Accessible Information

Everyday braille

Summary: Examples of how braille is used including dates and numbers.

• Introduction
• The braille alphabet
• Writing braille
• Spacing and punctuation
• Numbers
• Telephone numbers and dates
• Postcodes
• Money
• Using braille
• Braille reading practice
• Grade 2 braille
• Braille tuition
• Braille producers
• Useful addresses

---

Edited by Margaret Wilson-Hinds

Introduction

Many people will know of braille as raised dots which blind people read with their fingers. This guide shows that basic braille is quite easy to learn by sight and explains how you can use braille to help friends and relatives who read it.

Braille is a fascinating code based on six dots, with two columns of three dots. Variations of the six dots represent all the letters of the alphabet, punctuation and groups of letters. There are 63 combinations of these six dots.

The braille alphabet

The braille alphabet is surprisingly straightforward. The code was devised by a Frenchman, Louis Braille, and it originally had no W.

The alphabet is set out in three rows to show how the pattern of letters is built up. Look at letters A-J, then K-T. K-T are the same shapes as A-J but have an extra dot at the bottom left. U-Z (apart from W), have two dots at the bottom.

A is dot 1, B is dots 1 and 2, C is dots 1 and 4, etc.

In braille, a capital letter is indicated by placing a dot 6 in front of the letter. Traditionally capital letters were not indicated in English braille, but as most children who are learning braille are educated in mainstream schools, they need to learn about the use of capital letters with their peers. Therefore, braille books for children are increasingly being produced in "capitalised" braille.

Although braille is made up of dots and not lines, you may spot some similarities with print letters, and find patterns which help you learn it. For instance, the braille letters J and P are a little like their print equivalents.

Blind people read from left to right across the page with a light touch. They use the soft pad of the finger to feel the raised dots as it is more sensitive than the fingertip. Almost all sighted people read braille with their eyes.

If you are losing your sight you could try to learn the braille shapes while you can still see, but do bear in mind that you may eventually need to train your fingers to do the reading. It might be easier in the long run to start with a braille course specially designed for touch readers.

Writing braille

Many people find braille easier to write than to read. There are various ways of writing, from a simple means of writing by hand with a style and frame to make each dot separately, to the sophisticated electronic braille printing machine. The most commonly used machine is the Perkins Brailler which is rather like a typewriter, and allows one to write any combination of the six dots in one action. Writing equipment and paper, thicker than normal writing paper, is available from RNIB Customer Services, ask for our Keeping in Touch catalogue.

You may like to try out some of the equipment at one of RNIB's Resource Centres before choosing what to buy. Your local blind society may also have a display.

Spacing and punctuation

Spacing

• Leave one blank space between words.
• Do not leave a space between a word and its punctuation.
• You do not need to leave a blank line to separate lines of braille when writing.

Punctuation

• Full stop: dots 2, 5 and 6 and is a similar shape to the letter D.
• Comma: dot 2 and is a similar shape to the letter A.
• Question mark: dots 2, 3 and 6 and is a similar shape to the letter H.

Examples of using punctuation are in the section Braille reading practice.

Numbers

Numbers 1-9 are represented by the letters A-I, with the letter J standing for nought. A numeral sign, dots 3, 4, 5, 6, is placed in front of these letters to show that they are numbers. A sequence of numbers is ended by punctuation or a blank space.

A numeral sign starts each new group of letters.

Telephone numbers and dates

Each string of numbers starts with a numeral sign.

Dates are set out with a numeral sign in front of each number.

Postcodes

You may well ask how to distinguish numbers from letters when they are together, as in a postcode. A letter sign, dots 5 and 6, is placed unspaced in front of the letters to show they are letters and not numbers or words.

Money

Amounts in pence are written without spaces like this:
numeral sign, number of pence, letter sign, P.

Amounts in pounds are written like this:
pound sign (dots 1, 2 and 3, like the letter L), numeral sign, number of pounds, decimal point (dot 2, like a comma), number of pence.

Using braille

Braille can be used around the home to label items which are sometimes difficult to identify, such as tins or packets of food, cleaning products, washing machine and cooker dials, bank and building society account books, CDs etc. Many blind people make their own labels or work out their own ways of identifying things, but most will appreciate a hand in sorting and labelling. If you help someone with shopping, the ability to label what you have bought will be very useful. Labelling domestic equipment.

Braille can be easily produced in the modern office with computers, special braille translation software and braille printers. Many organisations are now producing their information and correspondence in braille. So for you to have a basic knowledge of braille could be useful to your company and customers.

If you have a blind child and you know braille, you can help with basic reading and homework. It will strengthen the bond between you. Using braille around your home will encourage your child to learn to read and write more quickly. It will help them to feel less different from sighted members of the family. For additional support and information visit the Parent's Place and Education sections of the RNIB website.

If you live or work with a blind person, the ability to leave messages, phone numbers and so on in braille is invaluable. There is further information for employees and employers in the Employment section of the RNIB website.

Knowledge of braille could lead to voluntary work as a transcriber or proofreader, whether for people in the UK or for countries in the developing world where the British braille code is used.

Braille reading practice

Translate the braille paragraphs below.

Practice 1

Practice 1 reads:
You can make braille labels for things in the kitchen, using self-adhesive labels from RNIB Customer Services.

Practice 2

Practice 2 reads:
You can put raised marks on cookers and washing machines to set the temperature by touch - you don't need to know braille. Get RNIB's free leaflet "Labelling domestic equipment" from Customer Services.

Practice 3

Practice 3 reads:
You can get tactile clocks, watches and kitchen timers from RNIB. You lift the watch lid and can feel dots on the face. Most watches have three dots at 12 o'clock, two dots at 3, 6, 9 and one dot at the other hours. You don't need to know braille to tell the time!

Practice 4

Practice 4 reads:
If you have a computer at home or at work you could produce braille: but would need a special program to do this and a braille printer to make the dots.

Practice 5

Practice 5 reads:
One of the most useful books that will help you with braille is called "Check Your Braille".

Practice 6

Practice 6 reads:
Customer Services,
RNIB, PO Box 173,
Peterborough,
PE2 6WS.

Grade 2 braille

If you enjoy braille and would like to go further, you can learn the complete braille code which is known as grade 2 braille. It is more like a system of shorthand than grade 1 which just uses letters, punctuation and numbers,

The advantages of grade 2 are that it makes reading and writing quicker, and it occupies less space. Almost all books and magazines are printed in grade 2 braille. There are technical codes for writing foreign languages, maths and music.

Everyone who has learned braille will know grade 1, so you won't need to learn grade 2 unless you want to do a great deal of reading and writing.

Grade 2 uses the same letters, punctuation and numbers as grade 1. It also has wordsigns, shortforms and groupsigns. The following examples will give you an idea of what you will meet:

Wordsigns: some words are represented by single letters or other dot combinations, eg, B - but, C - can, D - do;

Shortforms: these are shortened words, eg, TD - today, GRT - great, ALM - almost;

Groupsigns: these represent frequently used groups of letters such as ING, ITY, TION.

Braille tuition

A variety of learning materials is available, ask RNIB Customer Services for a copy of our Information on Learning Braille factsheet.

Some courses can be used for self-study, however it is often more enjoyable and efficient to join a class or be taught one-to-one. Your local voluntary society for the blind, or the Social Service visual impairment team may be able to help, or may be able to suggest college courses, local teachers or existing braille users who may be prepared to offer occasional support as a "braille buddy".

RNIB runs a correspondence course in reading and writing braille from grade 1 up to grade 2 English braille. No prior knowledge of braille is needed. The course "Certificate in grade 2 English braille" is accredited as a BTEC Advanced Certificate at level 3 and leads to a final examination which assesses all the skills learned.

Braille producers

The RNIB National Library Service provides a large range of braille books to buy and borrow. You can search for braille books with the online Library Catalogue. For information on the fiction and non-fiction books (including textbooks) available from RNIB please contact Customer Services:
Telephone: 0845 702 3153 or 01733 37 53 50 (Some callers may find it cheaper to call a landline so we have detailed both 08 prefixed numbers and landline equivalents where available)

Email: cservices@rnib.org.uk

RNIB is the largest braille publisher in Europe. We produce braille versions of the Radio and TV times, and a wide range of other magazines and books from cookery to computing. You can request your bank statements, utility bills and other personal documents in braille.

The Scottish Braille Press sells magazines and some books and Torch Trust for the Blind produces religious books and magazines.

Useful addresses

RNIB Customer Services
PO Box 173
Peterborough
PE2 6WS

Scottish Braille Press
Craigmillar Park
Edinburgh
EH16 5NB
Telephone: 0131 662 4445

Torch Trust for the Blind
Torch House, Torch Way
Northampton Road
Market Harborough
Leicestershire
LE16 9HL
Telephone: 01858 43 82 60

Back to braille homepage

Content author: cservices@rnib.org.uk

Last updated: 12/11/2008 15:05