Instruction In Writing Braille

By: Carmen Willings
teachingvisuallyimpaired.com
​Updated October 28, 2017

Students will not only need to learn to read braille but to write braille as part of their literacy program. Encourage students to write about areas of interest and practice reading back what they wrote. Writing on the braillewriter requires physical strength, in addition to fine motor skills. Students can learn to make the connection between pressing the keys and forming symbols when they "scribble" on the braillewriter. As part of the writing process, students will need to learn to insert the paper into the braille writer. Teach the student the names of the parts of the braillewriter and relate the dot positions to the braillewriter keys. Knowing the dot positions will help in instructing the student on how to form the various letters and symbols. ​​​​​

Produce Braille with Braillewriter

The most common way for a student to produce braille, and fundamental for transitioning to electronic means of producing braille, is to use a standard manual braillewriter such as the Perkins braillewriter. Although the traditional Perkins braillewriter is heavy, I prefer this model to newer lightweight models as I feel it produces higher quality braille without tearing the tops of the braille when returning to the beginning of the line. In order to use the braillewriter proficiently, the student will need to learn skills to produce braille. The following is a sequence of skills that students will need to learn to produce braille on the braillewriter. Encourage the student to

• insert/remove paper in a braille writer.

• scribble using a braillewriter and make random braille dots (just as sighted students learn to write through scribbling, this is an important first experience for future braille readers as well).

• appropriately place fingers on the braillewriter keys.

• push all keys to write a full braille cell.
• use his thumb to make a space.
• use fingers in isolation to write rows of Braille dots (a row of dot 1, a row of dot 2 and so on).
• operate line advance/carriage return to move to the next line and backspace to go back.
• use appropriate fingers on keys on braillewriter
• use appropriate finger strength to emboss dots of correct and equal height.
• set margin stops on a braillewriter to create columns.
• locate/name parts on a braillewriter: embossing keys, embossing head, carriage return, backspace, line advance, paper feed knobs, paper stops, paper release levers, roller, bell. (This is not an essential skill, but older students should learn the proper names of the braillewriter)

This classic Perkins braillewriter available from APH is a manually operated, six-key machine that, as its name indicates, is used to produce braille. Electronic and computerized braillers are also available that are more portable and lighter weight. This braillewriter is known for its durability and reliability and ability to write on wide paper.

The Perkins website provides downloadable manuals that includes the machine layout and basic functions, instructions for the care and storage, inserting and removing braille paper, as well as brailling tips.

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Writing with the Slate & Stylus

A slate and stylus is a portable way to produce braille. Using a slate and stylus provides a student with a means of producing braille "on the go." ​It can be easily carried in a pocket or on a clipboard. The slate is a metal or plastic frame with openings through which braille dots are embossed with the aid of a pointed stylus. As part of the instruction in using a slate and stylus, the student will need to:

• identify the six parts of a slate: hinge, window, pins, cells, dividing dots, bar, and opening.
• identify the dot numbers in a cell on a slate.

• load paper/card in the slate.

• move the paper down slate to advance lines.
• hold the stylus in an appropriate position to emboss a specific dot.
• write a line of legible, uniform dots, without breaking through the paper.
• begin a new line in a cell at right.
• skip spaces on a slate.
• write the alphabet, words, numerals, and sentences.

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TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC: An Activities Based Curriculum for Teaching Students who are Blind or Visually Impaired
The TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC is a digital pdf available for download. It is designed specifically for fellow itinerant Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments (TVI’s), and consists of over 400 activities and topic areas of discussion for instructing students in the Expanded Core Curriculum. The activities are age-neutral and multi-sensory and therefore can meet the needs of the broad range of students served on an itinerant caseload serving. The activities can be individualized to the students various learning modalities and scaffold in order to challenge students but ensure success. Select those activities that align with the student’s learning objects based on the student’s unique visual needs and academic and developmental level. In addition to the core activity areas, each of the 32 Thematic Units incorporates additional unique ECC concepts and skills providing you with a years’ worth of activities. These units are cyclical and can be used repeatedly to help students build on prior knowledge and develop a deeper understanding of concepts. Each unit includes suggestions for activity adaptation associated with the unit. These include lists of objects, possible community-based experiences, environmental print, poems, children & young reader books, children's songs, pop culture songs, movies, and websites.


In addition to the book, the following two supplements are included:
·      TVI’s Guide to the ECC Concept Checklist
·      TVI’s Guide to the ECC Activities Checklist


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TVI's Guide to the ECC Product details
·      Digital pdf download: 346 pages (11 pt font)
·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
·      Author: Carmen Willings
·      Language: English


Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheets: TVI's Guide to the ECC Grab and Go Supplements
The Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheets is a Grab and Go supplement to the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC. This workbook is a pdf download that can be printed on demand for use with students. It contains five different types of worksheets for developing visual motor skills and near magnifier fluency skills particularly with the use of a video magnifier. As a companion to the TVI’s Guide to the ECC, the worksheets correspond to each of the 32 ECC Thematic units. The worksheets, along with a list of environmental print for each thematic unit, are designed to help students refine their visual motor skills while reinforcing ECC concepts presented in the thematic units.  


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Visual Efficiency & Near Magnifier Fluency Worksheet Details:
·      Digital pdf download: 210 pages
·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
·      Author: Carmen Willings
·      Language: English


Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency and Maintenance Worksheets: A TVI’s Guide to Teaching the ECC Grab & go Supplement
The Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency and Maintenance Grab and Go ECC worksheet packet is a print on demand workbook that contains worksheets in print and simulated braille to use for data collection. Present the student with a hard braille copy and use the worksheets to document accuracy and fluency in reading braille. As a companion to the TVI’s Guide to the ECC, the worksheets correspond to the ECC Thematic activities presented in the curriculum guide. These word lists and sentences will help the student refine their keyboarding or braille reading skills while bridging ECC concepts presented in the thematic units. Although the lists and passages can be produced using a manual braillewriter, you may also copy and paste the passages into any braille translation software for quick production on an embosser. They may also be entered into a typing program such as APH’s Talking Typer to build keyboarding fluency.


For complete product details and additional images, visit the Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency & Maintenance Product Page


Thematic Keyboarding & Braille Fluency Worksheet Details:
·      Digital pdf download: 338-page print and simulated braille worksheets
·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
·      Author: Carmen Willings
·      Language: English


Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists: Grab & Go ECC Supplement
The Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists Grab and Go ECC supplement is a 446 page pdf downloadable print on demand workbook that includes 2940 vocabulary card on 3 1/2" x 2" templates divided by each of the 32 Thematic Units along with a checklist of each unit words in print and simulated braille. As a companion to the TVI's Guide to the ECC, the vocabulary cards correspond to the ECC Thematic activities presented in the curriculum guide. 


Additional Use:
Teachers of Students with Visual Impairments can have a extremely varied caseloads. It is possible to go several years without having a student on your caseload who requires braille instruction. Like other skills, if you do not practice your braille regularly, it is easy to lose those skills. Use these checklists and cards to maintain your braille skills. Fold the checklist along the line dividing the print from the braille. Choose to either read the print and produce the word in braille using a braillewriter or read the simulated braille and decode it. Finally, these vocabulary cards and checklists may be used with family members or peers who are interested in learning and practicing the braille code.


For complete product details and additional images, visit the Thematic Vocabulary Cards & Checklists Product Page


Thematic Vocabulary Cards and Checklists Details:
·      Digital pdf download: 446-page print on demand resource
·      Publisher: Teaching Students with Visual Impairments
·      Author: Carmen Willings
·      Language: English


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Lotto Cards
The LOTTO Cards Grab and Go Supplement includes 37 theme related unit cards along with activity suggestions that support activities within the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC.


On My Way File Folder Cards
Print and use these cards to represent locations the student may visit that are related to the current thematic unit. Use these with the On My Way File Folder Game outlined in the TVI's Guide to Teaching the ECC p. 27.

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