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)
Picture of a classic braille writer.
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.

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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