g e t t i n g r e a d y f o r c h i l d - c a r e a n d s c h o o l 139
Learning to read and write Braille
If your child cannot
see letters or is blind, a
specially trained teacher
can teach him to read and
write using a system called
‘Braille’. Braille may look
difficult, but that is only
because it is new to you.
Most children and adults
can learn Braille easily.
There may be special
schools or classes for
children who are blind,
and teachers who will
teach Braille to children.
To read Braille, a child runs his
fingertips over patterns of bumpy
dots that stand for letters of the
alphabet. These ‘letters’ are put
together to make words, like this.
To write Braille, a child can use
different tools. These are the
most common writing tools — a
slate and stylus.
A child writes with a slate
and stylus by pushing
the tip of the stylus
into heavy paper on
the slate. The stylus
pushes dots into the
paper. He can then
turn the paper over
to read the raised
dots with his fingers.
A child will be able to learn Braille more easily if he has strong, flexible
fingers. For more information, see page 98.
helping children who are blind