"If you want to see a thing well, reach out and touch it!"
That may seem a strange thing to say. But touching things can help you to see them
better. Your eyes can tell you that a glass ball is round. But by holding it in your
hands, you can feel how smooth and cool the ball is. You can feel how heavy the glass is.
When you feel all these about the ball, you really see it. With your skin, you can feel
better. For example, your fingers can tell the difference between two coins in your
pocket. You can feel a little drop of water on the back of your hand, too.
All children soon learn what "Don't touch!" means. They hear it often. Yet most of us
keep on touching things as we grow up. In shops, we touch things as we might buy: food,
clothes. To see something well, we have to touch it. There are ways of learning to see
well by feeling. One way is to close your eyes and try to feel everything that is
touching your skin. Feel the shoes on your feet, the clothes on your body, the air on
your skin. At first, it is not easy to feel these things. You are too used to them!
Most museums are just for looking. But today some museums have some things to touch.
Their signs say, "Do touch!" There you can feel everything on show. If we want to see
better, reach out and touch. Then you will readlly see!