they are green in color. To explain the difference between brown and green, also use some dead leaves as a comparison.
Say, "Green is the softness and elasticity of leaves; green is life. But when the leaves get brittle like these here, it's because they've died and turned brown."
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Ask the person to place their hands in a bowl of cold water and explain that it feels blue. Try to make her understand that some water is a very light blue, almost transparent. Large amounts, such as oceans and rivers, are of a much stronger blue.
Say it like this: "You know when you swim? That feeling of relaxation, your wet and cold body… Blue is like that"
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Explain that the heat (a fire, a fireplace, a candle flame, a burning stove mouth) is red. This color is often thought of as heat or even a burn.
Explain: "Have you ever had a sunburn? Your skin turned red. Have you ever been embarrassed about anything? That heat you felt in your cheeks was red."
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Talk about the concrete (the sidewalks, the walls) being gray. So is metal - explain that gray is usually hard and can change temperature depending on whether or not the sun's rays are present.
Say, "Gray is very stiff and hard. It's like the road you walk on or the wall you're leaning against, but it's not alive and it doesn't have feelings."
Step 2. To describe colors, also consider smells and tastes
Both can definitely be associated with certain shades.
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Explain that spicy foods (including pepper placed in many dishes) are usually red. Other red foods are strawberries, cherries and raspberries. Explain how this flavor is also intense, but in a sweet way. Red is like that.
Say, "Just as you feel red when you feel heat, it's also present when you eat something spicy."
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Give the person an orange and explain the orange color of the fruit. Ask for the smell and taste to be observed.
Say, "Oranges are often described as refreshing, sweet, and tropical; the sun is orange, and many foods that color need a lot of sun to grow."
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Do the same thing with a lemon and a banana, explaining that they are both yellow. Even though the flavors are different, the two are the same yellow color. Therefore, yellow can be sour and citrusy or sweet and nourishing.
Say: "Yellow foods also need a lot of sun; they are alive and happy."
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Give the person some vegetables (lettuce and spinach) and explain that they will always be green. Green has a clean, crunchy smell and taste, like earthy plants; sometimes it can also be a little bitter. Green is usually not as sweet as fruit; it is almost always bitter and can have various odors.
Ask the person to smell various herbs. The color of mint, for example, can be explained as: "Green smells like this: clean, fresh and healthy."
- For some smells in nature that have nothing to do with food, explain again that the leaves and grass are green, and the water is blue. On the beach, the smell of the sea is blue; the sand is brown or white. Explain that the colors can be any color, and usually the same type of flower can have multiple colors - however, there are no green, brown, gray or black flowers.
Step 3. Now think about the audition
She can also describe colors, you know? Some sounds can very well be associated with certain tones.
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Explain that sirens and alarms often make people think of red, a color used to draw attention and used on fire trucks and the lights of ambulances and police cars.
Say, "When we hear a siren, we are usually alert because we may be in danger. Red is like this: it draws attention and has a sense of urgency."
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The sound of running water, especially a stream or ocean waves, should make one think of blue.
He says: "The blue is calm and pleasant. Just as the sound of water makes us relaxed."
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The sound of green can be leaves swaying or birds singing. Explain that not all birds are green, but because they live in trees, their singing makes people think of that color.
Say, "When you hear the trees swaying or a bird chirping, you are in front of the green."
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Describe the sounds of a storm as gray. When we hear thunder and rain, the sky is gray and everything seems to be gray too.
Explain: "Storms are gray. The sounds of thunder and rain mean the day is all gray; it's a little depressing and dark as the sun disappears."
Step 4. Describe how colors affect our emotions
Everyone generally associates a hue with a certain psychological state or emotion, and a lot of research has even been done about it. Explain the most common feelings:
- Red: is usually the color of anger, sexual arousal, physical strength, and aggression;
- Orange: physical comfort, having enough food, friendliness and security, and sometimes frustration;
- Yellow: friendship, joy, optimism, confidence, and sometimes fear;
- Green: balance, revitalization, harmony, science of the surrounding environment, peace;
- Blue: intelligence, freshness, calm, serenity, logic;
- Purple: spirituality, mystery, luxury, truth, color closely associated with dreams;
- Black: sophistication and glamor (positive) and oppression and threat (negative);
- White: cleanliness, clarity, purity, simplicity;
- Brown: confidence, support;
- Gray: neutrality, talk of confidence or energy, depression;
- Pink: care, warmth, femininity, love.
Part 2 of 3: Using numbers to explain colors
Step 1. Explain that the amount of colors is unlimited like numbers
Imagine that number one represents red and number two represents yellow. You can find variations between one and two: "1.2, 1.21, 1.22, 1.3, 1.4, 1.45….". The same goes for colors: there is an unlimited amount of shades between two colors, which explains their gradation.
Part 3 of 3: Understanding a person's visual condition
Step 1. Determine the nature of the problem
Many people can still see a little, even if they are just shapes. According to the American Foundation for the Blind, only 18% of Americans with low vision can be classified as totally blind, and most can distinguish between light and dark.
The ability to distinguish between light and dark can help you explain black and white, for example. Say that black is dark and white is the presence of light
Step 2. Ask if the person is born blind
Many are blind because they have suffered some eye disease and, if so, have come to know the world and the colors before then. That way you can help the person remember certain hues by using the description a lot.
Step 3. Find out if the person is colorblind
Color blindness is a type of vision problem in which a person sees objects but is confused with color or sees it differently from other people. Colorblinds often see red, orange, yellow and green all in the same shade; and blue and purple end up being the same thing for them. To help this person, you can simply name the colors of common everyday objects.
