The Braille Pals Buzz
The Braille Pals Buzz
Volume 1, Issue 5
What's Buzzing with the NFB Braille Reading Pals Team?
We had another successful National Federation of the Blind Convention in Dallas. The Convention always energizes us as members of the NFB because we get to meet blind adults and children from all around the country. We see even the youngest children carrying canes, meeting other blind children, and believing confidently in their abilities. The NFB Convention speeches excite us all and remind us to think creatively about the possibilities for all blind people. Attending the convention reminds us to have high expectations for ourselves and other blind people.
Did you ever think your blind child could be a medical doctor? Can you imagine the possibility of your blind teenager driving a car? Listen to audio of the speeches at the NFB National Convention addressing all of these issues.
Literacy Hints from the Hive
Practical and simple tips to foster a love of literacy in your child
Find Positive Role Models for Your Child
No matter how young your child may be, finding positive blind role models for him or her is crucial. Your child needs to meet blind mentors who demonstrate positive attitudes about blindness. Where do you find a mentor? They’re in your state NFB affiliate. That’s why involvement in the NFB is important. You and your child can both learn from this individual. Often blind teens and adults want to be role models for blind children because they never knew a blind person when they were young and they want children to know that they can be independent as a blind person. These individuals also often want to help so they can improve the system for blind children so your child will have more positive life experiences. The blind role model can demonstrate to your child how to read in Braille. They can offer reading techniques and answer questions you and your child might have about Braille. For your really young children, you could set up a story time and have the blind individual read aloud to your child. A blind individual in your area also may have a Braillewriter or embosser that can be used to translate books into Braille. Blind mentors in your area can offer a lot of resources and insight. Get your child exposed to positive blind role models early. Then, when they get older, they know they have someone they can go to and ask questions.
Sweet Sweet Braille
As a follow up to the previous issue about writing, here is an article entitled Writing with a Slate and Stylus Is Easy written by Ramona Walhof for Future Reflections, our magazine for parents of blind children. The article dispels the myth of how difficult it is to use the slate and stylus.
Buzzes and Tweets
Follow NFB_Voice on Twitter to get news and information from the National Federation of the Blind.
Follow BrailleLiteracy on Twitter to get timely Braille news, information, and tips.
Questions for the Queen Bee
Q: One of my child’s favorite books is a print one. Is it OK to read print books to my child?
A: Absolutely! While you want your child to have Braille all around his or her environment, literacy in all its forms is valuable. The reality is that many children’s books are not in Braille and it may take some time to build up a Braille library for your child. So we encourage you to do the best you can in exposing your child to books any way you can.
Q: It seems like all of the products for blind people are so much more expensive than those you can get for sighted people. I want my child to be exposed to Braille, but it is not affordable. Do you have any ideas on getting affordable Braille products for my child?
A: It is frustrating that often tools, books, games, and toys for blind children are not affordable. Blind adults often find this to be true for them as well. Check with your child’s early intervention specialist or your state’s parent/infant program for blind and low vision children to learn what resources they may be able to offer you and your child, or what resources may be available in your state for obtaining such products or materials. Here are some ideas that some blind adults and parents of blind children have found to help with affordability when it comes to getting books into Braille they may be helpful for you and your child.
- Use transparent labeling tape and a Braille label writer to Braille out the text for a book that is in print. Place the strips of Dymo tape on the pages corresponding with the printed text. Try to keep the lines of Dymo tape as straight as possible to help your child follow the letters. The Braille label writer has print letters on it so it can be easily used by a sighted parent or older sibling.
- Brailing your own books is a good alternative if you are unable to find or purchase the book in Braille. If you don’t know Braille, you can learn it through home resource guides, such as the Hadley School for the Blind or teaching guides sold at the NFB Independence Market. For more information about learning Braille yourself, please contact the National Federation of the Blind Education Team at 410-659-9314. One of the easiest ways to produce Braille yourself is with a Braillewriter. Sometimes you can borrow a Braillewriter from a local state agency, your state’s Instructional Materials office which is usually affiliated with the school for the blind, or a school for the blind directly. You may even want to invest in purchasing one for yourself and your child. (See a list of Braillewriter vendors.) You can put adhesive Braille paper or sheets of clear contact paper in the Braillewriter. After brailing the text, you can cut it out into strips or sections and place it over the pages of text in a book. (The Braille pages are clear so the print and the pictures on the pages can still be seen by sighted readers.) Another idea is to purchase clear transparency sheets, Braille directly on these sheets, and then rebind the book with the transparencies inserted in between the print pages. Most of these materials, including book binding can be found at your local office supply store. Please note that these methods are less time consuming than using the Braille labeler. Another option is to slate the Braille using a slate and stylus instead of a Braillewriter. Learning to write using a slate and stylus is something you will need to invest some time into practicing, but slates are inexpensive and basically serve as a blind person’s pen or pencil.
- Invest in a Braille embosser for your home and Braille transcription software like Duxbury. These software programs allow printed text to be scanned in and easily translated into Braille text. A Braille embosser is similar to a printer except that it embosses the paper creating a Braille page. This method however is a little more expensive and designed for larger transcribing jobs so is something you may want to keep in mind for when your child starts school. Please contact a Braille technology specialist at your state agency for the blind or the NFB International Braille and Technology Center to learn more about this equipment and software, to see what might best suit your family’s needs, and to find out about financial assistance that may be available in purchasing this equipment. You should also look into possible tax credits for purchasing accessible technology for your child.
- Sometimes service clubs like the Lions or Kiwanis are willing to purchase large-ticket items like Braillewriters, embossers, and software for families of blind children. These organizations may also be willing to purchase Braille books directly for your child.
- Find your state library for the blind through the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS). Contact your state library to request your child’s favorite book in Braille. They may already have it in Braille. If not, you can talk to them about putting it on their list of books that they have in Braille. It is also a good idea to see if there is a lending service for children’s Brailled books through your state library for the blind.
- Sometimes vendors from organizations like National Braille Press or the American Printing House for the Blind attend conventions related to blindness. For example, these organizations exhibit during the NFB national convention each year. Towards the end of the event, these organizations often mark down the inventory they shipped to the convention to avoid having to take so much back with them. It is a great way to stock up on children’s books in Braille and save some money.
- Another opportunity for getting Braille books while attending the NFB national convention is going to the Braille Book Flea Market. This event is sponsored by the National Organization of Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC) and the National Association to Promote the Use of Braille. Quality Braille children’s books are donated, for families with children of all ages.
- Hire a Braille transcriber. Check out this list of transcribers to see if you can find someone in your area. You may also check with a local library for the blind, school for the blind, or your early intervention specialist for transcribers in your area. If you can’t afford to hire the person, you might consider bartering. You may have a service you could provide in exchange for getting books transcribed.
- Review the list of free book programs for more Braille book sources. Review the list of organizations in our storybook resources and watch for discounted books or coupons on Braille books offered by some of the programs. Often Braille books are sold for the same cost as print books.
Books for Busy Bees
Sighted children have access to print books all around them. It is important to offer our blind children the same exposure. Here are several sources for obtaining Braille books.
The Braille Storybook Resources page has a comprehensive list of sources for Braille books.
NFB ShareBraille
NFB ShareBraille is a free service that facilitates the exchange of Braille books through a community-run library. Go online to trade your Braille books or to request books from other NFB ShareBraille users.
American Action Fund for Blind Children and Adults (AAF)
Free Braille Books Program
1800 Johnson Street
Baltimore, MD 21230
(410) 659-9314, extension 2287 * Fax (410) 659-5129
E-mail:
Selected popular children’s reading series (currently Jigsaw Jones Mystery® chapter books for grades 2-4; Matt Christopher sports books for grades 5 and up and Sampler set of chapter books from four different series including SpongeBob SquarePants®, Franny K. Stein, Mad Scientist, My Weird School, and Ready Freddy) are available free to blind children, teachers, libraries, etc. The books are mailed out every month so that blind children can have them at the same time that sighted children can buy the books in the bookstore.
NFB Independence Market
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place
Baltimore, MD 21230
Phone: (410) 659-9314, ext. 2216
Fax: (410) 685-2340
E-mail:
The National Federation of the Blind Independence Market offers blindness-related literature, resources, and products as a service to individuals who are blind or experiencing vision loss, to their friends and families, and to the general public.
The NFB Braille Reading Pals Club is organized in partnership with the
National Organization of Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC).
NFB Braille Reading Pals Club
Jernigan Institute, National Federation of the Blind
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore, MD 21230
(410) 659-9314 Fax: (410) 659-5129E-mail:
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